master gardener

Hotline seeds

Blog Yeah, kitt finished writing this at 16:11 on 29 November 2007

Today's hotline training was a stark contrast to last week's training. Where last week was a non-stop answer of phones and garden research, this week was a relatively quiet ordeal, with only three of us at the hotline. We did have phone calls, but they were few, and Sue Bell did most of the talking. Which seemed to suit both Jack and me just fine.

The highlight of the day was the seed search. The Master Gardening program will often receive donations of seed packets. Seeds are packed for a season/year, with date expirations. If the seeds don't sell by the end of the season, they can't be sold, so they are donated to the Master Gardening program. The Master Gardeners then use them in trials or volunteer projects.

For this project, a group of people were going to grow chile peppers to make holiday wreaths (next year, of course). This year's project included the gift of these seeds.

Since the seeds aren't fully organized, Jonica asked us to flip through the seed packets and pull out all the pepper plants. As an added bonus, if we found seeds we want, we could have them. What a deal!

I looked for yellow flowers, to match the front yard yellow design. I pulled out a few vegetable plants, and excitedly took them with me.

At work, I mentioned them to Doyle. He suggested I mention them to Shirley. When I did, wow, did her face light up. She sifted through the packs I had, and found Chinese chives. Apparently, she's wanted to grow them, but couldn't find them in the store. Her mom couldn't find the seeds, either.

So, yay! Serendipity!

And seeds!

Hotline training

Blog kitt decided around 14:16 on 1 November 2007 to publish this:

Today was my first Master Gardener Hotline day. I was late, arriving at 9:30 instead of 9:15 as the instructions suggested. What was worse, however, was the even later arrival of the two veteran hotline people and the other junior hotline gardener. They arrived between 10 and 25 minutes late, while I wandered around wondering where I was supposed to start and what I was supposed to do.

Eventually the other three people showed up, and showed me how to get the messages from the voice mail. I wrote down the names, numbers and questions, and called back the first person after researching her question. What i found strange about the calls were that the answers of each of the questions could have been found with a simple google search. Why call the hotline when you can just look up the answer in the Intarweb™

Of course, by gathering the questions into a hotline log, answering them, then posting the answers on the master gardener website, we'd have a phenomenal resource for local answers.

Honestly, I wasn't really looking forward to answering questions on hotline. I was sure to know none of the questions asked, given I haven't been in the garden for a while now, with ultimate and work, I haven't had much time. We were told to answer the phone, get a phone number, and offer to call back with the answer after researching the question.

I was worried about getting too may calls. I needn't have been worried, though, as any calls that were too many were allowed to roll over to voice mail. No problem. However, what I had problem with was the non-stop questions from one caller: I'd answer the original question, and as I'm about to say good bye, thanks for calling, she asked another question. I'd answer that question, only to be asked the next question. I kept wanting to say, "How about asking me all of the questions so that I can look up all the answers at once?"

Eh.

It was mostly a successful hotline experience.

All official and all

Blog kitt decided around 16:44 on 17 May 2007 to publish this:

Well, it's all official and all. I have graduated and am now a Master Gardener.

I now receive a HUGE discount on gardening and farm care books. Guess where my paychecks are going now?

Oh, hi, Kris. They're going to the house. No, really. The house.

Learning more than gardening

Blog Written with a loving hand by kitt some time around 16:17 on 19 April 2007

I learn more and more in the Master Gardening program each week, and not all of it about gardening. Today I learned that a large number of people in the Master Gardening program are tech-phobics. Either that, or they are worry warts to the level I could only dream of achieving.

Honestly, part of the problem is that I messed up and didn't verify we had equipment available that I knew we would need. As a result, we were sorta in a panic when the instructor arrived late with his equipment. However, rather than allowing us, the A/V team, to set up and test the equipment, several other people went into panic mode and needed to bring over duplicate equipment, even though we had four replacement parts for the original equipment.

Instead of insisting they stop worrying, it'll work out, it always works out, stop worrying, darn it, I said nothing, and let them worry, let them bring over extra equipment that we'll have to carry back over, let them flutter around like mother hens, and look, everything worked out and class started on time.

Go fig.

Not quite how I planned today

Blog Written with a loving hand by kitt some time around 18:19 on 6 April 2007

One of the great advantages of being in the Master Gardener program is early access to the plants available at the Master Gardeners of Santa Clara County's Spring Garden Market. Basically, we have first dibs on all the tomatoes, peppers, basil and salvias available to the public in two weeks.

Not that I know what salvias are.

After we arrived at the pre-sale plant displays, I, of course, having been in a car for more than twenty minutes, needed to pee, so wandered off to the bathroom, before heading back to the plants. In the bathroom, the lighting was strange, and I noticed my vision was a little strange during one glance, and even thought to myself, "Huh, that looked like a migraine."

I managed to head back out to the plants, and get a lay of the land, peppers to the far left, basil to my left, cherry tomatoes to my right, beefsteak behind them, and heirloom far right, before I realized I couldn't see half the face of the woman in front of me.

No, I thought. No, no, no, NO, NO! I have plans for today! I'm going to buy all my plants and plant them. I want to take pictures of this place and my garden before and after. I'm going to plant my blueberries and basil today. I'm going to go for a run with the dogs! I have a tournament tomorrow! NO!

I stepped back into the shadows of the gazebo, stood then, and started crying. 2 minutes later, I couldn't see anything out of the left side of my vision. I stopped crying and just stood there, waiting for someone to tell us we were heading home.

Susan and Abby noticed me standing there, looking no doubt like a lost little girl, and asked me if I were okay. When I said no, and explained what was happening, both of them immediately understood. Susan used to have migraines with aura, also. She said she didn't lose all of her vision as I do, but she understood. Abby also said she understood, as she has had migraines, though not with and regularity, thankfully. She offered to walk me around the area and pick out plants with me.

I was so overjoyed, and thankful. I might not be able to see what I was getting, but I would still be able to get plants!

Abby walked me around, asked what I wanted, found various different kinds of peppers, basil and tomatoes, reading the descriptions, offering suggestions, filling up two flats with vegetables. I managed to spend $87 on plants I couldn't see, but was sure to love when they grew into amazing bountiful food sources.

Susan and the carpool drove me home, Kathleen helped me open the door and shush the dogs, Janis and Kathy brought my plants to the door. I called Doyle and told him I wasn't coming in, took two Excedrin Migraine and tried to sleep.

I must have slept somewhat, because it was after one when someone knocking on the front door triggered a dog barking fit. It was only after stumbling to the kitchen and looking out the window that I realized there was someone at the door, and she wasn't leaving.

What is it with certain solicitors that they think they can hover at your door for five minutes while you're clearly NOT coming to the door, much less going to answer it. This particular solicitor is with some consumer studies group, presumably wanting to ask us detailed questions about our shopping and purchases. What I want to know is why our house has been targeted. I don't want to talk to these people. I don't want to let marketers know what I'm purchasing, allowing them to target me better. I don't care if the results are used in aggregate only, hey solicitors, get off my property, you are not welcome.

I tried to sleep more, but wasn't able to, having woken up, the EM caffeine running through my veins.

I want dark. I want quiet. I want vicodin or codeine or something to stop this pain. I don't have time for this.

On a tally note: 2 migraines to 2 menstruations. Much better than the Migraine Year from Hell, also known as 2004.

Master Gardener bio

Blog Instead of being asleep at 19:49 on 26 March 2007, kitt created this:

I'm getting good at writing my biography in the third person.

My Master Gardener biography: