More Dandelions For Rocky

This morning when I got home from work I harvested more dandelion leaves for Rocky from the neighbors lawn. Not to say that I have run out of Baby Arugula, I was just in the mood to harvest fresh food for Rocky. Tonight, I put together more seed pods (56 of them) so that Brian and I can get the garden started. I have arugula seeds that I got the other day to add to the other seeds to grow for Rocky and the grape vine. I really need to discuss the back fence with the neighbors and the husband and get that fence fixed to plant the grapes.

Story submitted. Let’s see how it does. Will post after results are given.

New Rocky Inspired Story

The Reedsy Prompts for this week are all about writing about animals. I am going to choose the Write about an animal species that doesn't exist in real life — an alien, new discovery, imaginary creature — it's up to your interpretation option to write about a Zaratan sea turtle. Along the lines of the title of Somewhere A Herpetologist Is Crying that I mentioned in the TV Tropes post earlier this week. The story is supposed to be between 1000 and 3000 words. That will be my main focus for a bit so most likely no further posts for the next few days but once I finish the story I will post it here too, like I did with White Tortoise Inn earlier this year, once the results for this week’s contest are announced.

Had to throw out Food

There is nothing I hate more than having to throw out food. I have a dog that is basically a walking garbage disposal for that reason. Today I had to throw out the Baby Arugula I bought at WalMart because it had a best by date of May 5^th. I bought it the same day my husband bought Spring Mix for Rocky so we had too much food for him. I did not want to give the Baby Arugula to Charity, the walking garbage disposal, or Rocky anymore once it started to get mushy in the bottom of the plastic container. When my darling husband went out today for last minute ingredients for dinner I told him to pick up some Baby Kale for Rocky but alas the store was out of Baby Kale so Husband picked up more Baby Arugula for Rocky. I would have given Rocky some more tonight, I did feed him yesterday morning, but I forgot to reset my alarm to get up for work and nearly overslept as it was and was running late.

The fact that I hate throwing out food is one of the reasons why I wanted to garden for Rocky. I know that vegetables and greens do not last that long in the fridge. With the garden I can just harvest fresh every feeding. The other reasons I wanted to garden for Rockys food was it would be cheaper in the long run and put us another step towards self-sustainability. Not to mention it gives me many more additional blog topics.

With the snow tonight, I am glad we have not moved all the containers of plants outside yet. Yes, Snow in May. Either Mab’s mad or Persephone must have been missing her Hades. That was my big gardening plan for the winter months, container gardening. I have clover, basil, cilantro, and even a grape vine started. Hopefully the Rosebush will survive this brief dusting of snow. The dandelions should be fine.

Motorcycle Tortoise?

I am, next month, learning to ride a motorcycle. I have wanted to do this since I was a child. I have been playing the Pathfinder RPG for a long time and they have an archetype for the alchemist called a construct rider. It allows for a mechanical (aka motorcycle) druid animal companion mount. A druid animal companion could be a tortoise…

Tortoise Animal Competition

Source: PRG:B4

STARTING STATISTICS

Size Medium; Speed 10 ft.; AC +6 natural; Attack bite (1d4); Ability Scores Str 14, Dex 8, Con 16, Int 2, Wis 13, Cha 9; SQ low-light vision

7TH-LEVEL ADVANCEMENT

Size Large; Speed 10 ft.; AC +8 natural; Attack bite (1d6); Ability Scores Str +4, Dex –2, Con +2; Bonus Feat Great Fortitude

As for the Construct Rider: A construct rider assembles a construct mount shaped like a riding animal. … The GM may approve other animals as mounts.

This construct mount acts in most ways as a druid animal companion, using the character’s alchemist level as his effective druid level. A construct mount is a construct, but uses the appropriate animal companion’s statistics, gaining Hit Dice, skills, feats, and Strength and Dexterity adjustments as the alchemist advances in level. A construct mount has no Constitution score, and instead gains bonus hit points appropriate for a construct of its size. It has an Intelligence score (and skill points), a lower base attack bonus, and better saving throws than a normal construct of its HD. The mount has all the immunities of a construct (except immunity to mind-affecting effects, since it has a mind). A construct rider can use Craft (alchemy) instead of Handle Animal for all purposes involving his construct mount, though the check still takes a –5 penalty due to the construct mount’s unusual nature.

To create a construct with a mind and body that are constantly changing and improving, the construct rider must manufacture vast quantities of clockwork or animating reagents. As such, the construct rider can never gain the mutagen or cognatogen ability, even from a discovery or another class. ... Since I do not like to use the mutagen class ability I feel this is a bonus.

I have been playing with the idea of my Occult Detective having a motorcycle like this but then I felt inept in the fact that I basically knew almost nothing about riding a motorcycle. I thought my Mother would not approve. When I told her a few days ago that I was taking the Basic Rider course at Hudson Valley Community College. She said that she had wanted to learn to ride a motorcycle but then I came along. Perhaps more on this as another time...

TV Tropes!

So I was looking at the Tv Tropes website because I am thinking of writing a dragon shifter romantic fantasy. So, I was looking at the Dragon Tropes page and discovered it is a subpage of Reptiles and Amphibians. So, I clicked on that page to see what it might have for me to use with regards to Rocky and Zaratans. Turns out there is an entire subpage on Shell tropes too.

Granted there are a lot of shell tropes that do not fit the bill, like clam shell …, but the following are intriguing:

• Removable Shell
• Shy Shelled Animal
• Speedy Snail (When it's a snail or turtle)
• Sturdy and Steady Turtles
• Turtle Island
• Wise Old Turtle

Not that the Reptiles and Amphibians page does not have things of their own to offer:

• Lovable Lizard (Because turtles are cute too)
• Reptiles Are Abhorrent
• Somewhere, A Herpetologist Is Crying
• And most importantly Turtle Power (see Below)

Something I did not see that I think is interesting is the gem encrusted shells, there is a gem encrusted page but that is more for items. I was thinking like a Treasure Dragon Turtle ...

Turtle Power!

Just like Monkeys and Penguins, many people have an odd fascination with turtles. They come off as clumsy, shy and slow, and helpless if turned on their shell, but they also appear wise and spiritualistic at times. They are also among the longest-living animals on the planet. If you want a very elderly funny animal, it's usually going to be a tortoise.^note  If they get large enough, they can also qualify as a fantastic transport or living island (or in the case of one series and certain mythologies, the entire world).

Sea turtles in particular are quite popular and are often included as charismatic megafauna for ocean and beach conservation. Giant Tortoises are also quite popular for island conservation, especially the Galapagos Tortoise, which the islands were named after.

They're also notable as the main exception to the Reptiles Are Abhorrent trope, being seen as cute and non-threatening. A localized exception is the snapping turtle, which isn't generally considered cute (that being said, their prehistoric looks make them pretty badass), and pretty bad-tempered to boot; softshelled turtles usually tend to be depicted as evil as well, being frankly ugly by most standards. Compare Lovable Lizard, for another goofy-looking and harmless reptile.

Familiars of Terra Tortoise

The Inky Prompt from May 3^rd had me thinking. The question, “What was your favorite childhood toy?” Mine was a pink Kitty Surprise. I loved the pouch she had in her stomach for hiding things. Alright, so it was supposed to be for the kittens that came with it, but I don’t remember if I lost those or got the mother cat second hand without them. I used to hide all sorts of things in the pouch, eventually even my Book of Shadows which was in a small, locked diary.

 

I remember two years ago doing a Kickstarter for an RPG called Familiars of Terra. One of the options for the familiars is Pocket: Your familiar has a body pouch which leads to a pocket dimension. This dimension can hold a large duffle bag's worth of items and can only be accessed with the familiar's permission. Meaning items you place in it effectively 'disappear' until retrieved. Some animals come naturally with a body pouch, such as a kangaroo pouch or hamster cheeks, but this power also allows you to create a pocket hidden in your tiger's fur.

 

I cannot help but think about how great a tortoise would be as a familiar, not just for the Familiars of Terra RPG but also for the modern witch (more on that later). Thus, I decided to make a beginning level tortoise familiar using the Roleplaying Game Familiars of Terra rules produced by Angry Hamster Publishing.

 

Now familiars start with 5 points in each attribute - Agility, Awareness, Charm, Might, and Wit. Then, distribute an extra 15 points between any attributes as you like. You may also voluntarily lower an Attribute to below 5 … for every two points you remove from one Attribute you get one point to spend elsewhere. Results for Tortoise:

Agility 3 (which is speed and flexibility)

Awareness 6

Charm 7 (average) 

Might 10 (Determines how much weight they can carry)

Wit 13 (Max)

 

Next step is selecting traits, like pocket. Pick 3 traits for your familiar. Traits are special mutations your familiar has that makes them unique. I chose:

• Burrow because Rocky likes to dig,
• Glow because I do not turn off his basking light so the upstairs windows always glow, and
• Pink because I maxed out his Wit and I like the ability.

Burrow: Your familiar can easily dig through rock, stone, packed earth, and walls and floors made of such materials. It digs at normal, non-running speed and chooses whether the tunnel behind it is stable (remains until collapsed on purpose, or through an earthquake), Unstable (will collapse behind the familiar in random card # rounds), or volatile (immediately collapses two meters behind the familiar as it digs).

 

Glow: Your familiar sheds a bioluminescent glow that it can dim to darkness or raise to the brightness of day at will. this light extends in a circle up to 15 meters around it and can even dispel magical or supernatural darkness.

 

Pink: The familiar turns from a baby-pink to a bright magenta. The familiar can lift items into the air. To lift an item the familiar should make a Wit check. On a success, the familiar lifts the item in the air and can manipulate it for a scene. if the familiar wishes to lift a creature, or if someone grabs the item, they should make an opposed check. the familiar uses Wit and the opponent uses Might. In combat, creatures who are lifted into the air can make an opposed check at the start of their turn to see if they can break free.

 

I am trying to make a set schedule for my postings. One day for Gardening, even though I have not been working on that much lately. One day a week for RPG related postings, even though right now that is the biggest thing on my mind and I posted on it already this week on Tuesday and today, but I am thinking Thursday posts will be about RPGs. Perhaps one day (Wednesday?) for worldbuilding using Zaratans. Of course, the usual look at what Rocky did today posts too.

Storytellers Vault Idea Source

Onyx Path publishing in December of 2013 produced for the Werewolf: the Apocalypse 20th Anniversary Edition the sourcebook Changing Breeds. Of the many shapeshifters presented in the sourcebook were the Mokole or werereptiles. Origionally the Mokole were simply werelizards and werecrocodiles but in the 20th Anniversary they added the Ao, which bred with turtles and tortoises. I have been working on writing for the Storytellers Vault and with returning to Rocky's blog I am now thinking of writing an Ao character, fiction, and sourcebook. It would include to Rokea, my faverite Gangrel vampires the Mariners, and most likely not the last two paragraphs from the quote below, unless using them historically. 

To quote Changing Breeds page 249 to 250 "Ao - The Turtle Varna.

The lost turtle varna of the Mokole had many names. In the Indian Subcontinent, they were called Kurmaraja, names after the tortoise whose body formes the boundaries of the world. In North America, they were knows as the Kahaila, and were credited with creating the world. As a varna, they referred to themselves as the Ao, naming themselves after an elder so great he would even be remembered in the myths of humans as the Chinese seaturtle who sacrificed his legs to hold up the sky. Despite being scattered all over the world, the Ao shared a connection unique among the varna. This may be because they were the oldest varna, or because their patient and contemplative nature was not given to rifts or divisions. Turtles are an ancient family was perfectly adapted to its niche millenia before most of life on Earth today had evolved. 

Most of the world's myths about turtles identify them as creators and preservers, and this was true of the Ao as well. Among the longest-lived varna, other Mokole saw especially old

Ao as living wellsprings of Mnesis, the eyes that had beheld a thousand thousand memories now given to all in dreams. As the Ao include a large number of sea turtles, they had the most contact with the Rokea — appraising the weresharks of happenings on land, and lending an extra set of teeth and claws when the Rokea found something worth destroying.

The Ao included all manner of turtles and tortoises, with the following statistics: Str +1, Dex –1, Sta +4, Man –4, Rage 3. Ao benefit from the Armored Scales characteristic in Suchid form but could only move at half their Homid form’s land speed. Turtle Ao had a swimming speed equal to their Homid form’s land speed.

The Mokolé dream different dreams when searching Mnesis to find what caused the Ao’s disappearance. Some claim that their own solitary, secretive natures doomed the turtle varna. Starting around 540 BCE, other Mokolé began to notice that the Ao’s numbers were dropping. When asked about it, however, the Ao would dissemble or, if pressed, simply refuse to answer. The turtle varna became more and more rare until, by the beginning of the first century CE, they had vanished altogether. Some Mokolé ascribe sinister causes to the Ao’s disappearance, while others believe it was part of the natural cycle, and that the Ao will arise again if the time comes right.

A few weresaurians believe that the Ao were not doomed because they did not die. They point to the lack of any sign of dismay or struggle, and say that the Ao did not succumb but were called into the Umbra to serve Gaia in some unknown capacity. Perhaps the Mokolé varna best known as preservers and creators foresaw the Apocalypse years before anyone else and retreated to an Umbral realm where they could weather the storm and return at the time of the Earth’s most desperate need."

King of the Mountain

Rocky was waiting for me when I came up, standing on his rock ledge, all I could think was "I am king of the mountain". Of course, once I put the usual spring mix into his bowl, behind him, Rocky bagan chowing down. It was as if all the exercise and sunshine yesterday gave him an appetite. I wonder if I should have given him some food last night after bringing Rocky inside? Rocky didn't eat any of the clover or small dandelions that were still in the yard so I though he wasn't hungry but perhaps he is just not used to free-range eating. 

Dandelion leaves

I gave Rocky the dandelion leaves, without cutting them into smaller pieces. It was funny watching him try to eat them like spaghetti.  It was bite and pull. I took a video of it and I cannot wait for the library to reopen so that I can learn how to put a video on this blog. I think the lack of library access was a big issue I have been having over the past two months. Not that Rocky finished all of his dandelion leaves. This is what I saw when I came up to bring him outside.

We had some fun outside again today. This time I got a lot of pictures (see below). 

Playing hide and seek.

Or just watching traffic.

Sadly on the way back upstairs we had a little accident. 

My Apology

I am sorry to anyone who has been trying to keep up with this blog that I have slacked off for the past few months. I was not feeling well. I was depressed. I was stressed. It was a not good time. 

Yesterday, due to the great weather we were finally having, seventy plus degrees and sunny, I took Rocky outside. He was having fun in the front yard, wandering in the grass and digging burrows (4 total) while my husband planted a rosebush and did a few things on the front porch (door knocker, bird feeder, etc.). When we came back in and I had put Rocky back upstairs my husband asked me "What ever happened to that blog you were doing for Rocky? There were some people following that I think." 

My desire to write has been itching at me for the past few weeks with nothing to show for it. I have been uninspired by everything I start. This blog, however, was my greatest writing achievement in over a year. Due to my issues I allowed it too to fall to the wayside. I cannot promise that it will not happen again but I will try my best to not allow it to.

I plan to concentrate more on the blog for Rocky, the gardening for Rocky, and finding joy in the smaller writings that I can do. Eventually if I end up writing other things, I will announce them here too. 

Tomorrow I will have an update with pictures of Rocky being outside and eating dandelion leaves that I harvested yesterday while outside before the neighbor cut our lawns. 

Todays Soak

Rocky might be the reincarnation of my Father. Dad had a habit of pissing off the nurses so that he could get what he want when he was in the hospital, usually back to his room. Rocky has discovered the quickest way for him to get out of a soaking tub is to deficate in said soaking tub. Not even 3 minutes in the soak tub. Before I can even get a cute picture of him. Rocky decides to go to the bathroom. Usually Rocky tries to escape but this time he just pooped. I guess he has learned that if he poops I will remove him from the watet. He was happily munching as soon as I put him back in the terrarium.

New substrate

Collard Greens in the small bowl.  Arugula in the larger Bowl. Most important, new beddings.

Liches Lair - Part 2 - Grotto

This idea began at d20pfsrd where it says "A Grotto is a naturally or artificially shaped cave in which people can live. Compared to a standard cave, a Grotto will usually boast features that make habitation more pleasant, such as door-sized openings, access to neighboring caves or water, … ."


The idea for the Liches Lair being on the back of a sea turtle is so that the phylactery can be in the middle of the ocean without needing to be at the bottom of the ocean. After all trying to find a tiny object, even a magical one, in the vast ocean would be near impossible. The lich trying to do rebuild its spellbook, wardrobe, and magical accoutrements underwater is almost as difficult.


That is why having a mobile stronghold would be preferable. Having an obvious wizards tower on the back of a sea turtle sort of negates the phylactery being near impossible to find.


The idea of Zaratans having trees and rocks on their shells is not new nor uncommon. Most pictures of Zaratans show greenery upon its shell. In such an area of natural growth, the idea of an artificially created cave to contain the rooms is not unrealistic.


Also, the artificially created caves would provide a great way to camouflage the some of the rooms. Some things, like the dock, would not need to be camouflaged. The dock because it is going to be temporary and the others because... See Part 3!


The other reason for the grotto build is so that the rooms are water-tight if the Zaratan decides to submerge itself. Especially for the forge, repositories, storage, and woodworking station.

Note: I will do my best to post the Liches Lair every Thursday. 

Collard Greens

 so I went to Walmart and I couldn't find just baby kale. Basically everything else had baby spinach which he is not supposed to have. So I was looking at collard greens. I originally had no idea what they were but I looked them up online. Basically they're kale just at a different stage of growth. Rocky is enjoying.

Baby Kale

At the local grocery store I found baby kale for the same price and same size container as spring mix. So I bought it and gave some to Rocky, he is a very happy tortoise now.

Poop eating confirmed

So tonight when I go upstairs to do Rockys nightly feeding I find him munching on his own poop. I thought he might be because he had the black mark around his mouth again but I wasn't sure. I fed him his actual food then cleaned up all the poop. He was eating Spring Mix when I left.

Now Weekly Posts

At my husbands suggestion, plus with the way I've been writing this month, I am going to start doing weekly post instead of trying to do Daily Posts for Rocky. They will still be labeled. I will still try to do posts on the garden and Rocky and Worldbuilding. The Liches Lair is an offshoot of the Worldbuilding posts. Perhaps I will go to twice a week, one for Worldbuilding and one for the Garden and Rocky? 

Liches Lair - Part 1 - Rooms and Math

This will end up being multiple posts. It is just a rough idea, so far, of what type of rooms I could put into such a "building".

Originally, I was going to use the Stronghold Builders Guidebook but I could only find 4 rooms in that source that would be fitting.

With Pathfinder, via the d20pfsrd website, I was able to find thirteen rooms (one per scute) with a type of room too.

Unfortunately, Pathfinder does room sizes in five-foot squares whereas The Stronghold Builders Guidebook does room sizes by stronghold space. One stronghold space is the equivalent of 400 square feet which is 16 five-foot squares.

I want the Liches Lair to be on the back of a Gargantuan sized sea turtle, not a tortoise. Gargantuan is thirty-two to sixty-four feet long and since turtles are round that would be the diameter of their shell. Doing the math! Pi times 32 squared is three thousand two hundred plus square feet or one hundred twenty-eight five-foot squares. Pi times sixteen squared is only eight-hundred plus square feet for thirty-two five-foot squares minimum. This does allow the Stronghold Builders Guidebook four rooms to fit upon the Gargantuan shell.

Room	5 ft. Squares	Reason for the room
Grotto	--	Makes Lair look natural
Alter	2-8	To give thanks for rebirth
Book Repository	4-12	Hold journals, maps, and other non-magical writings
Crypt	8-30	An undead should have a crypt
Dock	10-30	Eventually will have to leave the Zaratan
Forge	8-16	Make metal weapons and nails to build a ship
Magical Repository	4-12	Magical writings and item crafting
Scriptorium	5-16	To write in
Scrying room	4-16	To Scry, usually on enemies
Sewing room	6-16	To make clothing and sails
Storage	4-8	Obvious reason
Summoning Chamber	6-16	To Summon assistants
Vault	4-8	Phylactery and reincarnation
Workstation	8-16	To build boat to return to the greater world

The totals of the 5 ft. Squares column has a range of seventy-three to two-hundred which fits within the Gargantuan size parameters of thirty-two to one-hundred twenty-eight.

Cucumber slices

 Today we are having the last of the Cucumber slices. I should definitely plant cucumbers in the garden as well. Tomorrow it's back to just spring mix unless I can get him something else. Perhaps Carrot Tops.

By the way, we are now up to four ladybugs.

Dolls Animal Companion

So among other things I am working on projects for a 1:12 size doll. My husband (and I both) want me to write more about Rocky.


I was wondering if I could combine the two? Possible answer is a Halcyon Druid with a tortoise animal companion.


But would Rocky work as a size 1:12 animal companion? Let me go over the numbers. Starting stats has the tortoise animal companion as a size medium. At 7th level the tortoise animal companion increases to a size large. This is per Pathfinder Bestiary 4. Now according to size chart the average medium sized monster is 4 to 8 feet and large is 8 to 16 feet.


Now for those that do not know, the 1:12 size equates one inch in doll/miniature size to one foot or twelve inches in equivalent size. Right now Rocky is six inches in lenght and four inches wide. Thus this could work.

Feeding Twice a day

Last night I sent my husband up to check on Rocky because as I was pulling out of the driveway the upstairs windows looked smoked. They were covered with condensation. Brian said thar Rocky was very active and eating leftovers from that morning. His bowl is always empty in the morning so I thought he was eating it all at one time. Tonight when I went up Rocky was active, deficating, and eating leftovers. I gave him some fresh salad and he was happy. Then I cleaned his mess. From now on I will feed him a bit less in the morning but some at night as well.

lettuce in water failed

So the lettuce in the water was growing pretty good. Then when I checked it today the entire bottom section was covered in a slime. There were two tiny roots. The outside layers were all drying out. I hope the seedlings do better.

Another Little Friend

The first ladybug of the season and I find it right on top of Rockys cage. Apparently my tortoise makes friends easily. Not sure how the ladybug got into the house but they bring good luck so it can stay.

Garden Update

Rocky got more peppers today.

Basil is sprouted already.

Lettuce is doing fine.

Rocky has 🐦 Friends

I come up to feed Rocky and this little guy is perched just outside the window.

I look at the feeder and there is a second.

Basil Kit (upside down)

Or just a few hours.

2.5 cups of water to soak the disc overnight.

These are the contents.

Late Feeding Not Good

So today I worked hours of overtime. Which means I get home 6 hours later than normal to feed Rocky. My darling husband but the dog but could not go up the stairs because of the arthritis in his knees to feed Rocky this morning.

So I come home and go upstairs. And Rocky is under his log sleeping. So I pull him out and he gives me such a look. It was like a mix of your late and why are you waking me up... expletives deleted.

He got a tiny bit less grumpy when I put them on the food bowl full of food.

Forgot to go Grocery Shopping

I forgot to go Grocery shopping yesterday so Rocky is having the last of my salad. Tonight on my way into work I will get another head of lettuce and Rocky's food. Yesterday while I was at Christmas Tree Shop I got salad mix which had red and green lettuce like he likes but in seeds so I can grow them in a planter out back. I also got a grow your own basil kit. Pinch of nutrients on top of the salad.

Tortoise potty training?

Does anyone know if it's possible to potty train a tortoise? Now he's going not only in his food bowl but his water bowl as well. It is almost enough for me to miss the days when he was not pooping.  I just cleaned the water bowl and refilled it yesterday, not even 24 hours ago.

Saturday Soak

 Rocky got his soaked today such a good baby. He also started chirping at me which is so cute. I got to take the picture early before he defecated this time. In case anyone's wondering it's a 19 by 11 inch casserole pan. Even though he keeps trying to climb out of its three inch depth.

Changing of the bowls

 I thought I would try swapping out the water bowl and the food bowl because the former water bowl would hold more food. Let's see how it works.

Success.

Growth?

Cucumber Slices

Today we tried cucumber slices from Grandma Horn. Ate its end.

Even some by hand.

Unfortunately, when I went up tonight Rocky didn't finish all of it.

UPDATE

I might need to feed Rocky twice a day. He ate it all between last night and this morning. Just look.

Perennial Garden Planning

So in my email tonight I had a link for perennial veggies.  Of the 18 options they listed according to tortoise table only Rhubarb, Sorrel, Chives, Garlic, Onions, Ramps, Three Cornered Leek, Ferns, Lovage, and Good King Henry are on the do not feed list.


Horseradish is on the feed sparingly list and never feed the root to tortoises. Asparagus is also on the feed sparingly list.


Watercress can be fed to tortoises but it contains goitrogens which can interfere with the thyroid if eaten in excess. It can also cause liver flukes if harvested from non-free-flowing water. Not something I am willing to try with Rocky.


Jerusalem Artichoke A.K.A. Sunroot can be fed in moderation. Only the leaves and flowers can be fed to tortoises. The tuberous root cannot be fed to tortoises but can be eaten by humans.


Daylilies are another that the leaves and flowers can e fed to tortoises but the tuberous root cannot. Also leaves should not be eaten in large quantities as they can cause hallucinations. How do you know if your tortoise is having hallucinations? I do not want to find out.


Also the Globe Artichoke is safe to feed all parts of the plant to tortoises.


Radicchio leaves can be fed to both humans and tortoises.


Kale is the best on the list for tortoises. High in calcium and better than dandelions. That being said, Rocky will be the only one in our house eating kale if I decide to plant it.


While the fruit of the grape vine can only be fed sparingly, the young fresh leaves are fine in moderation. I really want to grow grape vines across the back and side fence in the backyard. They were something I wanted to plant before I got Rocky because I wanted to use the grapes to make wine, like my Mother used to. Now I have a use for the leaves too.


The link for perennial veggies also led me to 62 edible wild plants. The list has Dandelion which I really want to plant the entire lawn with. The list also has Fireweed, Chickweed, Chicory, Broadleaf Plantain, Forget-Me-Not, Garlic Mustard, Harebell, Coneflower, Mallow, Pineapple Weed, Red Clover, Shepherd's Purse, Sunflowers, Spring Beauty, Teasel, Wild Grape Vine, Bergamot A.K.A. Wild Bee Balm, Prickly Pear Cactus, Herb Robert, Knapweed, Cleavers, Sow Thistle, Evening Primrose, Pansy, Milk Thistle, Queen Anne's Lace, and Deadnettle which can be eaten by both tortoises and humans. In the flower box with the roses that I want to plant (which Rocky can eat) now I want to add Evening Primrose, Forget-Me-Nots, and Harebells. Inside the new terrarium perhaps I can plant Prickly Pear Cactus?

Lettuce Begins

Massive Pooping the the soaking tub

Today I use the new baking pan as a soaking tub, it's a 9 x 13.  Rocky made a big mess. I am not going to include pictures, it's gross. I cannot clean it so I'm throwing it out and getting him a new one next time I go grocery shopping, probably on Thursday.

I also tried him on the new red lettuce that I got from the grocery store. The one that I hope to regrow in water. I can get two days of food from it before I start trying to regrow it.

 I also think it's time to harvest the carrot greens.

First time in the front yard

It is a semi-warm day, 64 degrees. Rocky wanted to run around in the house. So since Brian was working on the truck I took Rocky outside. 

He even tried to make a burrow.

Free Food

Brian got Rocky free food from a local business that he frequents. I am not going to name the great business without their permission. They gave my husband carrot peels for Rocky. It is so nice of them.

I also got a red lettice at the TOPS grocery store in Coxsackie with the base still on it so now I can start growing more food for Rocky. 

New Decoration

White Tortoise Inn

 From https://slwhtortoise.blogspot.com/2019/12/first-rocky-inspired-short-story-done.html

Submitted by Shana Horn to Contest #21 in response to: Write a short story about an inn-keeper wondering whether this will be their last holiday season in business....        

There are multiple ways to travel between the capital city of Xicusrtiw and the metropolis of Ravena. Both are port cities, so you could take the long, dangerous journey around the desert continent by ship. Then there is the highly expensive and occasionally unreliable option of magical teleportation. Lastly, there is the option of transportation across the desert between those two major cities.

Desert transport was deemed safer than sea transport, due to storms, sea monsters, and other risks. Plus, there are a lot of varieties on how desert transport can be accomplished. Depending upon the type of transport used the crossing over the sand could be faster than the crossing via the sea.

General Waverly was fond of the desert tortoise. Early in his career he sent home an albino, large-sized desert tortoise for his daughter to use as a mount. When the general retired from the army he arrived home to find that the desert tortoise had grown to a gargantuan size. His daughter planned to build an inn atop its shell and use the tortoise to transport people across the desert between Ravena and Xicusrtiw. It would be a slower trip than most ships but still safer.

The White Tortoise Inn was just one building at the beginning and within was an everflowing spring in the form of a fountain, a gambling hall, a restaurant, a laundress/seamstress, and a bathing facility. Eventually they had become such a popular mode of transportation that the Generals granddaughter posed the idea of seeing a druid to grow the tortoise even bigger so that they could put multiple buildings upon his shell. The girls’ mother, father, and most importantly her grandfather agreed to this idea.

On their next trip across the desert instead of passengers they transported professionals to build the new inn buildings. The tortoise was now able to have one building per scute. The original inn building was lifted off before the growth spell and then placed on the center scute. Two more smaller inn buildings, with more numerous but smaller rooms, were built on either side of the original inn in the center of the shell. Around the three inns were built three food establishments, one restaurant and two taverns, and six shops. The shops inspired by the original inn included a haberdashery for the seamstress/laundress, as well as a separate bathing house and a gambling hall. They also built a temple to the goddess Tswaftss, a shop that was rented to a kobold who used it as a pawn shop, a smithing facility, and another storefront that was rented by a vintner.

When they arrived at Ravena they began to question their improvements. They had been able to entice very few people to travel with them on their tortoise-shell thorp. There was nobody occupying the two new inns. The original inn was itself not even half full upon their departure.

While they were at the metropolis the kobold rebranded his pawn shop into a curio shop. As soon as they were underway, he resumed the pawn business with the few patrons they had acquired.

The two smiths who had used the smithing facility on the trip over both abandoned the tortoise upon arrival to the metropolis to set up their own forges. The smithing facility was thus unoccupied on the return trip.

With no patrons for the restaurant, taverns, bath house, nor gambling hall they all became little more than upscale residences for their proprietors.

Only the haberdashery had a successful business, after all people wanted their clothing clean. It was the same woman who had been doing the job for years as an employee of the inn so she had the experience.

The vinter had sold off all his stock in Ravena and used the proceeds to buy raw materials and new equipment so his business could be seen as flourishing as well. He spent the trek back to the capital brewing new batches.

In the overall, the inn was less profitable on the return trip to the capital then it had been on many previous trips. The former General was concerned mostly because the new proprietors, whose businesses did not seem successful, would most likely jump shell at the capital and then there would be six vacant businesses, not including the two currently unoccupied inns.

They arrived at Xicusrtiw exactly one year to the day from their departure date from Ravena. The kobold rebranded his shop back to that of a curio dealer. The vinter proceeded to sell off all his alcohol and begin restocking materials for the return trip. As expected, all the others except the seamstress refused to renew their leases.

On their fifth day in the capital the king died in a teleportation mishap and his son, distraught, handed down a decree that spellcasters would no longer be welcome within the walls of the capital. Many experienced spellcasters had the ability to just teleport themselves elsewhere and did so. Some boarded or had built ships and took to the sea. For the White Tortoise Inn this royal tragedy became a windfall. Many spellcasting shopkeepers who were looking to set up again in the metropolis of Ravena booked a room for a trip across the desert. All three inns were full. The spellcasters were happy to use the year-long expected duration to craft stock for their new shops. Most needed no more space than their simple rooms provided.

An alchemist took over one of the taverns and renaming it Liquid Magic began selling fluid food, alcohol, and potions. A fellow worshiper of Tswaftss took to the smithing facility and began crafting magical shields. A somewhat morbid spellcaster set up shop in the restaurant, calling it the Rabbit Hutch and selling rabbits, living, roasted whole, or stewed. A mermaid witch took over the bath house and ran it as an inn for other aquatic spellcasters and stable for aquatic familiars and animal companions from one of the bathing pools. The second tavern was taken over by the vintner, who used it to not only brew his wares but after the first batch was complete, sold them to the guests. The vintners’ former shop was taken over by a woodworker, who sold both magical and mundane wooden items. The generals granddaughter took over the gambling hall and ended up with a thriving business, better than even the kobolds pawn shop, as she allowed the spellcasters to bet using spellcasting material components.

When they arrived at Ravena, all the spellcasters that had rented rooms left the White Tortoise Inn, Meanwhile, all of those who had rented buildings renewed their leases. Even though only the original inn had rooms occupied for the return trip to the capital, the trip was still profitable. Perhaps if this becomes a trend then the poor inns rooms will be used to transport materials instead of guests.