I spent a long, cool day outside yesterday, doing something I have never done before: digging a garden. A vegetable and herb garden. Our backyard is set up such that the fence that keeps the dog in is located about eight feet inside our property line, leaving a nice strip of land outside the fence that is available for gardening.

So I spent about six hours de-sodding a six-foot by 12-foot strip of land, preparing it for our new garden. I have the other half left to do today to make what now seems like a massive six-by-24 foot plot.

It was very slow work. I cut out each 8-inch by 1-foot patch of sod individually, using a long-handled shovel. I then moved and placed each chunk carefully on top of an extraneous section of gravel driveway to see if I can accomplish two things with one task: create a garden and re-sod the wasted driveway space.

The garden is going very well, if slowly. The driveway, well, we'll see.

Emotionally and psychologically, it was a very satisfying day. Slow, hard, repetitive work, with the results visible instantly. Most muscles involved somehow but my mind free to wander where-ever it wished to go. And it didn't stray far. Mostly I thought about how nice the breeze was, how good it will be to harvest arugula and chives, peppers and basil, all of that kind of stuff.

It would appear that I need these kinds of days. Marlee, our dog, was content to sit out in the yard, watching me from behind the fence. Friends came over with their long ladder to help me clear our eaves and replace a couple of light bulbs that hang high in our car port. We had coffee, then it was back to work on the garden.

I'll finish digging it today. Then we will line the edges with stones, create a couple of brick paths at intervals for weeding and tending purposes, then finally refill the area slightly with top soil or some such mixture. Finally, it will be planting time.

Challenging physically but mentally a holiday. Something I guess I need.

We'll see what grows from this weekend in all kinds of ways.