It’s such a great feeling when you finish a hard project. A garden in the US takes about a year to get up and running. Gardens improve every year you have one, but the first year is the hardest. Putting down winter mulch for Italian herbs for spring year two feels pretty good which is excellent because pumpkins and squash have been selling out like crazy at the local farmer’s market. Most of the heirloom stuff is gone a full month early (bummer), but you have to give all the happy farmers a high five for a year of successful hard work. It took 10+ tons of mulch, a bunch of fertilizer add-ons, oceans of cardboard, and a year of time for our yard. Viola. Year two, you still have to put down all the mulch and fertilizer again, but you have more options for what you want to grow in the Southeast. Namely European gardens. British, French, Italian, etc. Tryon Palace is the prettiest example of British gardening in New Bern, NC for our state. It’s great for filming fantasy and supernatural films. Given the shift in trailers from scifi to fantasy, expect historical venues to collect funding for 2026 from some fun films being made. Probably some lovely foodie photoshoots too. Biltmore estate is German-Jewish American. Have fun making your own list based on foods you love.
Speaking of food, the LA viral dessert trend of using silicon molds to make realistic desserts is definitely giving that old world meets new fantasy vibe. For anyone who hasn’t seen this TikTok trend, people are either 3D printing or using pre-made silicon molds, coating the outside in a chocolate/candy shell, then filling it with icecream/mousse and fruit, cake, or other candy centers. It’s a grown-up version of kid’s treats and super clever. Hats off to using technology in cool ways.
Which brings one to a larger conversation this week about new technology. After 1 ½ years of basically nothing for AI in the real world, finally seeing some AI coding classes out of Durham, NC using Python and Ollama with Silicon Dojo. If you have an hour or two on your lunch break, they’re worth a watch to better understand the real technology vs. the hype. Most AI appears to come from text based inputs and it has a lot more limitations than the sales pitches we are being given by the propaganda outlets. Feels a lot less crazy and potentially more fun. Writers definitely have a leg up here. Have a great week all.