far FAR from the apple tree

*2004 - only child Sunshine hunting eggs in my parents' backyard while five adults cheered her on*


My parents have a great backyard and have always had a super garden, complete with gobs of fruit trees. That garden took work, so on the weekends, my parents would shuffle us outside to work in the dirt.

I don't like to touch dirt.

I also don't like to touch sand. (Yep, I grew up in a beach city. What can I say?)

I don't like the way they make my hands and feet feel. Honestly, it freaks me out. I love to garden, I love nature, I love camping, I love the beach, but I really can NOT handle the way dirt/sand dries out my skin. As an adult, I garden with my hands slathered in cream, covered with blue surgical gloves and then regular gardening gloves, while wearing knee high wellies. Oh ya, and I also HATE the way chlorine feels on my skin. AHHH!!!! Don married such a freak. Do you know that most people with dyslexia also have sensory issues? I'll shout 'Amen' on that one.

So, what's a girl to do on a beautiful Saturday morning in southern California if she really, really doesn't want to garden?

I usually started out there and had to leave after about 20 minutes. So, I cleaned the house. I cleaned the house until it was spotless every weekend. I also made lunch for the hard working gardeners. I thought it was a fair trade off and my sweet parents never forced me to stay out there. Thanks, Mom and Dad!

Apparently, my children fell far FAR from the tree and do NOT have the same issues I have, because this is how they entertained themselves after school today.


Or they just fell on their heads from a tree and have lost their minds.


Either option is possible.

*2007 - playing in my parents' backyard*