RitaRose's 13 Skills

[RitaRose1945]

I finally got around to signing up for the 13 Skills Challenge.  I went with:

Music - learn to play at least one piece on the piano to accompany my singing (I'm a huge fan of music from the '20s - '40s, and I already know how to read music from voice, violin and bassoon).

Writing - Publish 1 blogpost per week instead of whenever I feel like it, and add at least 2,000 words to my novel each week.

Fiber Arts - Learn knew knitting skills including reading from a chart and knitting in the round.  I already learned how to do a longtail cast-on today (and how to check for an errata before attempting a pattern 3 times...) so I didn't feel like I should add that.

Container/Portable Gardening - I tried this last year and failed miserably, so my goal is just to get more yield than last year.

Concealed Weapons Permit - well... to get one.  And better my skills/knowledge in the process.

Fire Making - sad to say, at the age of 48, I still can't build or keep up a fire.  All of the men in my life can, but that's no excuse.

First Aid - I would like to be certified, especially since no one I know is, so I'm sure it will be a useful skill.

Foreign Language - this one was a tossup, since Spanish is very common in the Southwest, but German is a common dog training language.  But I went with Spanish since it comes up more often in my current life.

Soap Making - goes along with eating more natural foods and having a problem with a myriad of chemicals.

Dog Training - for now, I'm going to volunteer at local rescues (a guy I work with has one) and physically rehab dogs while socializing them so they can be adopted.  Long term goal is to make connections so I can work actually training dogs for search and rescue.

Business Management - continue working my current job as long as possible while adding on other sources of independent income (online, writing, dog care, etc) for when I'm laid off.

Communication - learn how to program my ham radio and work on relearning everything I originally learned 20 years ago when I got my license.  Join one of the local ham clubs.

Knife Making - learn how to sharpen knives properly (I know - pathetic) and then make a knife for my son.

[RitaRose1945]

Knit a (larger than intended) baby booty last night, so I had to learn a long tail cast-on and how to knit short rows (for the heel).  The short rows are a good thing because sock knitting has always intimidated me.  KnittingHelp.com ( http://www.knittinghelp.com/ ) is a great resource for videos, especially when you're a visual learner like me.

Today, I'll figure out which plants are going into the garden in a couple of months and maybe get some seeds to get started.

The whole thing is a little up in the air because I see the doctor tomorrow for what I think is a rotator cuff problem and a possible labral tear in my hip joint.  I may end up with more time on my hands than I had planned (my work is very active), but not the ability to do much of anything physical while I'm home.  So my focus may go more toward the skills that are lower impact like music or knitting as opposed to lugging cinder blocks or heavy bags of soil amendments.

[PorcupineKate]

Rita
I managed to have a container garden the year I had my rotator cuff repaired and the following year when I had both knees replaced.  I was on crutches while finishing up PT for the shoulder than had 4 operations on my knees in the following 9 months.   I am hoping to not have surgery this year and expand the garden. 

Go with the largest containers possible.  5 gallon buckets are good but 10-15 gallon beverage tubs are better.  The store 5 bellow sells 10 gallon ones for $5 each.   The bigger buckets require less watering and give you plants more depth for root growth.   The extra height of the larger tubs is great too.

A good watering can or a long handle hose nozzle with a sprinkle end will make watering easier.  I managed to water my garden on crutches with something similar to this. 

http://www.amazon.com/Dramm-12502-ColorMark-30-Inch-Length/dp/B0018C59YQ/ref=sr_1_46?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1358796921&sr=1-46&keywords=gardening+hose+nozzle

I also really like this watering can.  It is expensive but the ergonomics are great and it is short enough to use with a rain barrel on cinder blocks.   

http://www.amazon.com/Bosmere-V100-4-5-Liter-Plastic-Watering/dp/B0016LFUJS/ref=sr_1_6?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1358797785&sr=1-6&keywords=watering+can+haws

You will need to get someone else to fill your containers.  DH and a couple of friends did this for me.  I uses a mix of compost, peat moss with an organic fertilizer. 

Buying seedlings would be an easy way to get started this year gardening.

You can do companion planting in the large tubs and  you will need to give them additional plant food every 3 to 4 weeks since a lot of the nutrients will be washed out of the container due to frequent watering.

Good luck and I hope you feel better soon.  Feel free to ask me about getting stuff done while broken.

[RitaRose1945]

Thank you so much for the great advice!

Yeah, I have my boyfriend (hopefully soon to be hubby...) to help with filling the containers.  He's one of those guys that's happiest when he's feeling useful and helping someone, so that's a huge bonus.  I'm definitely shooting for deeper roots since I'm in the desert and the topsoil dries out really fast, even before it gets super hot, so a deeper pot will help with that.

Thanks again!

[PorcupineKate]

Your welcome.
Good luck. 
I hope your joint problems only need ice, time and good physical therapy.
Kate