What I Did This Summer by John A.

[wackdaddy]

Summer, like the whole rest of the year, just seemed to fly by.

This was the first Summer in my 44 years of life that I did NOT go to the beach, not even onceWhy? Well, for one thing, we've got a pool now. But I never went to the beach just to go swimming. One of the reasons I like living on Long Island is because you're never more than a half-

Comments

[plastrickland23]

I never realized that bamboo grew so easily so far north. Would never have imagined bamboo and NY! Too bad there aren't any panda bears around!
I got that same arm-tendonitis thing from digging in the garden back in May! I looked it up...possibly "Radial Tunnel Syndrome". Mine starts in the fat part of the forearm and radiates down to the top of my hand. Related to tennis elbow and tendonitis. Not much in the way of treatment unless you enjoy shots and surgery. I think I'll pop Ibuprofin and live with it. I'm hoping now that garden season is mostly over, that it'll go away. Sometimes I feel a flare up while I'm sleeping if I roll over funny. P.

[wackdaddy]

Yeah, bamboo is like an evergreen: stays green even in the snow.

I'm going to the doctor next week just because I haven't been in awhile. I'll ask her if she knows any treatment for my arm, or, more specifically, my funny bone (I'm not laughing). What doesn't help is that I've noticed recently that I've been sleeping with my hand curled under my chin, a la Rodin's The Thinker. So I've been waking up with a sore elbow and a tingly wrist and palm.

Sore arm

[plastrickland23]

Same here except that I don't have the "tinglies". I'll be curious as to what your doc says. P.

[sweetmeow]

What a crappy job you have been doing! Who in their right mind would ever .. ON PURPOSE .. plant this bamboo in one's yard. It sounds vicious and relentless in it's growth, and the only way to get rid of it is to vicious and relentless back!

I hope that you're mostly done, and that it won't come back next season!

[wackdaddy]

To be fair, most people don't realize how invasive bamboo can be.

What's really weird is that 3 weeks ago, I was rearranging the garage when an SUV pulled up to the end of the driveway. "We're not having a garage sale, if that's what you're thinking!", I called out to the woman who got out of the vehicle. She said, "No, no... I used to live here!"
It was the former former homeowner!
She said she often passed by the house, and wondered how things had changed. She said she noticed that her "beautiful bamboo" had been cut down. She didn't sound accusatory, but you could tell she was a little upset.
So I told her pretty much what I wrote in this post, and took her in the backyard to show her the damage.
"I don't understand... we dug a deep a barrier around it!", she stammered.
"Yeah," I said, "but only around 3 sides."
Then she looked a little sheepish and apologized for all the hard work she caused. But I could tell she still wished the bamboo was intact.

All in all, though, it was nice that she stopped by.

[sweetmeow]

I couldn't help but tell Ray about your house and the bamboo, and when I mentioned it -- his eyes took on this panic, as he knew before I even told him how you had been spending your summer. Ray said that he wonders why they don't use the bamboo on the dunes to protect them, because they have such a strong root. When Ray was a teen, he worked on someone's house and got mixed up in getting rid of some bamboo. He knows what you mean by brute force with a shovel....

I guess people plant it because it must look nice ... for a while ... until it takes over.

[overlooked]

I haven't gone to the beach either; too painful. Mike's dad lives there and from March/April - Nov. we would be at the beach almost every weekend. I can't go down there anymore......not for a while.

I miss you man.

[scintillated]

Aha, so that's what you've been up to!! Wow, it sounds like bamboo is a pain in the ass to get rid of. Oy. Good luck in getting rid of the rest of it!