Cat piss and the Garden Preacher

Well, mom and I went to our vegetable planning planting class, and I was shocked how many people were there! I would say about 30. Before the class started, my mom had the forethought to sit us by the pellet stove. I appreciated it. It was a little chilly in the building. People were filing in, (I'm almost positive I was the youngest there by about ten years,) and who sat down on the other side of my mom?? You guessed it. The humming guy who smelled like cat piss who was in my Farmer class. The one who I was supposed to present after so my presentation would be stellar? I immediately told my mom to avoid eye contact. She and an empty chair were between him and I...but it was only minutes later when he leaned across the empty chair AND her to say, "Hey I know you!" I politely smiled, (because that's what true farmers do.) He referred to me as the chicken farmer, and asked how the girls were doing...I made some brief, YET POSITIVE, reply as I turned my head in another direction like I heard someone call my name or as if I saw Elvis. Fortunately the class started then, and the Garden Preacher came out. Now this guy was wearing old pinstriped overalls, like the ones I picture train conductors wearing in the old days. He had on a flannel shirt that was red and green plaid with blue and yellow plaid sleeves. And a huge denim bucket hat...or maybe it was a fisherman's hat on his head. He looked like one of the huge bears from the Country Bear Jamboree with a white beard, that stole Punky Brewster's flannel. The room became quiet, and he raised his hand in the air. "The daily temperature that you see on tv, is NOT the temperature of your ground.***long pause*** And the soil type in the Willamette Valley is NOT the same as here in Mason County." CAN I HEAR AN AMEN?! Ok...he didn't say that, but I did in my head...after every thing he said. He was preachin...about dirt, and temperature, and weather. After his short sermon, we heard from two other Master Gardeners. They were great and really informative. Sure I want to have a vegetable garden, but I don't see that happening this year. But I have time. In the final words of the Garden Preacher, "Take this time to PLAN YOUR GARDEN FOLKS...Read your seed packets. Only YOU can control what happens in your garden, and only YOU can speak from your own experiences in your garden. Each person and their garden is different!" HALLELUJAH! PRAISE BIG TALL AND STUDLY! AMEN!
Victoria also went out to the coop Saturday. Some of the others started challenging her right away to re-establish the pecking order. I wanted to break it up, but knew it was a part of her going back.