Gardening and blogging in Florida.

 As many of you know, my name is Mallory Tomei, and I am a 23 year old student.  Recently I moved from a very small town in California to a slightly bigger town in Florida, in the name of love and progress.  As much as I enjoy it, I find myself missing my family and extended family back in Placerville, and have decided to start this blog as a means to stay connected.  I live now in a house right on the lip of a rolling river.  There are always birds and jumping fish in my backyard.  I live with three guys, and they are all medical students at Nova Southeastern.  One out of the three is my boyfriend, Carlin, who is the funniest, smartest, most interesting boy I've ever, ever met.


But that's enough about who I am.  The things about me that are going to be important are going to be hidden throughout this blog anyway, so there's no point giving up too much too soon.  Not to mention, I feel as though a majority of people reading this already know me, and therefore, how much could there be to say?

Today, the sky here in Florida seems to be reminding us that it could, at any time, open up and let go that warm, tropical rain it is so famed for.  But the river is only slightly rippling due to a warm, southern breeze, and the birds have not flown, but are complacently beneath their favorite tree, and so I am not too worried about a storm.  The task for today was to start a garden, rain or not, and that is exactly what I did.

I went early to a local farmers market, where I picked up some plants I knew would do well in heat and full sun.  I knew they had to accompany my basil plant, who I have nicknamed Stanley, who has lived on our riverside for almost a month now, and is getting too big for his little plastic pot.  I picked up a hearty looking eggplant, a few spriglettes of broccoli, a healthy jalapeno (complete with one tiny, baby blossom), and a packet full of soy bean seeds, just to give them a try.  Next I went to Home Depot, and bought some cheap terra cotta pots that were on sale, a cheap bag of organic dirt, and a trowel.  Next I was ready to start planting.


One forgets how stimulating dirt can be.  I know, I know, that sounds weird.  Just take drugs right?  Kidding! But in all honesty, once I opened that bag and got the musty, earthy smell of planting soil, I found myself energized and excited.  I turned on some soft, acoustic music, and listened to the quiet flowing of the river, and dug my hands in that soft pot of earth.

Next, I wrestled up my little plants, which sat eagerly on a folding chair beside me.  The first to go in, because he had waited the longest, was my basil plant.  When I pulled him loose from his plastic container, I found his roots had started growing out the bottom.  He truly is a happy, hearty plant who has enjoyed his time by the river so far.  I cleared a large hole in the moist dirt, and in he went, now sharing his little pot with two of the smaller broccoli sprigs.

I proceeded to put the other plants in their respective pot. The eggplant with the jalapeno and some broccoli sprigs (the remaining sprigs have a pot to themselves), and the soy bean seeds in Stanleys old plastic container. Once it was done, I swept the dirt out by a curious, noble looking duck, who had come this way to spy on what good things I was putting on my porch.

I am sitting out by my little garden right now, overlooking my river, on which there is a family in a canoe fishing. I am about to finish up this blog entry, which I apologize for if you found it boring beyond belief. But I am using today and the garden story as a trail period to see if I enjoy this, and also to get in the groove of it a little bit. My next blog, when I have more time, will be a retelling of the Key West trip Carlin and I took recently. For now, enjoy my new garden as much as I am, and please remember how much I love you all!