Katatawnic
Well-Known Member
Hi all, my name is Kat. (My username is pronounced "catatonic" for those who are curious; I get that question a lot. lol)
I have the medical marijuana "recomendation" for CA and therefore am legal to grow according to my state. Of course the feds see it differently, but since I'll be growing a very small amount for my personal use, I highly doubt they'll find reason to come after me.
I live with severe chronic pain/fatigue and extremely limited mobility; I'm a good 98% housebound. My current diagnonsense is fibromyalgia, but my docs and I know that I have an autoimmune disease, many of which run rampid in my family. MS his highly suspected, along with RA, lupus, chronic Lyme, (currently undifferentiated) spondylitis, Crohn's, thyroid disease.... any or all of the above, and then some. We're fighting MedicAid to get tests approved; between that battle and the fact that symptoms overlap exponentially between a myriad of illnesses/syndromes that are already extremely difficult to diagnose on their own, it could take years or even decades before an accurate diagnonsense can be established and hence a chance at better treatment & management of my symptoms. (My mom is in her late '50s, and like myself, has been increasingly ill since childhood; it took decades for them to discover that she has Crohn's, she just got a true diagnonsense of Ankylosing Spondylitis a few months ago, and is finally getting proper treatment which has led to a bit more mobility & quality of life! She's the one who is now being my "cheerleader" and reminding me that there is hope and to keep fighting, etc.; it can be all too easy to lose sight of that little light at the end of the tunnel. BLAH!) But pain, fatigue, general illness, being housebound and extremely isolated is simply a part of my life, and I try to make the best of it; meaning I'm not seeking sympathy and especially not pity! Rather, I'm establishing my condition in a bit of a nutshell and getting it out of the way, as it ends up being mentioned sooner or later anyhow.
So, my AeroGarden PRO200 arrived today. Although the manual indicates that I should be able to assemble it myself, my 18 yr. old son (who moved back in to be my "care giver" while my fiance is deployed to Iraq until late August) will be most likely doing most if not all of the assembly.
The reasons I chose the AeroGarden, at least to begin growing, are the convenience of having an entire (albeit according to the "grow journal" threads not quite) hydro/aeroponic system that is self-contained and doesn't take up a lot of room, is portable and pretty easy to break down and set back up when moving (as we'll be buying a home shortly after my fiance's return from Iraq), and most importantly a system that I can maintain on my own since my son (who will be helping me learn some of the basics) won't be living with me forever.
I've been reading several AeroGarden grow journals in these forums the last few days.... part of me feels a bit more overwhelmed while another part of me feels a bit more educated before I've even begun. I'm more likely to be found on YouTube, Stickam, or Skype because video viewing/chat is easier on me than typing (my hands are getting increasing arthritic symptoms, and some days typing is very painful whereas other days it's just fine).... this is the first forum post I've made in a couple of years that I can recall! However, this site absolutely rocks between the amazing amount of info and the posting members appearing to be extremely friendly, so I shall type whenever I can as I really feel I can learn a lot from this site.... and perhaps one of these years actually be in the capacity to help other n00bs like myself.
Tonight my son and I plan (depending on my pain/fatigue level) to begin germinating seeds, and most likely my AeroGarden will also be set up tonight so that I'll have a few days to play around with settings and get them down by the time the seeds are ready to plant.
BTW, although I've been using MJ daily to control pain and bipolar episodes for over two decades, I'm not well-hearsed with a lot of the "jargon" amongst the MJ "community" so to speak. SO!!! I'm under the impression that I'm using "bag seeds" as they're not purchased; they're collected from what I've bought; is this the correct term?
Also, I won't be able to purchase additional lights for at least a few weeks, if not even a couple of months.... between a meager disability income and cruddy economy, spending on anything further than necessities for living isn't something I get to do often. However, one purchase I'll be making ASAP aside from additional lighting is a Mylar Grow Tent (photos attached) which will easily fit in my bedroom or the "dining" room which we instead use basically for storage and my exercise equipment. It's also extremely portable and easy to assemble, which again will make it very simple when we buy a house and move out of this gang-infested neighborhood.
My house was filled with beautiful, lush plants for years; I finally gave them away when the neuropathy became too disabling for me to take proper care of so many plants spread throughout my home, but I know my thumb is still quite green. So, although I know there'll be some trial and error in the beginning, I'm confident that I'll be harvesting enough bud to keep myself supplied with my wonderful medicine in a relatively short period of time. (I generally go through an ounce a month, two if I'm in a bad flare/relapse; so I certainly won't need to grow giant plants.) Then, not only will I have the satisfaction of having accomplished something I've wanted to do for years, but more importantly I'll finally be able to stop getting my herb off the streets and know exactly what I'm putting into my body.
(Who knows? Perhaps some day there'll be a "Katatawnic" strain! Oh, I would SO run a grow op for dispensaries if I had the money and the room, etc.!)
ANYHOOO, this post was originally going to be in the "Introduce Yourself" forum category, but since I'm preparing to begin my first ever "mini crop" using the AeroGarden PRO200 and will most definitely be having questions, I figured this would be the place to get my intro out of the way. Two stones with one bird and all that jazz.
Sorry this is so long! I'm a "wordy" person by nature, which is one reason I avoid typing when my hands flare up. LOL! When my "grow journal" begins, I'm planning on videoing a lot as well as taking still photos; they may be posted on my YouTube channel, but my plan is to embed .flv files in a "Grow Journal Vlog" page on my own domain as well and/or instead of YouTube. Not only will this give great visuals of the process, but it'll also bring down my typing exponentially as I can simply post brief updates and provide links to my latest "Vlog" entry.
OK, now that I've written nearly an entire book chapter, I shall finally sign off and let everyone's eyes take a rest.... those of you who've gotten this far, I applaud you!
I should be back soon with an update (again, germination is beginning tonight, so it'll be at least a few days before I'm back to yak).... catch you on the flip side, and may the forces of evil become confused on their way to your house!
~~ Kat ~~
I have the medical marijuana "recomendation" for CA and therefore am legal to grow according to my state. Of course the feds see it differently, but since I'll be growing a very small amount for my personal use, I highly doubt they'll find reason to come after me.
I live with severe chronic pain/fatigue and extremely limited mobility; I'm a good 98% housebound. My current diagnonsense is fibromyalgia, but my docs and I know that I have an autoimmune disease, many of which run rampid in my family. MS his highly suspected, along with RA, lupus, chronic Lyme, (currently undifferentiated) spondylitis, Crohn's, thyroid disease.... any or all of the above, and then some. We're fighting MedicAid to get tests approved; between that battle and the fact that symptoms overlap exponentially between a myriad of illnesses/syndromes that are already extremely difficult to diagnose on their own, it could take years or even decades before an accurate diagnonsense can be established and hence a chance at better treatment & management of my symptoms. (My mom is in her late '50s, and like myself, has been increasingly ill since childhood; it took decades for them to discover that she has Crohn's, she just got a true diagnonsense of Ankylosing Spondylitis a few months ago, and is finally getting proper treatment which has led to a bit more mobility & quality of life! She's the one who is now being my "cheerleader" and reminding me that there is hope and to keep fighting, etc.; it can be all too easy to lose sight of that little light at the end of the tunnel. BLAH!) But pain, fatigue, general illness, being housebound and extremely isolated is simply a part of my life, and I try to make the best of it; meaning I'm not seeking sympathy and especially not pity! Rather, I'm establishing my condition in a bit of a nutshell and getting it out of the way, as it ends up being mentioned sooner or later anyhow.
So, my AeroGarden PRO200 arrived today. Although the manual indicates that I should be able to assemble it myself, my 18 yr. old son (who moved back in to be my "care giver" while my fiance is deployed to Iraq until late August) will be most likely doing most if not all of the assembly.
The reasons I chose the AeroGarden, at least to begin growing, are the convenience of having an entire (albeit according to the "grow journal" threads not quite) hydro/aeroponic system that is self-contained and doesn't take up a lot of room, is portable and pretty easy to break down and set back up when moving (as we'll be buying a home shortly after my fiance's return from Iraq), and most importantly a system that I can maintain on my own since my son (who will be helping me learn some of the basics) won't be living with me forever.
I've been reading several AeroGarden grow journals in these forums the last few days.... part of me feels a bit more overwhelmed while another part of me feels a bit more educated before I've even begun. I'm more likely to be found on YouTube, Stickam, or Skype because video viewing/chat is easier on me than typing (my hands are getting increasing arthritic symptoms, and some days typing is very painful whereas other days it's just fine).... this is the first forum post I've made in a couple of years that I can recall! However, this site absolutely rocks between the amazing amount of info and the posting members appearing to be extremely friendly, so I shall type whenever I can as I really feel I can learn a lot from this site.... and perhaps one of these years actually be in the capacity to help other n00bs like myself.
Tonight my son and I plan (depending on my pain/fatigue level) to begin germinating seeds, and most likely my AeroGarden will also be set up tonight so that I'll have a few days to play around with settings and get them down by the time the seeds are ready to plant.
BTW, although I've been using MJ daily to control pain and bipolar episodes for over two decades, I'm not well-hearsed with a lot of the "jargon" amongst the MJ "community" so to speak. SO!!! I'm under the impression that I'm using "bag seeds" as they're not purchased; they're collected from what I've bought; is this the correct term?
Also, I won't be able to purchase additional lights for at least a few weeks, if not even a couple of months.... between a meager disability income and cruddy economy, spending on anything further than necessities for living isn't something I get to do often. However, one purchase I'll be making ASAP aside from additional lighting is a Mylar Grow Tent (photos attached) which will easily fit in my bedroom or the "dining" room which we instead use basically for storage and my exercise equipment. It's also extremely portable and easy to assemble, which again will make it very simple when we buy a house and move out of this gang-infested neighborhood.
My house was filled with beautiful, lush plants for years; I finally gave them away when the neuropathy became too disabling for me to take proper care of so many plants spread throughout my home, but I know my thumb is still quite green. So, although I know there'll be some trial and error in the beginning, I'm confident that I'll be harvesting enough bud to keep myself supplied with my wonderful medicine in a relatively short period of time. (I generally go through an ounce a month, two if I'm in a bad flare/relapse; so I certainly won't need to grow giant plants.) Then, not only will I have the satisfaction of having accomplished something I've wanted to do for years, but more importantly I'll finally be able to stop getting my herb off the streets and know exactly what I'm putting into my body.
(Who knows? Perhaps some day there'll be a "Katatawnic" strain! Oh, I would SO run a grow op for dispensaries if I had the money and the room, etc.!)
ANYHOOO, this post was originally going to be in the "Introduce Yourself" forum category, but since I'm preparing to begin my first ever "mini crop" using the AeroGarden PRO200 and will most definitely be having questions, I figured this would be the place to get my intro out of the way. Two stones with one bird and all that jazz.
Sorry this is so long! I'm a "wordy" person by nature, which is one reason I avoid typing when my hands flare up. LOL! When my "grow journal" begins, I'm planning on videoing a lot as well as taking still photos; they may be posted on my YouTube channel, but my plan is to embed .flv files in a "Grow Journal Vlog" page on my own domain as well and/or instead of YouTube. Not only will this give great visuals of the process, but it'll also bring down my typing exponentially as I can simply post brief updates and provide links to my latest "Vlog" entry.
OK, now that I've written nearly an entire book chapter, I shall finally sign off and let everyone's eyes take a rest.... those of you who've gotten this far, I applaud you!
I should be back soon with an update (again, germination is beginning tonight, so it'll be at least a few days before I'm back to yak).... catch you on the flip side, and may the forces of evil become confused on their way to your house!
~~ Kat ~~
I hope the grow goes well... I'll be around the chat if ya need any help.
My next purchase will be the mylan tent before adding lights, because I live in an extremely old & drafty house, and every morning I'm greeted with new dust bunnies. I want my AG to be dust-free and easy to keep clean; ease of use/maintenance is a necessity for me, because I'm physically very limited.... hence my decision to try out the AG in the first place.
