Good morning! Happy 2024! Welcome, please help yourself to a cup of hot or cold beverage and join me for a quick chat.

The seeds I sowed on December 30, 2023 germinated this week. I was surprised considering how cold the garage is. The only thing keep these seedlings warm is a heat mat on a cardboard beneath set to 55-degree-Fahrenheit. These are not heat-loving vegetables, by the way. I’ve chosen to sow some of the most cold-hardy vegetables there is – kale, cabbage, broccoli, mustard green, and tatsoi.

I originally had a goal not to start growing anything until the middle of this month but I couldn’t help it. There was little to no snow in December and most of the days were sunny and in the 40’s-degree-Fahrenheit. It felt like late winter, early spring. I figure why not start a batch now and then succession in a few weeks. That way, I can transplant these in early to mid-February and again in late-February to early March.

Just when my optimism began to blossom, Mother Nature decided to flip a switch. Those sunny days are gone at least until next weekend and it’s been replaced by gray skies and snowy days. According to the weatherman, it’s supposed to snow until next weekend.

This week was the first week being back to work since the holiday break. That first day – January 2nd – felt like the longest day and shortest day of my life. Yes, I was busy, which made it short. There were nearly 100 emails in my 3 work inboxes combined. It took me almost 4 hours to sort and answer those emails before I could even begin doing my work.

Work was especially busy this week as I had to catch up on the work that came in between the 21st of December and the 31st and it just so happens to be month-end, quarter-end, and year-end, which means everything that was opened from 2023 must be closed. Tuesday felt like it was the start of a week-long marathon.

I have been trying hard to get used to having my mom back home again after my three weeks of freedom. It’s been hard, especially during work hours. I had to either put in my noise cancelling earbuds or my headphone to mute the noise. It was loud before but after three weeks of peace and quiet, it feels much louder now. I ordered some new earplugs, which should arrive today. It has some rave reviews about how it’s comfortable and they don’t fall out while sleeping.

Finally, it’s hard to believe that when I wrote my #WeekendCoffeeShare post 2 weeks ago, I was on my road trip and had no idea what was in store that day. When I wrote that post, I only knew I would be spending the morning driving to New Mexico to fix my phone. I had no idea whether I would make it to the Four Corner Monument nor had I thought I would see such a beautiful view in the parking lot of the hotel.

#weekendcoffeeshare is hosted by Natalie of Natalie the Explorer. I appreciate you stopping by. Until next we chat. 🙂