Thanks guys...itÂs good to know that there are people that like me...even if I *am* a little wierd! ;-) LOL! V...are you tym tin me? :-) Guess itÂs only the right thing to do to stop and get *mom* (yea thatÂs the ticket) get *mom* some St. JosephÂs Day sweets! :-) LOL Cynthia...no that isnÂt mom...that *is* me, with my newborn son. Though, I remember at that time I felt *older* than my mom. Colicky babies cause sleep deprivation and I would literally pass out the instant my son would fall asleep! :-) Betcha T can probably relate to those dark circles; huh? Yes, how are those darling little twins doing? I bet they keep *you* and their mommy & daddy hopping. But, they sure are adorable; arenÂt they? :-) Sue I was so sorry to read about your insurance woes...but I give you all the credit in the world...I admire your strength and tenacity! Keeping positive thoughts that *everything* goes smoothly. ItÂs been cold here, but sunny...the snowdrops are blooming, daffs and tulips and other small bulbs starting to pop up. Cut the hellebores back yesterday and they are all full of fat flower buds! :-) Also cut down all the OGÂs....what a job! Has me thinking IÂm going to remove all but 2 of the miscanthusÂ...they are the messiest to work with. But keeping the panicums, calamagrostis, and the helictotrichons (even though they re-seed like crazy)...been cutting the flower heads off in fall and thatÂs helped. I will definitely try to pop in more often...itÂs been pretty hairy here and this week isnÂt much better. Mom has started the "day care"...we call it the "Senior Center" (more dignified, I think). Everyone there is great and mom seems to like it so far. And, I may be imagining it or wishing it, but I really think I see some improvement in momÂs alertness and verbal exchanges...there may be hope. Still waiting on her last set of tests. Tomorrow I take Scout in for x-rays. WeÂre pretty sure itÂs arthritis, but theyÂre doing x rays of his whole left side, his neck and left shoulder too. Want to see if there are arthritic changes or if there is a possible bone chip causing his pain...keep good thoughts for my baby! Well, gotta go...after I drop Scout off at 7:30, I tutor from 8:30 Â 09:30 and then meet Dottie at the track to *walk* (we arenÂt up to running yet):-)...so I've got to get to bed. IÂll try to write a proper post at Idyll 310. I know IÂve missed lots of things, including birthdays...Happy Birthday Honey!...Happy Birthday Chelone....Happy Birthday Ryan! Ei

@KnoxRose z7 Maybe you have your answer since it’s been sevetal years now. However, there are several reasons & remedies to balling. Only certain roses with big buds/many petals are prone to balling. Mme Anisette & Belindas Dream have lots of petals/big buds. However, your rainy weather can cause the balling at that point. When rain or humidity gets buds wet the petals get soaked and ball sometimes. Moisture can cause balling at first. However, if the rain is a short spell followed by a baking sun that only bakes a few outer petals if a bud-if the inside petals are healthy-you can just peel off the baked crunchy outer petals and let the bud open normally in the sun. Then there is no fungus so it is healthy to keep the blooming bud. Another scenerio is if bud is soaked all the way through then baked. If it is a perfectly all dry crunchy bud tgen prune off & dispose sanitarily. Again, it may not have any fungus on it. On the other hand, if the bud has been moist for a few days it may be soaked all the way through too much. If you find all the petals are slimy(which you say they are not) , but if they were slimy then it is a fully damaged bud , may have fugus started, and needs removed & sanitarily disposed of. These are conditions that cause fungus like Botrytis to get started. No worries as seems you don’t have fungus. Fungus damaged buds should always be removed/disposed sanitarily. Botrytis is a fungus caused by excessive moisture for too long a period, but doesn't hapoen all the time on balling roses. Balling is the result of the bud being too moist from rain or humidity, but fungus sometimes follows if bud is moist for too long, only. Other ways to prevent balling is move your roses to sunnier drier locations, prune them in vase shapes to provide better circulation, and space them away from being over crowded with plants providing better air circulation. Sometimes it is best to consider selecting roses that work best in your climate, not prone to balling, unless the balling doesnt happen too often. @Lilyfinch z9a Murrieta Ca I read your Clotilde Soupert was balling. in CA. I had a lot of rain and humidity last summer in NY-every other day even, but loved Clotilde Soupert who did fine. I had her in my most sunny-afternoon sunny spot in the garden-she never balled. Do you have lots of humidity-a coastal location or rain? Is there a really dry hot spot in your garden you can move Clotilde Soupert to? Clotilde S is just one of those roses w/ lots of petals prone to balling so if she’s kept drier or in more sunny location-she can do well.She’s so pretty! .

Jodi is not a mean drunk. She takes excellent care of her animals. She drinks beer all day long. It doesn't bother me. Yeah she talks a lot in the evenings but it isn't anything I can't cope with. I am grateful to have a place to stay near my animals. She keeps a spotless house..... works her butt off. I wish she didn't smoke or drink, but I feel like it is none of my business. She doesn't smoke around us. Y'all don't feel bad for us. We aren't missing any meals, we have a roof over our heads and we are comfortable with Jodi enough to know she doesn't consider us a pain in the butt. She is happy for company. I am the one who can go all day and happily never speak except to a cat, dog or horse. Everyone has been so incredibly kind to us. We don't want for anything. Our house is over 100 yrs old. It has been thru a lot. It sat 8 years cut in half on a house mover's lot. It is built out of heart pine. You can hardly drive a nail in it. It will be fine. Many people have it so much worse than us. And as I have said before, we don't have enough sense to be worried. And believe me, worse things have happened to us. And Mama Pinky is right. I socialize on FB and forums..... That makes up for being somewhat of a recluse in real life.

Rescues also lie about their animals. Plus some of the foster people are NUTS! They find every excuse not to rehome an animal. I have one horror story about a dog that re-homed 5 times. His foster person was terrified of him although she tried to hide it. We were the last home. He was obviously "back-doored" out of a shelter when he was put on the unadoptable list meaning he would be humanely put down. We adopted him and had our vet put the poor cage raged, vicious, unpredictable dog out of his misery. My friend worked for the humane society for years. Lot's of shenanigans which is why the shelters have so few breeds that people want. The rescues take them and in effect resell them sometimes for 5 or more times the adoption the shelter would charge. For every good honest rescue there are dozens of bad ones. Some have such stringent requirements you would have to be a full time stay at home adult with no children under twelve who would never let the dog outside in a fenced yard without supervision. NUTS! I got two great dogs on Craigslist. One was from a young couple who were absolutely heartbroken to give up their sweet Rottweiler. The rules in the town they lived changed and no one would rent to them. Moving wasn't an option. The other was a puppy. I searched high and low for a Black Lab puppy. Having lots of experience with larger breed dogs and their health issues from early spay and neuter I could not bring myself to get a rescue or shelter dog due to their mindless early neuter policy. Same with my current Rottie. Found her on a pet finders list.