Bites and Finds

Diet Coke with Lime

So I’ve been imbibing Diet Coke with Lime for about two years now. The cafeteria at work dispenses my health-conscious drink of choice on a daily basis…$1.19 total. I have a bottle cap collection to measure how much of the liquid I consume, stuffed in a plastic bag and stowed away in a drawer in my cubicle. On those days when the supply of Diet Coke w/ Lime is threatened to be yanked by changes in distributors, I simply fall back to regular Coke or just plain water. The cafeteria manager tells me it’s a popular drink and the regulars let them know immediately when stock is gone. But that doesn’t stop me from missing it when I fail to have my daily fix. And most fast food chains don’t list Diet Coke w/ Lime on their menus, so I usually have to order the rather-flat tasting Diet Coke that comes with those combo/value meals.

So anyway, I’ve been off the soda drinks for about two weeks when I decide it’s back to the limey flavor of DCwL. I saunter over to the refrigerated section of the cafeteria and beheld TWO different-labeled DCwLs. First one I spotted was the classic green-ribboned metallic labeling of the 20oz bottled Diet Coke with Lime that I consumed for my daily libations. The one right next to it featured a cleaner, brighter, decidedly lime-greener label. I figure, what the hey, and grabbed the new label and checked out at the register.

The moment I popped off the cap, an intense lime flavor hit my tongue and I began to wonder…did Coca Cola reinvent the recipe of this newly-dressed Diet Coke with Lime? Or had I been away too long from the DCwL that my tastebuds merely forgot the flavor? But no, I had a 2-Liter of Diet Coke (old label) sitting in my icebox at home that I had sampled earlier this week. This new label DCwL had a much stronger lime flavor that hit front and center, not like the subtle back-of-the-throat approach of the old label DCwL. Quickly I scoured the net for any tidbits of information that might suggest a profile change of the drink…but so far, nothing.

I’ll be rushing home tonight to try out the old label drink and see if I’m just imagining all this. But just in case, the new-label bottle I had was stamped: FEB0408 BSC05262.

Ye Olde Garden

The 300

The number 300 marks the quantity of bulbs buried into the garden this past Sunday. Fifty narcissi went into the middle bed, and the remainder into the side yard; all of the allium made it into the middle bed, while Muscari and dwarf irises got portioned out to each bed. It took some effort to prep both beds to receive the bulbs, including hubby’s attempt at leaf-blowing with my air compressor. Both hubby and I are sore from the weekend’s dirt digging, but hopefully we can look forward to an interesting show come spring. I still require some topsoil to increase the depth of the existing beds.

Note that we also planted 2 nandinas in the middle bed to hopefully provide some background. I transplanted the remainder of an artemisia and an agapanthus in the middle bed, but I’m skeptical of their survivability.

You know that your work isn’t complete when an industrious canine comes over to dig up all your hard work. I promptly laid down a cover of wire on the affected areas. We could use more fencing to deter the pups from entering and wreaking havoc in the flower beds.

Ye Olde Garden

Fall gardening and bulb orders

Well, despite the hurt it put on my pocketbook, I went ahead and purchased another slew of bulbs for the early-late spring show. My Brent and Becky’s order went through Tuesday afternoon. I should be expecting 100 each of Dwarf Irises and White Thalia Narcissi as well as 50 each of Muscari botryoides ‘Album’ and Allium caeruleum. This order, totalling $120.75, should be arriving Nov 13, according to UPS tracking.

Hubby made me very happy yesterday–he proceeded to apply the garden staples I bought last weekend to the weedmats he laid down around the back flowerbeds. He also began erecting the bent-out-of-shape wire fencing to keep the dogs out of the beds. Now all I have to do is clean up around the areas and cut down any old left-over lily stalks. Sadly, I am still finding uprooted lily bulbs everywhere I look. The upside: I installed some planter rings around 4-6 salvias in the beds.

More poop scoopin’ to do, as well as tidying up the other beds, front and side. Me wonders if DH will get to applying that pre-emergent on the lawn. Stay tuned!!

Furkids, Ye Olde Garden

Tornado cuts swathe of destruction thru local garden

That handsome tornado’s name is Dash, and he is 1.5 year old Australian shepherd who has taken a great delight in mowing over plants in my backyard. Several bulbs and tender shrubs have met their demise under the paws of this stampeding ball of fur. The most recent deaths included a healthy thriving purple salvia as well as my most mature white salvia. No fence can keep him out, and I’m at my wits end trying to find some way to deter him from entering the beds. I purchased 6 planter rings from Home Depot this weekend and hopefully I can protect the remaining fragile salvias, including the 2 salvia chamaedryoides that were cut low by this Texas twister.

Meanwhile, I’m way behind on purchasing my white daffodils for the 2008 show. I’m looking more into salvias to fill the bare spots in the garden. A few that have caught my eye: Salvia greggii or jamensis ‘California Sunset’ (orange) , Salvia greggii or jamensis (?) ‘Sierra San Antonio’ (coppery peach), Salvia greggii ‘La Encantada Peach’, Salvia jamensis Moonlight (yellow) , Salvia greggii ‘Yellow Cloud’, and any more orange, yellow and peach variants I can dig up.