I was sitting around vaguely wondering what was peeling my Meyer's lemons at the top of my lemon tree in the backyard.
These lemons are peeled but left perfectly intact. So what (or who) is peeling them, leaving them on the tree intact except for their peels. Now I like a vodka tonic once in a while, and a little slice of lemon peel adds a bit of panache to that sort of thing, but frankly I'm more of a gin girl.
I've wondered about rats, raccoons, opossums, even hummingbirds or bats. The peels are perfectly removed. It's even made me think about aliens with a vodka tonic penchant.
After looking at about 10 perfectly peeled lemons, I came back in the house and did what I always do to calm my mind. I went on Facebook. I saw that a friend, Barbara, had left a fascinating message for me. Barbara is a very interesting girl who has done so many things in her life that I can't even imagine. She moved to Tanzania in Africa for heaven's sake. Her blog is pretty amazing (Tanzania 5.0).
Barbara indicated that she and Ann Currie (a Southern woman with a sly wit and a talent for fabulous photography) were meeting in Phoenix next week to have dinner and she asked if I wanted to join them. Ann's blog is My Life, a Bit South of Normal, and she has kept me coming back for ages because she's amazingly funny and a bit quirky too.
In any case, I went in and told my husband Alex that I was flying to Phoenix and meeting the girls for dinner on Wednesday. He was slightly surprised, seeing as I don't leave the house for months at a time. (Okay, I exaggerate.) But still, I very seldom leave him for an overnighter. Alex asked me if I wanted to use his SW Airlines points and I said yes. He had turned that strange shade of yellow green when I mentioned that I might catch a San Francisco Giants Spring Training game. (Jealousy is an ugly emotion on anybody.)
Never mind. We're both going.
Problem solved.
Now what in the hell is peeling my lemons?
According to Walter Reeves, the Georgia Gardener http://www.walterreeves.com/gardening-q-and-a/meyer-lemon-rat-damage/ , rats are eating the peels on your Meyer lemons. He says the peels are sweeter than the fruit. He cites an online forum where many gardeners (mostly in the Bay area) argued about whether it was snails or rats, and he decided on rats.
ReplyDeletePlus, I'm really looking forward to meeting you and Ann next week!
I wonder what the hell is peeling your lemons too?! A primate escaped from captivity? How utterly bizarre. Have fun in Phoenix!
ReplyDeleteMeg, it's the placement of the lemons that make me wonder. Some are on very slender branches that looks like they wouldn't hold much weight. Barbara sent a link that says it's rats, and she might be right, but they would have to be some really skinny and agile rats.
ReplyDeleteIt could be rats, Barbara. At least they won't be rats with scurvy if they keep this up.
ReplyDeleteHave fun...so nice of you to allow Alex to tag a long!
ReplyDeleteAs far as the lemons go, do tell if you find out! Perhaps it's the man down the street who has the obsession with your garbage cans! You need a spy cam to catch the culprit!
I have never heard of anything like the peeling of the lemons. Kind of creepy to think rats are responsible, but better than drunk aliens I suppose.
ReplyDeleteHave fun in Phoenix!!!
I can't help you with the lemon problem, but please let us know what's (or who's) doing the peeling when you find out. Very mysterious. Have a great time in Phoenix!
ReplyDeleteTake your boots and winter coat to Arizona. It snowed there last week. Knocked out a day's golf.
ReplyDeleteNaw, it's gonna be sunshine and lollypops all the way! Wait and see!
ReplyDeleteIt has me a little mystified but I am leaning toward aliens.
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to Phoenix, Cheryl. But I also want to catch a photo of the alcoholic aliens. I could get the cover of the National Enquirer with that!
ReplyDeleteHe will get some "tribe" time so it's all good. I thought about the guy down the street, but I don't think he is the one. I'm really thinking aliens may be the answer. (I've told you about my fear of trees.)
ReplyDeleteHahaha! You make me laugh.
ReplyDeleteYou GO GIRL!
ReplyDeleteYou know what would be awesome... getting some of the girls together to come to the beach house. Think we could con Meleah to travel?!? What a hoot that would be.... a bunch of us sharing cocktails, food and walking on the beach!
A blog get-together sounds great fun!
ReplyDeletePerhaps it's birds making lemon margaritas who are doing all that peeling!
Hope you had yourself some fun in Phoenix. You, the girls and Alex.
ReplyDeleteHey Linda! Ah yes, the wind-up to the sports seasons. I've been tempted to tune into the NFL combine. But tell us, have you worked out the identity of the lemon fiend yet? Indigo x
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the trip! Is there a chance you were making a hot toddy with lemonade? Maybe a pie?
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a kid, we drank white port and lemon juice. They even had a song called "WPLJ". Nasty stuff. Today I'm more likely to put a little wedge of lime in my gin. I think there are vodka swilling aliens that we just don't know about yet.
ReplyDeleteBest I can figure it, Indigo, it has to be aliens. They use their sharp fingernails to peel the lemons. Or they just peel them with their massive brain power. Either / Or.
ReplyDeleteAlex will be off with the tribe some of the time. It should be mega-fun. I'll watch my boys get geared up to play those Atlanta Braves of yours. (Alex hates that team because of the war chants and tommy hawk business. Fools!)
ReplyDeleteIt really should be fun. My first thought was birds, but somehow, I don't see them being as neat as the evidence implies. They are usually kind of messy critters.
ReplyDeleteThat would be so fantastic. You've got Nicky there on your side too. And Nicky is so adorable I could marry her. Meleah isn't all that far from you either. Hmmm. Beach house, cocktails, puppies! Count me in!
ReplyDeleteThank you Katherine. Do you think it's aliens too?
ReplyDelete"It's even made me think about aliens with a vodka tonic penchant. " - That made me laugh, Linda!
ReplyDeleteOh! Have a fun trip.
But I am DYING to figure out what the hell is happening to your lemons!
I am too, Mel!
ReplyDeleteI hope we figure this mystery out soon!
ReplyDeleteI hope you have fun in Phoenix, Linda! And you have got to tell us if you figure out who or what is peeling your lemons! Or maybe they're a bit special and actually grow like that?
ReplyDeleteI think there's a monkey on the loose. I bet it mistook your lemons for oddly shaped bananas.
ReplyDeleteI'm thrilled that you're going. How fun! Who's minding the pooches?
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your trip to Phoenix, and the game. Glad you are both going so that Alex can return to his normal color.
ReplyDeleteThat is weird about the lemons. I googled it and you are not the only one having that problem. A number of people have shared their experiences here: http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/citrus/msg0218081429992.html
This is not something I'd ever heard of but then we don't have lemon trees here either.
Βe conscientіous with washing soda and use
ReplyDeletegloves as it is gгeatly alkaline. Masonry heaters consіѕt of a littlе hеarth box develоpеd to rаtio with thе smoke chamber above.
A tοtal grain breаkfаst of аgеd-fаѕhioneԁ oatmeal wіth аlmonds (grіnd them
uρ tο diѕguise them, іf crucial) will hоld a kid way foг а
longer time than oгange juice and a bagel.
Feel freе tο surf to my ѕіtе .
.. www.squidoo.com
What if you beaг thіs іn mind, open the dοor quickly.
ReplyDeleteVisit my wеbpаge: www.myfuzzbook.com
Considering that we lost our national baseball team in 2004 AND we're still knee deep in snow, hanging around watching a baseball practice sounds very appealing right now. Or is that a-peeling?
ReplyDeleteThank you, I'm here all week.
I love baseball! I love sitting in the stadium during the summer and just enjoying all the sights, sounds and smells!
ReplyDeleteOoh, I hope you had fun... although judging by the FB pictures, I think you did! This time Phoenix, maybe next time Montreal? Although we don't have a baseball team anymore. There are one or two other attractions though :-)
ReplyDeleteI truly enjoyed this post. I don't know about the lemons. But I am jealous of a quick trip to Phoenix. Especially if baseball is involved. I don't like the Giants, but could deal if it meant a trip to watch some spring training. :)
ReplyDeleteP.J., we try to get to Spring Training every year to catch a game or two. Early March is good because it's not too hot yet. The game we saw was Giants vs. Oakland A's, and it was fun because we like both teams. (But I secretly still consider myself a SF City girl, although the A's are right across the drawbridge from where we live.) The Cubbies were playing there too. I think the Eastern teams go to Florida for Spring Training.
ReplyDeleteSomebody said "All roads lead to Rome", but they obviously had not met you and Max, Nicky. I'm still hoping that your little family can take a trip down here this year.
ReplyDeleteIt really was a fun trip! I love baseball too. Actually, I prefer it to football. It's usually about very friendly competition, at least here in this area. Football crowds are sort of crude and usually drunk. Yuck!
ReplyDeleteYou are a clever young man, but you may be hanging around Dufus too much. We saw a Giants vs Oakland Athletics game and the Giants won. It was about 80 degrees and gorgeous. The weather was great the whole time, but a little warm. We were glad to get home to our normal 67 to 72 and partly cloudy!
ReplyDeleteI love baseball and Spring Training is always such fun. I'm sure the City of Phoenix loves the extra money from all the tourists too! The hotels are all filled to the brim as are the restaurants.
ReplyDeleteI've sort of narrowed it to aliens or rats in the trees. I've asked Alex if he can use his signal intel and design some kind of a system that won't poison or kill anything, but perhaps shoot hot Chinese mustard at the culprits.
We drove down and took Harry and Zoe with us. They were actually very good and Harry is finally lying down for naps. Zoe whimpered quite a bit but settled down by the way home anyway. She loved her spa day and her nails look great. Zoe is really partial to massage so that made her happy too.
ReplyDeleteThoughtsy, that's the only consideration that had never crossed my mind. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteWe had an amazing time in Phoenix, Ziva. Seemed strange to be somewhere that it is 80 degrees this time of year! Those lemons may be the mutant that never grows a peel in the first place. I still think it may have something to do with aliens.
ReplyDelete