Hangin' without Helen

Hi readers,
Helen's been gone a week - visiting her mother (with her sister) in Oklahoma. You might think she'd left me with a set of home-centric suggestions for the two weeks she's gone (and there were a few) but I've enjoyed coming up with some of my own ways to stay productive. Some of you may face some down time without your significant bother in the near future so I've started a list of possibilities for you.

We'll call the first group quickies:
1 - Square things up: I like symmetry and nice angles - and there are many, many options to this activity.
2 - Food Inventory: It may not be time to eat but its always good to know that the cranberry mustard is there waiting for the right time. WARNING: This can turn on you, and evolve from a quickie to a ill-fated longer term activity listed later.
3 - Gopher patrol: We live on a hill and like the view but gophers like a hill side too. We've hired professionals but I can walk the backside and grumble (this is more fully enjoyed if the neighbor's cat follows along and I can let him see first hand where he needs to focus).
4 - Laundry sniff: Thanks to Helen, the first week had me well stocked but the dirty laundry is beginning to add up. This activity is simply to determine if said laundry should be moved to the laundry room for staging.

Next we have a more standard set - with possibilities for variation. Dailies:
1 - Watering: I believe my mother commented when visiting that I water more than God. I've tried to take that to heart and being that the west is in a drought I'm doing the little things to help - but you must all realize that the LA basin is a desert and if you want grapes that look like grapes and roses that last in a vase for more that a day you gotta invest. (Plus I'm cutting back on laundry) One systematic change I've made is not walking away from a running hose. My preference is to multitask while gardening but now that I'm standing over the hose I can also catalog the run time by plant type to guard against over watering.
Fruit trees: run time = Until next bathroom run. Ah Hah (you may say) - you're still overwatering. If you consider all the natural elements in play: a man in his fifties with glandular growth and a running hose in his hand as well as a rising heat index, moving later into summer, you must concede.
Roses: run time = 17 lacrosse tosses by the neighbor boy and his friend (25 for the climbers)
Well, there are many more indexes and ratios that have been derived in this activity - but you get the idea.
2 - Food Prep - Helen uses many recipes and variations thereof and I am truly spoiled in this regard. I'm not at a total loss but one must recognize his limitations a make the best of it. A weakness can indeed become a strength. My general approach is one of process management. The fewer processes the better. Helen has an internal clock that allows her to have several dishes in work and bring them all to a glorious crescendo. I mentioned that I prefer to multitask in the yard but have come to see the beauty of the linear in the kitchen. For instance, if grilled shrimp is on tap for dinner the process is: skew shrimp, grill shrimp, baste shrimp, eat shrimp. Do not get talked into sideline activities like shredding cabbage or making a salad of any kind until the shrimp is gone. Do one thing, do it well and move on. This is a recipe for success. (I strayed from it last evening when Stephen and Marissa came over and we waited on some purple peruvian potatoes that were bringing up the rear.)
3 - Laundry: Still conceptual

Finally the creative items,
1 - Fly Boy: I'll admit that this one was accidental on the first go by leaving the screen door off the deck open. But having developed some really nice techniques I let a few friends in and work on the ground strokes. (Helen may ask that this stops)
2 - Commercial guitar: I'm a novice and the options for the beginner are repetitious (necessary) and simple (what else is feasible). But if you a want to get better you have to stretch yourself. If you're patient and know what you're looking for (see simple) you can catch a good riff in TV advertising. I think I caught a Rev. Gary Davis lick in a campaign ad. With the DVR I can repeat these little diddys until I have 'em (or my version). I do need some help here -what would you call a 3 minute string of these?

I was supposed to post a picture of the latest batch of grapes so Helen could get a look - but I let Stephen get away with his camera. Probably the best looking snips we'll get this year, with the heat coming (sorry babe).

Gotta go - much to do,

Ken