So, last week was crazy busy, and I ended up with some computer issues that threw me for a loop like you wouldn’t believe… and I over-reacted and panicked and yeah. Posts here didn’t get done.

Life, right?

Ha! You’ll have to suffer through twice as much me now. *snicker*

It’s been two weeks since the last post here, and I’m thinking wait a minute. Has that much time really passed, and where the hell was I while it was passing? Was it wearing Harry Potter’s invisibility cloak? And then I remember – between not being able to boot, and the steady drudgery of the monsoon (yes, Manitoba had a monsoon, because we said so) that dumped six inches of rain and had us under heavy cloud cover for what seemed like forever – time flew, but stood still.

What can I say? I live in New Bedlam.

Speaking of New Bedlam… Total Miner Forge* updated (and updated again after that!) and I now have v.1.9. They’ve given the option to copy and paste, and apparently it works between worlds as well. I’ve been seriously contemplating re-doing the old New Bedlam, and putting it in a semi-alpine or grasslands biome, rather than just the flat surface I’ve got it on now. BUT… one thing that was surprising – at least to me – was that the seasons are changing on their own. I thought we’d have to force the change using the season texture packs, but when I logged on and loaded it up the other night, New Bedlam was in the throes of a beautiful, golden-red fall. Possibly made more beautiful by the gorgeous sunset, but nevertheless… I was thrilled. Even seeing the dead flowers was awesome!

I’ve also been told that there is a way to post screenshots directly from the game to Facebook – I dunno if that is true or not, but oh if I could post pics of what we’ve done so far… *sigh*

The update did cause some grief, though. Most of the old textures have changed to meet the new HD standard, and while that’s awesome in so many ways, a lot of the textures I’d used for certain color and gradient looks and what have you, are no longer the same. I’m slowly working my way through the map, re-lighting, re-organizing and making changes. With the addition of a day/night cycle, more light is required, and certainly more light indoors as well. I’m really very pleased over all, even with the extra work.

Someone needs to do something about those chickens, though. Or ducks. They look like ducks, but I know they’re supposed to be chickens. They bounce all over the place and much as I want to smack one with the sledgehammer, it just won’t work.

Youngest and I have been working a bit on the gardening, too. Now that it’s day three (after the rains) I managed to get the flower pots done, with only the two hanging pots left to do before we get to the vegetables. The hanging pots need to have soil and compost added, so I have to wait until youngest is home from work… but they’re already so pretty! We’re trying Calibrachoa ‘MiniFamous iGeneration Purple Sand’ this year, after having beautiful baskets with Calibrachoa Voodoo Superbells two years ago. Last years black and red petunias were awesome, but the Calibrachoa is much more compact and suited for hanging baskets.

As we have every year for the past five (and occasionally before that!) we trusted our plant-buying to Hillside Greenhouse in Morden… I may be a bit biased in their favor since the owner, Kim, used to babysit me once in a while when I was a toddler. <|;^) Their place is so beautiful, and they've made it a very relaxing and over-all fantastic experience each and every time we've been there. I threaten to move into the petunia house every year. I love it in there! Both of Grandma Shirley's Bleeding Hearts were purchased through Kim, and one survived being transplanted four times before landing in its current home, in the garden of the Glas Celli high priestess. Had Gran been of sound mind when I became friends with Lorna I know they would have loved each other, and I'm sure she would have approved of my choice of garden to share her beloved Bleeding Hearts. I have never been disappointed with the plants from Hillside. Ever. I think I'll wrap this up, and get to working on the prompt post. The next 52 Weeks post will have some gardening tips and links, and a recipe or two, so stay tuned!