Yesterday evening when I came home from work, I went outside to take in my garbage bins as I normally do on a Monday. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary other than the fact that the weather seemed to be shifting to the cooler side. First I took in the regular trash bin and then on my way back to get the recycle bin, I noticed something odd in my driveway, just outside of the garage door.

At first it looked to be one of those black sponge rollers. But it seemed moist, like clay or something so I took a stick and picked at it. But the more I moved it around, the more it seemed apparent that this was no sponge roller or piece of felt or mud or even doggie business. No this thing looked to have nostrils. And I was quite sure by the time I had rolled that thing halfway down the alley to get it off my drive that it was certainly a nose. Not sure what to do, I took two sticks like chopsticks and tried to pick it up. That took about 10 minutes as the floppy thing kept falling back on the ground. Finally I was able to move it near the creek by my house and I just stood there. Not sure what to do...

Those who know her best told me to have her boarded.

But how could I? She’s like family and it’s kind of her house too — I just pay the bills. Yes I’m talking about my cat. And the fact that when I decided to have a housewarming this past weekend I was warned that letting her roam free was a big mistake. Between making sure she didn’t get outside and my mother’s unfounded fears of her being around all the food, maybe it was a good idea. But I didn’t do it. I just couldn’t. Instead she was part of the menagerie of my home for everyone to look at and enjoy.

I had a healthy crowd of people coming in and out of my place. Some came bearing gifts, others wine (I still have a bunch of wine left over if you are looking for a good place to chill for a while) and some were pleasant surprise visitors from the neighborsgo.com camp. It was fun putting faces with the user names such as Shutter Doug and TruTxAnn. And good buddy movie-reviewer Hollywood dropped by as well. Not to mention Eden's Gardener...

All the while, little (can’t really say that anymore after five years) Lily just took her time and waited for the right “sucker” to let her out. She didn’t get into the food, didn’t try to get out the front door. No, her risk of choice was the backyard. And before the night was through, she made her way outside and quickly ran under my car in the carport/garage. Maybe it was all the excitement of so many people in and out of the house? Or maybe she just wanted to pick a special occasion to act out. Either way, my best friend’s husband swept her out from under the car with a broom, but not without a few hisses and thinly veiled threat swats — she’s declawed.

I wouldn’t exactly say that I’m not an outdoors type of gal. I mean I love gardening and I’m finding that even in the middle of the Texas heat and unforgiving sun, I still like getting my hands in my own land and planting Mother Nature’s treasures. Ok. That may be a little much but you get the idea: gardening, yes…shoveling mounds and mounds of compost into a Kubota, no. However that is what I did this past weekend in Balch Springs, hanging out on the farm with Marie Tedei. You may know her as Eden’s Gardener on neighborsgo.com, but now she’s adding farmer to her repertoire.

I really intended to just document her progress that day — you know, getting at the ground level of a new and exciting project. But I guess I just couldn’t stand around without helping at least a little. I didn’t, however, prepare for stepping into a trailer and shoveling stuff that used to be a lot of things — dead chickens, horse manure…you name it. It’s all compost in the end and very rich in nutrients and organisms to make things grow. But did I mention I was in a sundress? And I had kicked off my flip-flops to get better footing on the trailer? So there I am, barefoot with a shovel and I can’t tell you how many times I thought I stepped on a worm. But I have to admit, all in all I felt like I was really doing something significant. Looking around at all of that land Marie is preparing, I realized not many people can say they are planning a fully organic farm, 20 minutes from downtown Dallas and right in their back yard, literally. Read all about what Marie is up to — smack dab in the middle of the urban jungle — on page six of Friday's issue of neighborsgo. And stay tuned for upcoming videos documenting her progress, but don’t be fooled. I didn’t dare allow anyone to take the video camera from me and film a blooper reel of me trying to be “cool” with getting dirty. In fact I’m quite sure the word “prissy” came out more than once while I was out there! And be sure to read Marie’s blog at neighborsgo.com/blog/Lifeonthefarm.