When your life is about to turn upside down, stand on your head

There is a tomato plant hanging upside down on my porch, and it's purely intentional. I had all but given up on the idea of ever growing tomatoes out here until I read this post from Spruce Hill. Her frugal husband invented a way to make a home-grown Topsy Turvy planter (as seen on TV!), and she posted a great tutorial. Thanks, pal!

Now if my water doesn't kill the plant first, here's what's supposed to happen: As the sun warms the plant like a greenhouse, the root system explodes and thrives inside the planter. Because Topsy Turvy® tomato planter is upside down, water and nutrients pour directly from the root to the fruit, giving you up to 30 pounds of deliciously ripe tomatoes per plant! Yeah, right.

But I dare any varmint to figure out how to steal my tomatoes the day before they're ready to pick this year! As an added precaution, I've hung the planter outside my office window for surveillance. And on top of that, there will be this weapon. Which brings me to the other point of this post.

Life as I know it will turn upside-down this week. I will officially be on vacation - no sitting at the computer cranking out marketing materials all day. No, sirree. Instead, I will be entertaining a house guest – my sister – who wants to experience ranch life first hand. Be careful what you wish for. In exchange for all the fun I'm going to let her have, she will teach me how to shoot this weapon (which I had to have her buy and bring to me because I, a law-abiding citizen with no physical address, can't buy a gun, but we won't go there now).

In between horse-ridin', burro-trainin', fence-stretchin', and chore-doin', we'll be care-takin' my neighbors' ranch and their cows and horses. And Smooch will be babysittin' the neighbors' dog, who will be staying here. The staid, routine rhythm of the 7MSN is about to get turned right on its head. And you know what that means...blog fodder! Might be a very interesting week over here.