I do my best planning in the middle of the night, since I tend to wake up way too early. I read or schedule my day ahead in my mind. The problem is when I try to get out of bed, the body betrays me. We’re talking stiff and sore here. Wouldn’t I be something if I could accomplish even half of my goals? This is what they mean by youth is wasted on the young. Oh well, there is no choice but to soldier on!

Speaking of which, Marie and I met at the big vegetable garden on Saturday morning and spent the entire day weeding. What an unending chore, but certainly satisfying. We made it down an enormously long row of onions.

I had planted several varieties of kale and some De Cicco broccoli down the middle of four rows of onions. Every single plant of a foot tall had been chomped down to the ground by a mystery critter. Oddly, the red Russian kale was left unharmed. I sleuthed around looking for evidence; of course, we have the voles but it seems hard to believe such a small animal could eat that much. It seems a deer or a very large rabbit is the culprit, but I found no footprints. I have an eight-foot tall fence, but I confess that I do leave the gate open during the day sometimes. Gardening may be the most frustrating pastime known to woman!

I picked a boatload of radishes. They had been in the ground just a month. I made my favorite sandwich spread. I chopped the radishes fairly small, added balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and crumbled bleu cheese. It makes a delicious lunch on a sourdough bread.

I love what Rusty is doing at Nip ’ n’ Tuck farm. The front garden is so neat and tidy, I got jealous.

The other morning I drove by one of the Morning Glory Farm fields. A fine mist was rising from the ground enveloping the young workers. It was a photo-worthy moment. We are so fortunate to live in such a beautiful place!

I’ve been following the story of the Black Bear on the Cape. Apparently it swam across the canal and made its way to Provincetown. I guess it’s been more than a century since a bear has been on the Cape.

I grew up with bears in Rew, Pa. Back in the 1950s and 1960s, we had a town dump. Folks threw their refuse off the side of the mountain at the end of town. Bears pretty much lived there. My friend Sandy Woods and I used to go out there and try to scare ourselves. Sorry, Mom, when you read this!

We also had a bear who would climb the apple tree in the back yard and lay on a big branch, enjoying his lunch. I do not recall anyone ever getting hurt in town, but there was talk of tourists in the nearby Allegheny State Park being mauled. They would leave the safety of the car to feed them. These were grownups, mind you.

I am using golden Japanese spikenard in my window boxes. It is a tropical-looking perennial with brilliant gold foliage. It will have tiny white flowers, which will turn into deep purple-black berries in the fall. It likes shade and does well with ferns and hostas.

I would be remiss if I failed to mention the fabulous purple rose on the State Road side of the corner of Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Road. I comment on it every year. It has woven itself up into the nearby tree. It seems to have a bit of benign neglect but doesn’t seem to mind.

I’ve had it with politics. Between the failure of the Scott Walker recall and the push to remove people from voting rolls, it seems hopeless. Our democracy seems to be for sale, thanks to the Citizens United Ruling from the Supreme Court. Now, Mitt Romney wants to get rid of the policemen, firemen and teachers. This is supposedly to cut down on government. I, for one, love a good conspiracy theory. If we get rid of more teachers, the coming generation will be less educated, therefore, easier to buy and control. You can’t stop me — I can’t help myself — I came of age in the ‘60s.

One thing for sure, Sarah Palin was so much more interesting than the Mittster. It’s unimaginable that he could win, but then Nixon won a landslide.