I took this one pic and then headed in for dinner with the plan of taking some additional photos before nightfall took over.

Well that never happened …

For dinner, my wife put together a mammoth burrito for me – chicken, black beans loaded with lime juice, avocado and tomatillo salsa. Good friggin stuff. I then picked out a beer to go with it – a 750 ml (with cork)   Weyerbacher Double Simcoe IPA. It was a trip to gastronomical and hops heaven.

Because we are enjoying warm temps for October (upper 80’s today), we were able to dine al fresco. Just my wife and I enjoying the outdoors … and a dog barking incessantly and two kids determined to break the Guinness Book of Records for annoying behavior. The more I ate, and drank however, the more I was able to tune the distractions out and simply enjoy the great outdoors.

After crushing my dinner and my fantastic brew, I felt a jolt of energy … a jolt of gardening energy. I had a pile of mulch and a pile of cardboard that has been sitting idly for weeks now, just begging to be used and tonight was the the night to finally do it. I helped clean up dinner (because I’m thoughtful like that) and headed out into the darkness ready to complete the task at hand.

It’s been a while since I “gardened” slightly inebriated and I have to tell you, it was hella fun. I literally sprinted from the pile of cardboard to the spot in the garden where it would be laid down and then back to the mulch where I then ran with the mulch filled wheelbarrow to my ultimate destination. I could barely see a thing in the darkness but I was having so much fun.

By the time I was done, I was covered in sweat and mulch and smelled like a brewery. But I was able to complete a task I’ve been ignoring for weeks now. I even planted three Itea ‘Merlot’ shrubs I “stole” from Lowe’s for only $3.99. The sense of accomplishment is unbelievable as I now sit here, showered and smelling like a rose. And I have a new found appreciation for IPA’s and gardening. I’m thinking we have a new blog idea here …

John