Frazz by Jef Mallett for July 31, 2013

there’s always something! weeds will sneak in any time the ground’s not frozen…..

what about rabbits? or, dumb cops thinking that sunflowers are drug plants? or, your nosy homeowners’ association thinking that anything on one’s lawn is an infraction, especially gardens.

Methinks she just wants to be one with Nature uninterrupted by children for the summer.

i always find the best time to help someone is when there is nothing to do

Aw, c’mon, Mrs. O. You’ve gone as far as getting your arm broken for the kid. Make up something. Let her work in that garden with you.

I don’t think Mrs. O is generically bored, but that she’s sighing for some gardening work. Our garden is pretty much on its own right now, too, with a good layer of weed-suppressing mulch, a sprinkler system that keeps things watered, and a brief hiatus between flushes of flowers needing deadheading. There are plenty of good books to read, and other hobbies, but Mrs. O’s favorite hobby just isn’t available right now.

Play a game with her while sipping lemonade and eating pastries. That should suffice.

She should live in Southern California. There is NEVER a fallow season. Mowing all year ‘round. Which is why I’m sorely tempted to put in concrete….

I’m thinking even gardening is just a substitute for Mrs. Olsen’s real hobby — cultivating and nurturing her students.