When you go from being a serial plant killer to actually producing edible vegetables, it is quite an amazing transformation. The sense of accomplishment makes you feel giddy inside and yet it seems almost ridiculous to feel so proud for the simple act of putting seeds into soil and adding water and sunshine.

Yet there I was, proud as could be, when I found actual produce in my yard yesterday. A small harvest, yes, but signs of success. The JavaKids and JavaDad joined in the jubilation as we have all eagerly anticipated the fruits of our labor.

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I have a LOT of basil.

I mean a LOT. My mother brought me a sprig of purple basil from my great-grandmother’s garden a few years ago and it has turned into a hedge of basil, I kid you not. It is a wonderful bounty, and I love to share it — I gave each child in my son’s preschool class a plant to start in their own gardens and I’m always offering it to passing neighbors, strangers, the A/C repair guy…

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This particular Thanksgiving week has been a time of reflection for me, because this time last year I was curled up in pain with a never-ending migraine and bizarre facial pain that was set off by the most gentle of touches.
It turned out to be something called trigeminal neuralgia, which has the lovely nickname of [...]

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