Homemade Trellis Ideas

So I (28F) found out I was pregnant 2 weeks ago. It was a total accident and I did not feel ready to be a mom. I always said I never wanted kids, but feeling the beginning of this life inside me, the decision was incredibly hard. I spent a week or so deliberating, going back and forth, crying. But eventually I had to face the facts. I’m just not ready. Yes I’m old enough, and I’m financially stable. So it’s hard for me to reason that terminating the pregnancy was okay. But also I’ve had this one life goal since I was a kid and I’m so close to achieving it. If I had a baby now I genuinely just could not do it anymore. I waited my whole life to achieve this and worked so so hard. I don’t think I would ever not regret sacrificing my life’s dream to have a child right now. I also want to just… live a little? I had to delay going to college so I only graduated about 2 years ago. I spent most of my adult life working and studying and I just want to have the chance to travel and see the world without every trip being “kid friendly”. And my career has really been picking up this past year. I’m in line for a pretty big promotion and I’m achieving things work-wise I could’ve never dreamed of. But on the other hand, my boyfriend (36M) really really REALLY wanted this baby. He was so excited about it. He didn’t pressure me to keep it but me choosing to have an abortion has shattered him. We went together to the doctor and he sobbed the entire ride home. He’s walking around like a zombie and can’t even look at me. As silly as it may sound, I genuinely considered keeping it just because I couldn’t stand the idea of breaking his heart like this. But I knew that would be insane. As much as I didn’t want to hurt him I knew I couldn’t bring a child into this world when I genuinely didn’t feel ready to be a mother. The worst thing I’ve done was the deliberation. Like I said earlier, I went back and forth a lot. This was not an easy decision for me to make. I knew logically all the things I listed above, but I’d see a rose-colored future where we were this little happy family and I’d veer into “maybe I should just keep it”. But ever time I even considered this, his hope and joy would sky-rocket. And then when reality sunk in and I knew that it just wasn’t right, he’d plummet into misery. I feel like I’ve ruined our relationship irreparably. And that’s the other thing. We both had really messed up upbringings so we have a lot of issues. I’ve been in therapy for 6 months and I’ve made some progress, but I fear it’s not enough yet for me to be the kind of stable mother I wished I had. He has just now begun therapy and has gone to his first appointment but it’s still so early on…. I don’t think either of us is healed enough to be mentally healthy parents yet. Our issues and clashing has caused a lot of relationship problems too. Arguments, volatility, etc. It’s not a stable environment and at times it feels like a toxic relationship. I spoke to him about waiting maybe another 2 years? I said “it’s not never, it’s just not now”. By then I could accomplish my life goal, advance in my career and I feel like we’d both be more healed and prepared to offer a baby a happy home-life. But I can’t blame him for being emotionally destroyed by this. I am too. I’m trying to be logical and to do what makes sense, what feels like the right thing. I keep thinking I’d rather regret having an abortion than regret having a child. My mother regretted having me and she never let me forget it. It’s my nightmare to turn out like her. I’m so sad to have gone through with this, but I feel it was the right choice for me. And I’m even more sad seeing how truly destroyed my boyfriend is by this. I worry he won’t ever forgive me. Homemade pizza my boyfriend made for dinner. It looked better in real life. submitted by /u/VaporMouth to r/GirlDinnerDiaries [link] [comments]

I am not The OOP, OOP is u/Informal_Parsley_775 Baguettes are disappearing from my apartment without a trace, and I have no idea how or why. Originally posted to r/mystery Thanks to u/EmotionalAnybody7186 u/Choice_Evidence1983 & u/soayherder for suggesting this BoRU TRIGGER WARNING: Breaking and entering Original Post June 19, 2026 First time redditor here, I have never been one to post things on the internet, but I am genuinely SO confused and need to figure this out for the sake of my own sanity. For a little background, I, 26-year-old female, have recently gotten into sourdough bread making, and after some of my coworkers bought baguettes from me, my hobby became a successful side hustle. I get around 20-35 orders a day. Around two weeks ago, I baked Exactly 50 baguettes, which I know because each baguette form/tray makes ten baguettes, and I baked five forms, SO 50. when all of the baguettes were done, I went to bed and left them to cool on my counter. When I woke up, I immediately went to package the cooled baguettes, and I came up two baguettes short, so I recounted, only 48 baguettes. Because I always bake a few extra baguettes for myself and to give to my friends, this was not a problem, but I still was confused as to what happened few days later, the same thing happened again, except I came up four baguettes short. The very next day, I took EXTRA care to count out the baguettes, exactly 30. After they baked, I lined them up I three equal rows of ten, SO 30.I went to bed, and the nest morning, each row only had 9, so 27 baguettes. This confirmed that the baguettes were in fact going missing. Honestly have no clue how they could be disappearing, I don't have any pets that could eat the bread, no roommates or a partner to steal it, and no one other than myself has a key to my apartment. I highly doubt that anyone would be able to break in through my front door without me noticing, and while I do have a balcony, I am on the fourth floor, so i doubt that anyone would scale the building. I do have neighbors that I suppose could access my balcony from theirs, but each balcony has about an 8-foot gap. The door to my balcony does not lock, so if someone could get to my balcony, they would easily access the bread. The fact that anyone would ever break into a house to steal bread is so weird and unbelievable. I am not a sleepwalker to my knowledge, I am not schizophrenic, and I am not on any medications nor do I need to be. All of the reasonable answers to this mystery are so unlikely and frankly silly. I ordered a small hidden game camera to see if the baguettes are truly being stolen, which should arrive tomorrow. I am pretty sure I am of sound mind, so if this happens again, I will really start to get scared. At this point, I really just need the reddit community to help me solve this. I would greatly appreciate any of your theories and will hopefully update in a few days about the situation. TL; DR baguettes have been going missing from my apartment, and I cannot figure out why or how RELEVANT COMMENTS whattheartgarfunkel Do you own a carbon monoxide detector? OOP the way I SPRINTED TO the detector!!(it was running fine but I still replaced the battery to be safe!) ~ Miserable-Ring3943 Is anyone in your building named Jean Valjean? whoatemarykate Do you hear the people search? Searching for loaves that disappeared! It is the anger of the bakers Whose worst nightmare has appeared! When the rumbling of your gut Echoes the emptiness of shelves There is a hunt about to start To find the bread ourselves! Miserable-Ring3943 Will you steal a loaf for me? Cuz I’m as hungry as can be The grumbling of my tummy Is a loud cacophony The sandwiches made with the bread Will be yummy and we will feel fed… FIRST UPDATE: I have no idea if this is the right way to update, so please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong:) I want to thank all of you that offered advice and theories!!! checked my carbon monoxide detector, and it was fine! I do not use weed or even alcohol, and I don't wake up full, so really don't think i am the bread thief. as for my landlord, I believe she would never do something like this, she is a very sweet middle-aged lady and has never given me a reason to believe that she would go into the apartment without my knowledge. at this time, I am afraid that it is likely a human thief, because of how neatly the baguettes disappeared. I have taken some precautions, by barricading the front door, the balcony and my bedroom door. Honestly, I don't feel unsafe, because I highly doubt a bread thief would try to kill me lol. because of my baking schedule, I did not bake today but set out 15 cookies on a plate to see if any disappear. (they are oatmeal chocolate chip, homemade) the camera should arrive at around 4 Tomorrow. I will also be baking tomorrow, and I will be able to set up and video. I ordered a lock for my balcony, but that won't arrive until next week. I have not contacted the police yet because I don't really have much evidence, and nothing else has gone missing. Wish me luck! Ill update tomorrow morning to let you know if the cookies were taken :) TEENY SECOND UPDATE: I was just scrolling through the comments. and one commenter gave the link to this confessions post; https://www.reddit.com/r/confession/s/oTpuSlOW5o this post was submitted after my initial post and after my mention of the cookies. I know that this is fake. because you cannot see or smell the cookies from the balcony, and i have been home all day, with no possibility of anyone entering my apartment i honestly think that this is funny, and i am not upset, but i just wanted to clarify that the confession is illegitimate :) THIRD UPDATE: I woke up this morning safe thank goodness :) when I took down the barricade for my room and went to the kitchen, I checked to see if any cookies had gone missing. All 15 were still there. The balcony and front door barricades were both intact! this could mean a few things: Rats don't like oatmeal chocolate chip cookies The barricades stopped an intruder The thief knows my baking schedule, every other day breaks in, and because I'm baking today, will smell the bread and try to steal bread again I fear the third option is most likely. For now, I will have to wait until the camera arrives. Ill update soon! RELEVANT COMMENTS TightpantsPDX Do you have an attic? Could someone be frogging in your place? OOP there is an attic but not directly above me, I have four apartments over me, so eight floors in total with an attic for maintenance. I have no access to it, and security is pretty tight so I doubt anyone could frog here One-Place-3438 This makes me think you need to check air vents and stuff. I started out feeling like your story was an elaborate math word problem—now it’s a full scale heist with Mission Impossible tech. 😂 And I am invested in finding out where did the baguettes go? FOURTH UPDATE: the cameras have arrived!!!! there are actually four motion activated game cameras that my father recommended for the quality and easy use! (he is a hunter) I set one at my entryway, one at my counter, one at the balcony, and one on the balcony. I am currently baking baguettes, so if the thief's signal to break in is the scent of bread baking, I suspect I will have a guest tonight. I briefly considered the idea of staying in a hotel tonight to be safe, but i have a Glock to defend myself if needed. Yet again, I don't think a bread thief is going to try to kill me lol. I will still barricade tonight though. I think that the cameras will be able to reveal what's been going on :) my hope is that somehow, I am the problem, but I fear that someone may be breaking in! FIFTH UPDATE: a few commenters suggested checking for secret panels or other places someone could break in. I thoroughly checked the apartment and didn't find anything suspicious, so my intruder most likely came in through the balcony. SIXTH UPDATE: no sign of the thief yet! the baguettes are in position; I am barricaded safely :) HUGE SEVENTH UPDATE: THE THIEF HAS BEEN REVEALED!!!! at around 1 am in the morning, the cameras picked up some movement, and when I looked at the live footage on the counter, THERE WAS A MAN. (worst case scenario) so, I called the police and stayed in my room. While they were on the way, I was watched the man steal two baguettes (I wasn't crazy), and then it clocked to me how he got in. THE HUGE VENT ON MY CEILING!! (For context the vent is almost directly above the refrigerator) he has been climbing out of the vent, onto the refrigerator, then the counter, and lastly the floor. This was confirmed by watching him disappear. The police arrived maybe 2 minutes later, and when I explained what was going on, they went into the vent after him. He was arrested for breaking in, and I was asked to go down to give a statement. This took a really long time, so sorry I could not update sooner! as to who this man is, he IS one of my neighbors! because this is now a legal thing, I don't think I should say much, but what I will say is that I never would have expected this from him! I didn't know him well at all, but he seemed nice enough. The thing is that I still can't figure out his motivation? Like I know that baguettes are good, but how do you figure out the vents, and go onto break in and steal baguettes? obviously, I notified my landlady, and she was very understanding that I will be leaving. The officers said that I will be able to go and get my things later today. Since I don't have anything else to do today, I am going to see my psychiatrist and then stay at my friend's house until I can find a new apartment. thank you so much for your support, ideas, and funny comments! I am giving you all metaphorical baguettes! :) WAIT NO ILL JUST GIVE YOU THE(scaled down) BAGUETTE RECIPE (makes about 4) WARNING: vague instructions, I am really bad at explaining things :), also may cause thieves to break in and steal baguettes ingredients: 1 .370 grams unbleached bread flour 2. 200 grams warm water 100 grams active sourdough starter (you can order one online ) 4. 10 grams salt instructions: mix all ingredients and knead dough. Cover and let rest in a bowl for 1 hour. perfom stretch and pulls, let rest for another hour. repeat second step two more times, then let rest for 4-5 hours shape into baguettes, and cold proof in fridge overnight. preheat oven to 420 degrees Fahrenheit, place baguettes in oven. on the lower oven rack place a cookie tray with ice cubes to create steam. bake for 1 hour, let cool completely get baguettes stolen Update 8 posted June 21, 2026 (2 days later) UPDATE EIGHT: I am doing well today! It hit me that this all happened when i went to my psychiatrists yesterday. she helped me process this as much as possible! also, apparently the thief is not able to pay his bail, so he will stay in jail until the court hearing, which makes me feel a lot safer :) I'll try to update as soon as we get a verdict! THIS IS A REPOST SUB - I AM NOT THE OOP DO NOT CONTACT THE OOP's OR COMMENT ON LINKED POSTS, REMEMBER - RULE 7 submitted by /u/Direct-Caterpillar77 to r/BestofRedditorUpdates [link] [comments]

I made some tomato sauce over the weekend to serve over some baked chicken, and I've found myself with a lot leftover. It's kinda basic, with garlic, mushrooms, carrots, and celery. I've already used up some of it by mixing it with ground sausage for stuffed peppers, and I was hoping for more ideas to try and get 1-2 more meals out of it. I'd also like ideas that don't involve pasta, since that feels a little too obvious and I want to be a bit more creative if I can. submitted by /u/MarineBiomancer to r/Cooking [link] [comments]

When we first got married,my husband was very supportive and encouraging. He always talked about the future he wants for us and the kids and I also used to express my heart desires and wants. In recent weeks,I noticed a slight change of attitude in my husband. I’ve always wanted to further my education. After working for a few years, I finally got the opportunity to enroll for a postgraduate program, I was so excited and couldn’t wait to share the news with my husband. Instead of congratulating me,my husband started pointing out reasons why this was a bad idea. PS: I’ve always told him I wanted to further my education and he promised me to support me. At first, his excuse was the cost and the stress(which I told him I have some savings to pay towards this program). But every time I mention going back to school,he always find a new excuse. Few days ago, he tried to have a conversation trying to convince me that this is a bad idea and he thinks he wants me to be a trad wife and focus strictly on our relationship and the kids. I genuinely feel he is just scared of me succeeding and this is a bad trait I wish I noticed earlier. Right before we married he never liked the idea of a trad wife,I don’t know what’s going on with him or probably his friends are whispering in his ear. I just want all the support from my helpmate but I’m getting none. Please advice me on what to do girlies. Dinner is some homemade spicy pasta. submitted by /u/PixelPrincesx to r/GirlDinnerDiaries [link] [comments]

In the picture: My first try at homemade neapolitan pizza. I’m a 30 year old woman and I am sitting here genuinely asking myself: WHAT THE FUCK IS THE POINT OF HAVING A MAN IN MY HOUSE??? What does he actually contribute??? Because from where I am standing, being in a relationship with a man provides absolutely ZERO benefits and just creates an insane amount of extra work. Because I was raised on this idea that men are supposed to be “useful.” Right? Not in a tradwife way, before anyone starts rambling. But in the basic “adult partner who makes your life easier instead of harder” kind of way. Everything men used to be "good for" historically? Completely gone. Handy around the house? Please. I have to do all the repairs myself because his DIY knowledge stops at using a basic screwdriver. Carrying heavy shit? The guy is 6’3, 210 lb y‘all, and he literally ASKS ME FOR HELP to carry boxes. Princess treatment? Fucking joke. I carry my own suitcase to the car, and I make my own morning coffee while he is still fast asleep. But wait, surely he handles the finances and does the taxes every year, right? LOL, NO. Okay, but then he is at least good at confrontation and standing up for us because he is this supposedly "dominant, masculine man"? NOPE. If someone needs to be told off, I do it. If there’s a difficult phone call, I do it. If there’s conflict, I handle it. Well, then he must be a high earner and I am living the trophy wife luxury life? HAHA, I WISH. He makes decent money, but so do I. In fact, I would probably have WAY more money if I lived alone because I wouldn't be spending a small fortune on groceries every single month just to feed a human black hole who eats two to three times my portion sizes. Is he attractive? Fine, yes, he is a total snack. BUT HE WOULD LITERALLY WALK AROUND LOOKING LIKE A FUCKING 15-YEAR-OLD TEENAGER IF I DIDN'T CONSTANTLY GO SHOPPING WITH HIM. I literally had to explain to him that a fucking HOODIE and his ancient, crusty sneakers are not appropriate attire for a romantic Valentine’s Day date. Like sir??? Are we going to dinner or are you on your way to the skate park back in 2009??? But you want to know what the absolute worst part is? It is not just that he adds zero value to my life. It is that having him around doubles and triples my housework and the fucking mental load, which I have to carry COMPLETELY ALONE, just like my own fucking suitcase. He is completely useless when it comes to chores. And men still have the audacity to ask why women are tired, why women don’t want marriage, why women are choosing to be single, why women would rather live alone with three cats and a beautiful pink couch and a fridge full of snacks they don’t have to share. Ladies, honestly? Break up. Move out. Get your whimsical, girly, cute apartment back where your peace is protected and nobody is leaving disgusting beard hairs in your freshly cleaned sink. YOU CAN DO ALL OF THIS BY YOURSELVES!!! WHY ARE WE WEIGHING OURSELVES DOWN WITH MEN WHO ONLY MAKE OUR LIVES HARDER??? Go pack your bags, leave his useless ass, and live your best hot girl single life. Over and out. submitted by /u/halbzehn to r/GirlDinnerDiaries [link] [comments]

I would like to try and start gardening. I want to start in pots because it’s easier for me right now. I would like to plant sugar snap peas, cucumbers and kale. I know the cucumbers and sugar snap peas need a trellis. Any cheap and efficient homemade trellis ideas? TIA submitted by /u/alittlefaith530 to r/vegetablegardening [link] [comments]

submitted by /u/KH5-92 to r/mealprep [link] [comments]

​ My mom has two small flats on our property that she rents out. The one tenant complained about a blocked drain, and so my mom called in a plumber, who, upon unclogging the drain, found 190 of these bad boys. Mom is convinced they're homemade crack pipes, I'm not so convinced but also have NO idea what these could be. If anyone's got any ideas, I'd love to hear them! submitted by /u/HoldYourHorrors to r/whatisit [link] [comments]

Someone at my job has been stealing my lunch out of the communal fridge for weeks. Im not guessing. I know exactly who it is. This newer guy who started about two months ago. Some context. I follow a pretty strict diet for religious reasons. I cant just run out and grab food from wherever so I bring homemade meals every single day. Its time consuming but its necessary because my options are really limited otherwise. When my food disappears Im not eating lunch. Period. Theres nowhere nearby I can get something that works for me on short notice. I think this guy figured that out. He follows similar dietary restrictions and I think he clocked early on that whatever I bring is safe for him to eat. Im pretty visible about my background so it wouldnt have been hard to connect the dots. Every time my lunch vanished hed be sitting at his desk eating something that looked suspiciously like what I packed that morning. I talked to him about it twice. Both times he completely denied it. Acted confused. Said he had no idea what I was talking about. So I dropped it and just kept bringing my food because what else am I supposed to do. Stop eating. Last week my partner made dinner and we had leftovers. The meal had an ingredient in it thats totally normal for me but that this coworker has a serious restriction against for his own personal reasons. I packed the leftovers for lunch the next day. Wrote my name on the container like I always do. Didnt list the ingredients because nobody in our office does that. Its a communal fridge full of containers with names on them. Thats it. Lunchtime comes. I open the fridge. My food is gone. Shocking. I walked to his desk. Hes eating it. I told him straight up that the food he stole has a specific ingredient in it that I know he doesnt eat. He stopped chewing. Started yelling about how I did this on purpose. That I knew about his restriction and deliberately didnt warn him. That I basically booby trapped my own lunch to catch him. He said I could have just confronted him again instead of letting him eat something he cant have. I told him I DID confront him. Twice. He denied it both times. And I dont owe a thief a detailed breakdown of whats in my personal food. If he didnt steal it he wouldnt have eaten it. Simple. Went to HR. They reviewed everything. Ruled completely in my favor. Said stealing food is a policy violation and that I had zero obligation to label ingredients on my own meal. I didnt set anyone up. I brought my own leftovers from my own dinner. I didnt change what I eat to trap him. He made the choice to open a container with someone elses name on it and eat it. Every consequence that followed came from that choice. Not mine. AITJ? submitted by /u/crystal_butterflyyx to r/AmITheJerk [link] [comments]

I plan on building my new garden very shortly and was planning on using all wood like a Douglas Fir. But now I'm wondering if its better to use metal raised beds instead. In your opinion what's the better option for price, durabilty, and overall use? Zone 6b submitted by /u/Spitfire4xw to r/vegetablegardening [link] [comments]

1 Megamind:Originally the script for this movie was more adult and vulgar it was also originally called Mastermind,Metroman was called Uberman,some of the most notable changes are minion was gonna be replaced by 2 human helpers called Plato and Da Vinci,it had swearing,instead of turning into a space dad megamind would’ve turned to a Asian master similar to Mr Miyagi from Karate Kid and Hal was gonna be even more of a creep in this version of this movie,ultimately the studio went with a more family friendly version and it gave us the iconic movie we all know today. 2 Black Sabbath:The mighty Black Sabbath originally was gonna be softer and bluesier sounding rather than their groundbreaking and still heavy to this day music,story goes that guitarist of the band Tony Iommi was working in a sheet-metal factory it was also his last da before he quit to become a full time musician too infamously Iommi lost the tips of 2 fingers he then made homemade plastic finger tips,tuned his guitar down and used lighter strings which gave Sabbath their darker,thicker and heavier sound around the same time bassist Geezer Butler became interested in darker themes,horror imagery, and occult ideasInspired in part by a horror film starring Boris Karloff they wrote the first ever metal song “Black Sabbath” eventually the band renamed themselves after the film Black Sabbath and the rest is history. 3 Thor Ragnarok:Not much is known about this version of Thor Ragnarok but boy if you couldn’t tell by the logo this motherfucker was gonna be darker than what we actually got,it was supposed to be darker than the other 2 films because it featured the Ragnarok event,However Chris Hemsworth was frustrated and bored of playing Thor and reportedly told Kevin Fiege this "I feel like I'm dying here. I feel like I have handcuffs on," he was incredibly unhappy with the character Feige agreed with Hemsworth and then they abandoned the whole dark film concept and went for a comedy movie basically. 4 Doom:Doom was originally gonna be a Aliens game based on the first 2 movies,some negotiations were conducted with 20th Century Fox but ID Software didn’t get the license they the abandoned the concept and it was imagined as a Aliens meets Evil Dead 2 and also their recent D&D campaign which ended with demons overrunning the entire planet. 5 Toy Story: Toy Story was initially envisioned as a feature-length version of the Pixar short Tin Toy,the original protagonist was a mechanical drummer toy who went up against a ventriloquist's dummy,however the drummer was replaced by a tiny space toy named Lunar Larry (who later became Buzz Lightyear) and the dummy became Woody who originally was a major asshole and had a more distasteful personality,one notable example is that Woody actually throws Buzz out of the window on purpose and doesn’t care about it he also then proceeded to heavily insult the toys especially Slinky Dog which then results of the toys turning on him and attempting to throw him out too,after a mockup of the movie was poorly received by Disney, the writers spent months reworking the script and instead of making Woody a narcissistic,jealous and just overall a massive scum bag they decided to change his personality by making him the wise and loyal leader of the toys and still keeping that jealousy over Buzz but way more sympathetic towards him in the last act of the movie. submitted by /u/Je0s_6 to r/TopCharacterTropes [link] [comments]

I planted two pumpkins plants near each other in February (in zone 8a)—the first thing I've ever planted in my own official garden. I had little soil prep and no idea of how big they were gonna get for my small garden space so I grew them on a homemade trellis. And they did better than expected! Three pumpkins came to full growth (the third in the background snapped off while I was on vacation so idk if it'll continue to ripen or not, RIP). But I am SO SO HAPPY with my two big pumpkins! I regularly keep the pumpkins I buy for Halloween until July of next year when they tend to rot, so it's only fitting that this tradition continues but in reverse! My grown pumpkins are done in July and will be perfect for carving in October! One pumpkin I let grow in the soil, and the second I let grow under a paper plate. Neither rotted on the bottom and there were tunnels in the dirt and bugs beneath both of them. There was a baby snake under the plante one! Such a fun surprise. I will be cleaning them off and taking them inside where they'll be on display until Halloween (and maybe after, hehe)! I am so so pleased 🥰🎃🍂 Happy Halloween, everyone! submitted by /u/Necessary-Butterfly8 to r/vegetablegardening [link] [comments]

Thought I'd show off my (mostly) homemade pots, hangers, and trellises, since people seem to frequently ask for ideas. My collection is super inconsistent, I experiment with a lot of different setups, but these are some of my faves. Pics are numbered (lettered?) for ease of reference, and I'll split up comments on each category to make it (maybe?) easier to read. Pots: I use clear plastic deli containers, mostly 16oz but I have some larger plants in 24 or 32oz. I get these from my local buy nothing facebook group, people always hace extras. I also use small clear cups, 3oz and 5oz. I use a soldering iron to melt holes or slits into them. If I want to create a reservoir space between the two containers, I use hot glue to make "ledges" on the inner pot to hold them apart. The 3rd & 4th photos marked E (accidentally used E twice, too lazy to relabel) show the ledges on 16oz and 3oz containers, and you can also see them "in action" on A, B, and C. Sometimes I use a decorative outer pot, that can help if you're having algae issues. I'm also experimenting with using washi tape on some outer pots, but that's still a WIP. Thrift stores are amazing for finding cache/cover pots (cups, mugs, planters, etc), but remember to bring examples of your different inner pot sizes to make sure things will fit or you'll end up with a whole cabinet of mismatched stuff 🙃 Hangers: Plants marked F show more details of the hanger that plant A is on. It's made of 2 long loops of craft cord (joanne fabrics), a wood round with holes drilled in it, and a metal ring. The cord makes two perpendicular loops, joined at the top with a slipknot but you don't really need a knot at all. I adjusted the length of each loop by moving the knots under the wood to get them even, and since the cord is 2 perpendicular loops, you can adjust it dynamically to make sure it's level. If you are worried about the knots pulling through the holes, use washers or beads. I get wood rounds locally from fb marketplace - craft stores sell them too, but they're crappy and thin. Plants marked G use two connection points, I like this better for wide plants or plants I need to move often. I often put plants on this style while I'm acclimating them to semi hydro so I can more easily remove to inspect or flush them. I got the 2-holed wood piece from a local plant store but it was sorta spendy. Each connection point is a loop under the wood (these are not crossed underneath), and an adjustable knot on top with a ring through it lets me level it more easily, or use non-leveled connection points. I have one (unpictured) that has zip ties at the top instead of rings. I generally use a ton of zip ties Plant H uses a macrame hanger with a large platter as the base - taking plants in/out of macrame is a PITA so this is my fave way to make it a bit easier. Macrame is super easy to DIY, and cute colorful cord is cheap. Platters are easy to find at thrift stores. Trellises: Plants marked A and B use trellises made of wood skewers and hot glue. I generally don't like sticking my trellises in the actual substrate, I find them really difficult to adjust and I don't want to disrupt roots. The skewers are just hot glued directly to the inner pot. Plant C has a single wood skewer, I'll probably give it a proper trellis like the others as it gets bigger/if it needs (doesn't seem to care for the skewer so far lol). The hot glue doesn't have to be neat! Mine is so messy, but it's not very obvious when looking at the plant as a whole Plant D uses a gold-ish metal trellis, brass maybe, idk? I got it from a plant store. Again, I don't like sticking them in the substrate, and this one is too wide anyways. I poked holes in the inner pot (lazily used a knife but it'd look nicer to melt them), and sort of have the ends wedged between the two pots, and also reinforced with a rubber band. I will probably hot glue this one too eventually (I put this one together before I got the glue gun). Plant E uses a hanger from ikea (well, from fb marketplace, but originally I think this is ikea), I have it gently clipped/wrapped around the hanger itself. The downside here is that I have to unclip/unwrap it to take the plant out to flush it or w/e. They're clipped loosely enough that I can pull the pot out a few inches without unclipping for very simple inspections. I have another style (unpictured) with a metal ring going all the way around the hanger, very cute for long vines that you can wrap all the way around, but again pretty hard to move. Jeez this ended up long! Hope it's useful to anyone who read all the way down here 😅 submitted by /u/cntennial to r/SemiHydro [link] [comments]

submitted by /u/conceptsoftime to r/landscaping [link] [comments]

My wife is a vegan to an extreme almost and I really like meat. She does not know that I built a smoker in my shed and make my own jerky when she's at work (I work from home) and that I have it hidden in the house. She asked me one time if I smelled a smokey meat smell and I just shrugged and said "Must be the neighbors." What she doesn't know won't hurt her and who's it really harming if I enjoy a little meat on the side? submitted by /u/SlyJerker to r/confessions [link] [comments]

Question 1 - Can i use some standard fruit protection netting for climbing plants? Mainly sweet peas and edible peas? I have an abundance of it and lots of bamboo canes so was going to feed the canes through the net to make a type of frame / trellis if that makes sense. I only ask as lots of the trellis / climbing ideas i see are made of twine and more spaced out netting. Question 2 - Does anyone have some crafty homemade cloche ideas? I live in the Highlands and direct sown some salads / beets and chard recently but still a risk of frost bect few weeks. Thanks! submitted by /u/Milkthefire to r/GardeningUK [link] [comments]

A lot of people dream of moving out to the country to start their farm or homestead. But, often the practical realities of rural homesteading are not a dream come true for everyone. In fact, I know quite a few homesteaders who have regretted their decision to leave their urban or suburban lives. So, before you trade in your city conveniences and move to the middle of nowhere to homestead, consider the pros and cons of three very different ways to homestead and farm. ​ Rural Homesteading When most people think of homesteading, it usually involves living in a rural area with enough land to become totally self-sufficient. There are many benefits to homesteading this way. Yet there are also some big drawbacks too. ​ Pros of Rural Homesteading Cheaper Land Access Rural properties usually come with a lot more land for less money. Since they don’t have luxury services like municipal water, curbside trash pick-up, and sewage removal, they also tend to have lower property tax rates. That makes it easier to afford these properties, and live self-sufficiently off the land. A while ago we had a post discussing how to obtain free land. These are states who aims to attract homesteaders to the ‘road less traveled’ and boost the population and economy of smaller towns. Greater Capacity for Self-Sufficiency The more space you have, i.e. more land, also means you can meet more of your basic needs on your own property. You’ll have enough area to raise all the livestock you need for your protein needs, with other words goats, sheep, pigs and cattle. If you choose the right livestock for your landscape, your feed costs can also be minimized by letting the animals forage for themselves. You can also use your land to provide for many of your non-food needs like firewood, water, fiber, and home craft supplies. Additionally, if you have enough land, hunting and foraging are also possible options to round out your food supply. Fewer Legal Regulations If you want to make a large vegetable garden in your front yard, put up a fence, hang a laundry line, raise some pigs, keep a rooster, catch rain, tap a spring, dig a root cellar, build an outbuilding, get naked outdoors, burn trash, hunt on your own property, do target practice, and more – these things are generally less regulated on rural-zoned properties. Easier Inspections Even things that are regulated like adding a pond or building a house are often easier to navigate in rural areas. With fewer applicable regulations and no city ordinances to contend with, rural inspectors may have more leeway on approval processes. This is a great place to let your dreams come true and build, or should I say construct, one of these amazing container homes. In rural areas, human contact is the normal way of doing business. So, you can even pick up a phone and talk directly to the inspectors to get advice before you start your planning. Off-Grid Options Typically, rural properties don’t have access to city amenities like public water. They may or may not have electricity. Sewage is usually handled by the property owner, such as with a septic tank. The lack of infrastructure and tie-ins with public utilities leaves more room to implement off-grid water systems and other ‘green’ solutions. Water collection or access points such as irrigation ponds, well digging, or spring tapping likely still require permitting. Yet, as long as you have reasonable plans for construction, that process is usually simple. If your property has no access to electricity and no near neighbors, things like wind turbines, solar panels, wood-fired and/or steam-based heating systems, and personal hydropower is less controversial. That makes it easier to get approval to add these innovative power systems to your property. Slightly more “out there” technologies like Jean Pain mounds (using decomposing wood for heat), rocket mass heaters, methane digesters, composting toilets, walipinis, root cellars, and more also tend to be a matter of personal decision rather than permitted processes. ​ Cons of Rural Homesteading Fewer Convenient Amenities Rural areas often lack good internet connections. Cell service can be spotty. You have to haul your own trash to the dump or burn it. You have to maintain your driveway and possibly the roads near you, such as in snow. Ambulance and police responses can take a half-hour or more in an emergency. Hard to Sell If you do decide rural homesteading isn’t for you, those same market forces that made it cheap for you to buy property will make it hard to sell. Even under-valued properties can take years to sell. Isolation Rural living can feel quite isolated at times. Going to town can be a huge chore. Visiting a neighbor often involves getting in a car. Even delivery drivers will often drop packages at the start of your drive rather than your doorstep. Rural Stigmas Also, frankly, depending on where you live, sometimes the stigmas about rural residents are true. There’s a lot less diversity in unpopulated areas. That leads to more suspicion and slower acceptance of people who don’t quite fit the local mold. I’ve encountered disheartening levels of unapologetic racism. I’ve met many people who rely entirely on opinion-based talk show hosts to inform their worldview, instead of doing their own fact-based research. Religious zealotry and disparagement of people who hold different religious beliefs are also quite common. Now, I’ve also met plenty of open-minded, well-informed people who simply prefer not to be part of the rat race in the city. So, this is absolutely not a blanket criticism of rural people. But these traits seem to be more common than in rural areas than the cities I have lived in. ​ ​ ​ Suburban Homesteading Before I moved to the country, I started homesteading on a suburban property. It’s difficult to become completely self-sufficient in the suburbs. But you can definitely increase your self-sufficiency by leaps and bounds if you carefully navigate regulations. ​ Pros of Suburban Homesteading Access to Supplies In a rural setting, if you run out of something mid-project, it can really slow you down to have to run to town for supplies. In suburban areas where hardware, home goods, and other supply stores are abundant, it’s easy to get what you need and get back to work. Lots of Waste Products It’s also easier to collect waste products from stores and restaurants and to pick trash to use for homesteading activities. For example, there are lots of things you can do with by-products in the suburbs. Hit your local cafes to get coffee grounds for growing oyster mushrooms in buckets. Pick up restaurant waste to feed your chickens (or the worms or soldier flies you raise for chickens). Pick up restaurant waste to make bokashi to compost for soil fertility. Collect beer grains from your local micro-brewery to make spent grain bread, compost, and cut your livestock feed bill. Having the municipal tree trimmers drop their waste mulch on your driveway whenever they are in the area. Get cardboard from stores to sheet mulch your mini-orchard or new garden areas. Collect your neighbors’ unwanted leaves to make leaf mold in fall. Cruise the curbside trash stash for free stuff to help you build raised beds, make a chicken coop, trellis your mini-vineyard, decorate your potting shed, and more. ​ Money Making Opportunities If you live in a suburban area, you also have more potential customers for your extra homestead products. That can help you cut your homestead costs and fund more projects to help you increase self-sufficiency faster. For example, your neighbors may buy your extra eggs, herbs, vegetables, and craft projects you make. Maybe you can start extra plants for them in your greenhouse when you start your own. You can upcycle all that great trash stuff you find for free and re-sell it at yard sales. Livestock Options Some suburban areas allow small livestock such as chickens, rabbits, or mini-goats. You can also probably keep bees and have a worm bed without running into too many regulatory challenges. ​ Cons of Suburban Homesteading Aesthetic Regulations Planned suburban communities and housing complexes with homeowners’ associations often have fairly strict aesthetic requirements. This can drive up the cost and time involved to make things like livestock shelters. It can also limit how you plan your garden and raise livestock. For example, grass height restrictions may prevent you from growing a meadow and wildflower lawn for your bees. You may also have to grow vegetables in the backyard only. Sometimes you can’t even hang up a laundry line outdoors. Infrastructure Regulations Suburban areas often have lots of rules about things like installing fences, sheds, trellises, wood stoves, ponds, and more. Even if there aren’t regulations on the books, the town or city may reserve the right to make individual decisions for unregulated projects. Depending on their stance on homesteading, this can sometimes limit what you can do on your own property. Or, at the very least, it can mean it takes longer to finish projects due to needing approvals or permits at different points in the process. Neighbor Challenges The act of homesteading is inherently beautiful. Growing a garden, raising your own happy livestock, saving energy by drying laundry on a line and more are good for the planet and for people’s souls. Yet, not everyone appreciates having homesteaders for neighbors. The neighbor who sprays herbicides to keep clover out of their lawn may not love that you are using it as a nitrogen fixer in your mini-orchard. Not everyone loves the racket hens make each time they lay an egg. You’ll need to navigate some extra challenges when you live with nearby neighbors. ​ ​ Urban Homesteading A lot of people think urban homesteading is new. But, my grandparents did it in Cincinnati, Ohio over 60 years ago. They grew elderberry trees and made homemade elderberry wine. They had an extensive yet compact nearly year-round vegetable garden. They even bought live animals to process at home to save money. Today, there’s a lot of difference in regulations related to self-sufficiency from city to city. So, your city’s stance toward homesteading will determine how much or little you can get away with in your urban setting. I’m going to point out a couple of obvious drawbacks to urban homesteading. But I’ll end with a few ideas for how you can homestead despite the big challenges. ​ Cons to Urban Homesteading Heavy Regulations Generally, urban cities are the most regulated living areas. With so many people living in such close confines, you should assume just about everything you want to do is prohibited. Some progressive cities, and also some poverty-stricken cities, are becoming more open-minded about homesteading. But, there are still hurdles to face to get approval for many of the things you want to do. Lack of Land The biggest con to urban homesteading is a lack of land. If you are lucky, you may have a postage-sized yard to work with. With as little as 1/10th of an acre, you can still provide a lot of your food. But you will likely need to buy more inputs to keep up soil fertility and feed any small livestock you are able to keep. Limits to Self-Sufficiency Some city dwellers don’t even have balconies or windows to work with to grow food. In those cases, you’ll need to rely on electricity to turn interior spaces into homesteading space. You clearly won’t be able to grow all your food in a 600 square foot apartment. But you can still build skills. Most importantly, you can flex your ingenuity muscles and come up with creative ways to homestead with limited space. ​ Pros to Urban Homesteading Now, I know I did this last category of homesteading with cons before pros. But that’s because I want to end on a positive note, by telling you some of the ways you can homestead even in urban settings. Keep in mind you will need to think beyond the in-ground garden and large livestock options. Yet if my grandparents could do it (without the internet or all the technological tools we have today) I know you can too! Urban Homesteading in Pro-Self Sufficiency Cities In cities with pro-local sufficiency stances, urban farmers can often raise rabbits for meat. Public spaces can be used to keep community chickens. In small yards, bantam chickens can produce eggs in less area than full-size hens. Aquaponic systems can grow fish, fertilizer, and vegetables in small spaces. Abandoned lots can become allotment gardens. Grow tunnels expand the growing season so you can produce food year-round. Rooftops can be turned into productive farms and bee gardens. Balcony container gardens can be optimized to take advantage of vertical gardening space. Shipping containers can become full-blown hydroponic farms. Homestead-phobic Urban Settings In some urban settings, it can seem impossible to do more than store extra water and canned food under your bed for emergencies. You can sprout greens on your counter. Grow a hydroponic salad garden in your closet. Vermicompost under your kitchen sink and use that to fertilize your windowsill medicinal herbs. Buy ingredients from your farmer’s market. Then cook from scratch. Put up tomatoes, salsa, jams, and more using inexpensively bought farmers’ produce seconds. Believe it or not, you can also grow insects for protein indoors. This isn’t quite normalized in the US. Yet in lots of other cultures, insects are considered to be an environmentally sound human-diet option to other meat sources. ​ Homestead Anywhere The bottom line is that you don’t need to move to the country to be a homesteader. You can do it anywhere. You just need the determination and creativity to pursue your homesteading dreams. Don’t wait! Homestead now, wherever you live. ​ Source submitted by /u/LIS1050010 to r/selfreliance [link] [comments]

submitted by /u/radioactive_fella to r/WinStupidPrizes [link] [comments]

submitted by /u/ionowhatimdoin to r/gardening [link] [comments]

I grew cucumbers from seed this year and they’re finally growing and flowering (make flowers) after transplant shock, but there are no tendrils yet. They were a vine variety, and I am anxious for them to grow up a homemade trellis, any idea of how long for them to appear? submitted by /u/myeyeball23 to r/gardening [link] [comments]

Part One: The Unknown I watch my dad’s sweaty palms turning the steering wheel as he makes a sharp right turn onto a gravel drive. We have been driving for over two hours and his hands haven’t relaxed their grip since; I know things are bad in the family, but is it bad enough that he is willing to isolate me from my mother? After my younger sister Lainie’s death two years ago, my dad began to withdraw further and further into himself: eating dinners in his office, coming home after everyone was in bed, and even ignoring our pleas for him to take us on camping trips like he used to. Mom, on the other hand, now loves my sisters and I with a passion that can at times be suffocating; we are all painfully aware of her fragility. I have no idea where we are going or what we are doing- I, now being the youngest of the siblings was spared the graphic details when my dad suddenly showed up during school today and left with me after telling me there was an emergency and we needed to leave right away. He picked me up from my school during my fourth period- my favorite, anatomy and physiology. He was waiting outside the school and when we got in the car, he explained that we were going to be going on an extended vacation and that mom, Sabrina and Hunter were going to be staying here. He already had my bags packed and I could tell this was not up for discussion. Obviously, there are a lot of unanswered questions lingering in the air but he swears that once we get there, he will explain everything; where “there” is is still a mystery. I always had this sixth sense about my dad… I knew when to tiptoe around his short fused anger; one wrong move, and I could send him into one of his episodes. Silence is always safer, so I sit and pretend to listen to the jazzy tune playing on the radio. I listen as the wheels flatten out the small rocks on the gravel path as we slowly make our way up a winding hill covered heavily by dense green trees. At the very top of the path, there is an imposing structure that seems to have been built during the Gothic era; it has a black, sharply slanted roof with multiple levels and protruding windows that are wrapped with green ivy. Over time, the ivy grew around the structure with twists and turns that wrapped itself through worn down trellis, gutters, and window shutters; it looked as if it was protecting the old home. As we draw closer, I feel the energy in the car change. I begin to wonder why my dad seems so off; his generally neutral nature now seems bothered and impatient. As I start to panic at the thought of being in a totally foreign place without my mom and sisters, he slams the car into park and opens his door to get out without saying a word. I sit and contemplate my options- do I sit and wait to see if he gets angry enough to force me inside or do I go willingly? I’m exhausted from the anxiety during the drive out so I choose the latter. “Dad, what’s going on? I’ve tried not to bother you because you said you’d explain things later but I’m starting to get scared. Where are we? Why isn’t mom with us?” I ask in a soft tone as I watch him walk towards the back of the car without looking at me. He pulls out a singular black suitcase from the trunk and begins walking towards the foreboding building. Just before he reaches the front staircase leading to the massive black door, he suddenly stops and turns around to look at me. When I see his eyes, my heart skips a beat in my chest. They seem darker than usual… almost as if the blackness of the building was casting a shadow on his face. “Don’t worry, Alex. Everything will be okay soon. Once you come inside, I’ll be able to answer your questions.” He simply turns around, walks up the stairs, and disappears into the eerie corridor. It seems to be more than a building- it has an energy radiating from it that screams at me to go inside despite the other half of my brain crawling in the opposite direction of the door my dad just disappeared into. As I step onto the front step, I peer into one of the windows at the front of the house. As I’m admiring the oddly patterned curtains that are hanging in the window, I see a porcelain like face with black eyes peering at me from a fold of the curtains fabric. As soon as I realize what I’m seeing, the figure slowly ducks away out of sight. What the hell did I just see? To quiet my nerves, I convince myself there must be one of my dads friends in the house with him; that’s what I’m praying for, at least. I shake off the feeling of discomfort as I take one final step into the dark corridor. As my hand touches the bronze doorknob, a whispering breeze sweeps the hair off of my neck and chills run down the length of my spine. When my hand begins to turn the doorknob, I hear a voice scream at me to run away. I falter for a moment, realizing that the voice sounds just like Lainie; I refuse to give in to that belief to prevent a repeat of the hospital trip from last year. As my foot penetrates the entryway and my eyes adjust to the total blackness, I hear my father’s voice coming from above me. “Alex, we are so glad you decided to join us. It feels like an eternity that we have been waiting for you.” His words seem to be carefully chosen and slowly drawn out as if he tastes them on the tip of his tongue. I thought we were supposed to be alone here. If the rest of my family isn’t here, why would someone else be here with him? I begin to hear footsteps making their way down what sounded like a marble staircase, starting off slowly, seeming to test their boundaries like a lion during a hunt and once it was decided that I am meek prey, they quickened their pace. As I turn to run out of the door, I feel a sharp stinging pain in the back of my head before everything goes black. As I am slowly drifting in and out of consciousness, I try my hardest to take in my surroundings but all I can hear are whispers coming from all directions.They seem to be coming from above me, below me, and on every side. I can’t pinpoint one specific voice, because it sounds more like a low, vibrating murmur. Shaking off the stupor, I begin to panic when I come to the conclusion that the blow to my head is causing temporary blindness. Then I quickly notice the pressure of fabric against my nose and realize that I am blindfolded; surprisingly enough, this doesn’t quiet my concerns. I start thinking back to the last thing I remember- I remember the last thing my dad said to me about awaiting my arrival…the way he drew out and enunciated the word “we” as if it held some deeper meaning. Just as I start to regain enough strength to open my eyes, I hear the room go totally silent as if there was a soundproof blanket dropped over the strange people that quieted all of the voices. I feel silent excitement fill the air and I tense my hands as I prepare myself for what is to come. I start to picture possible outcomes and start to hyperventilate at the thought of never seeing my mom and sisters again but then realize that my safest option is to maintain the facade of still being unconscious and with a few deep breaths, I’m able to reel in my panicked thoughts. I hear a man clear his throat, obviously preparing himself for a long discussion or rant. When I hear him begin speaking, the blood in my veins turns to ice. “Ladies and gentleman, thank you all for being here. Tonight is a special night for us, as you know- it’s a cause for celebration. Tonight is the night that you meet our savior- my daughter, Isabella.” Dad. My dad. Speaking in a tone and dialect I’ve never heard before- speaking to a group of people I had no idea existed. Did he just call me their savior? I lose my ability to hide my panic and begin to rip away at the blindfold hindering my ability to see the group of people I still feel surrounding me. As I open my eyes and anticipate to see a mass of people ready to pummel me, I see no one. All I see in the large, empty room is my dad standing at the top of a grand staircase, boring his piercing black eyes into my soul. Part Two: The Reckoning My dad has been totally silent since I bombarded him with dozens of questions concerning who was responsible for the freak show that took place last night in the entryway of the house. I tried asking him, begging him to tell me what was going on and to tell me who the people in the room with us were last night but he just looked at me with those dark, piercing eyes and gave me a silent warning to stop pushing him. I can’t help but wonder who is responsible for knocking me unconscious. No matter how off he seems right now, there is no way he is capable of physically hurting me. After he became fed up with my constant stares, he told me to go and wait for him in the upstairs living room area and to stay there until he came to get me. The stern look he gave me when he gave me that demand let me know to be obedient, and I quickly headed up the stairs, somewhat thankful for the reprieve from his malevolent energy. Luckily for me the small musty room is adorned with a vintage box television that has access to nine channels, all of which are news stations and mind numbing infomercials. I’ve spent most of my time today reading from a pile of dusty books on the floor in order to ignore the thousand pound weight I feel in the pit of my stomach. I’m unable to focus on any of the words and seem to read an entire page and not know what anything says. To quiet my thoughts, I turn on the t.v. and turn the dial to get to a news cast. The picture is grainy so I adjust the antennas, first moving them down towards the sides of the box, then facing the window and I keep them there when the picture becomes clearer. As I focus in on what the woman on the screen is saying I realize there was a triple homicide in my town. I’m not totally surprised because of the size of city so I don’t fully focus on the words until i distantly hear my street name mentioned. I quickly sit on my knees and move my face inches within the screen, trying to wish away the crippling realization of what I’m about to hear. “... authorities were called to the home of the Henley family after a concerned teacher contacted authorities for a welfare check after the family failed to make it to drop their children off at school or show up to work. Upon entering the premises, the body of a middle aged woman was found deceased in the living room of the home and her two daughters were found deceased inside of her bedroom closet. Mr. Henley picked his youngest surviving daughter up from school just hours before the grisly discovery. The words all seem to begin to blend together as I feel my heart pounding out of my chest and feel the ground beneath me seem to go soft. I can’t seem to process what I just heard. “...at this time, the location of Mr. Henley and his surviving daughter is unknown. If you have any information about their whereabouts, please contact authorities immediately. It is possible that Isabella Henley, fifteen years old is in immediate danger.” The words continue flowing in and out of my brain in a singular movement with nothing seeming to hold any bearing. The petite brunette newscaster stares glaringly into the camera as if attempting to show some form of compassion or worry for my shattered family, but behind her eyes you can see the excitement she feels about being the first on the scene to a triple murder and potential kidnapping. As a little girl I remember laying behind my house in a big open field and watching the clouds slowly drift by as I imagined what animals and pictures I saw within them. It seemed so natural to see the unseeable, and I remember a day that I sat down and instead of giggling at the innocent picture show, I recalled from science class that the clouds were just huge masses of water vapor that weren’t actually fluffy pillows I could bounce on as my mother read me imaginary stories of princess and knights. There is a beauty in ignorance, but I also craved more knowledge. With knowledge, I lost my ignorance. I always knew my father was capable of something, but I convinced myself that because he was our dad, he would never be capable of doing anything to us. No matter how bad he got. The feeling of realizing my complete and utter ignorance to the true workings of the universe pales in comparison to the shock and despair I feel after hearing of my mother and sister’s deaths- the deaths that were more than likely committed by the one person who was ever meant to protect them. I haven’t been listening to what the television has been saying since; the only stream of thought I can muster is if my dad is actually capable of committing such an inconceivable act. To rip away the only people who loved him? There is no way he is capable of that- that’s what I tell myself to quiet my crippling anxiety, at least. I think back to the last few months and the nonstop tension that I’ve felt within our family. Instead of eating family meals my mother would pour herself a glass of wine and retreat to her study. Dad never really left the basement so that just left myself and my sisters. To lighten the mood we would light candles and play vintage records on moms record player. Homemade lasagna was our favorite- we each made a layer. The buttery sound of the music escaping the player always seemed to soothe my soul. I think back to a time when our family was whole, and happy. Dad was still working on the police force and mom was an elementary school teacher. They did everything by the books; waited to get married until they finished college, had babies after marriage, settled into a beautiful house and raised their family. Where did it all go wrong? As I began to feel the shock of my situation I feel a thick, dampened blanket of helplessness begin to surround every cell of my being. I lay down on the floor and pull my knees to my chest as I close my eyes and try to picture what my last happy memory was with my family. I think back to our last family vacation to Universal Studios and can’t help but remember how much fun Sabrina, Hunter and my mom were having seeing all of their favorite movies brought to life and how my inquisitive eye couldn’t help but notice how my dad always seemed to be checking his watch or his phone, seemingly anxious for something. I brushed it off as him checking the time, but now I can’t help but ask: Was this his final gift to his before he planned on killing all of us? As if waking out of a dream, I hear what sounds like a whisper coming from the dark room at the end of the hallway. As my brain slowly shakes away the fog of my memories, I hear it more clearly now. It’s definitely a voice, a hushed and clearly terrified voice. “Help me... Please... Help...” the words are starting to become clearer now, more enunciated and urgent. It jolts me and I quickly stand up, ready to either run away from the room, or into it... I continue to hear the pleading and as it gets louder, my ears strain to recognize the small breaks in the words as the person tries to choke back tears. I realize that I’m hearing my mothers voice and before I know it, I’m sprinting into the pitch black room, not realizing in that moment that my mother has been dead for days. submitted by /u/TrueCrimeandCoffee to r/WritersGroup [link] [comments]

Last year was my first year gardening and I grew a ton of herbs, carrots, radishes, various peppers and salad leaves in my garden. I had beds, hanging baskets and planters and my greenhouse fell apart so I grew a huge chilli plant in the kitchen. Now I'm in a more urban area and I have no soil, just a paved outside area. I brought my homemade planters on casters with me and I have a ton of pots. The one thing I do have is a very narrow brick bed that runs along the back wall of my place and round a corner. It gets a decent amount of sun. My plan is to install trellis along the entire wall and have a garden of climbing vegetables. I figure that the climbers will be able to reach higher and get the most sun possible. My veg in pots will have to be more tolerant of shade. What are my options? The only thing I've seen that I'm really interested in is tromboncino, mainly because they seem to be very prolific. I have no real ideas about what kinds of peas of beans I want to do however I do have some purple dwarf beans I'll probably just plant because I have them I'd also like plants that will cover the wall. For hanging baskets, I'll probably do four or five different ones. One will be strawberries, but I'm not sure about the rest. I doubt it will get warm enough to grow tomatoes outside. Does anyone have any experience urban gardening, particularly with a focus on vertical? submitted by /u/DieHalle to r/gardening [link] [comments]