The past couple of months have been so busy! It feels like I blinked and that time just escaped through a carefully placed hole in the wall. I’ve been making progress on many of my personal goals, steadily and sustainably.
It feels nice to be where I am – peaceful even. I discovered I can make delicious iced coffee just the way I want, and I’ve been exercising a lot. As ever, I’m trying to carve out a simple life in the middle of my own personal anxiety, the garbage of the world at large, and the capitalist dystopia we have found ourselves inhabiting. And there is no “finishing” this kind of growth. There will always be more changes to make, and more sunshine to absorb. Always growing. Always changing. Cultivating not only myself, but also the places where I can feel the most at peace.
Garden oasis in progress!
The thing I’ve been focusing on (so much so that I haven’t even had the energy to update this blog!) is the garden. This year, we decided to undertake the task of creating an aesthetically pleasing space that would also allow the Architect to mow the grass around the beds without fuss. This has been a big project for me, especially at the very beginning of the growing season. Here’s where we started…
And now the garden today!
I’m really pleased with this. Not only did I get those pathway stones for free (our neighbor offered some extras he had from a past landscaping project!), but I counted how many wheelbarrows of gravel we put around these beds . . . 25. Twenty-five trips to and from a mountain of gravel in the driveway. I am immeasurably proud of myself – but even more than that, I’m excited to spend peaceful moments in this place.
Each year of gardening has taught me more. There’s so much knowledge in my head now, about plants and fertilizer and rainwater. “Knee high by the fourth of July” has become a mantra to me. I’ve again been thinking about how all this is cumulative – of course I couldn’t have done everything all at once when I started this garden five years ago. All I can do is keep adding to the knowledge.
‘Illusions’ update: One chapter to go . . .
It’s! Happening!
As stated, I am well on my way to the end. The climax of this story is fast approaching and the denouement is next on the horizon after that. I am excited to start rewrites — maybe too excited. I have to get my head in the game and finish this chapter first!
PrideCraft and more!
As you can tell from my previous post, June was PrideCraft season for my streaming community, the Cool Gamer Retirement Home. As it’s officially now July, I can confidently say this was our best charity event yet. We raised $1,350 for the Trans Empowerment Project, bringing our all-time total to more than $10k. It’s been a dream watching everyone get involved, and humbling to see our community come out for the fifth year in a row.
We did blackout bingo again this year, with some incredible prizes, including a gorgeous ceramic bells bag made by my best friend.
Summer travel off to a good start
At the beginning of June, I spent some time with my family in our hometown. It was a good week, and fulfilling. A little bittersweet. I didn’t take a ton of pictures — too busy making quality memories!
Later this month, we’re heading across the country for a wedding, and that should be exciting, because it’ll be a new destination for me. I’ll try to do a “Liz Writes” after that one!
Liz Cultivates | L.M. Fern 
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