New Year's Eve, 2017
Dear Gardening Friends...
 
Jake Trigo
2007 - 2017
It's with heavy hearts and yet happy memories that we share the news of the passing of our beloved Jake. This sweet, shy boy was, of course, one of the original Two Dogs. We adopted him and his cell-mate, Lalo, together from the South L.A. Shelter in March of 2007. His photo had come up on their website, and immediately I wanted to get ahold of him and brush his fur, which was matted and dirty. We were still mourning the loss of our first dog, a beautiful long haired (or "rough coated") Border Collie named Paco, and although, he had a short (or "flat") coat, there was something about Jake that grabbed our hearts in the same way that Paco had.
He was 9 months old when he came to the Shelter as a "stray", which meant he couldn't be adopted for 5 days, in case his "owner" came looking for him. I knew he was ours!
His c ell mate was a very skinny, fearful Pitt mix with big, pleading eyes who was on "death row". The two seemed bonded, even though they had not been together for very long. We went to visit them at least once a day for the full 5 days, and on the morning they could be freed, we were there when the Shelter opened.
Both boys were a bit of a mess, emotionally, as Rescues often are. Prior to their adoption, Alex and I had not only lost Paco, but had been forced to greatly downsize our original business, La Paloma Design, when the economy began to crash; having had that business for more than 18 years, and having dearly loved it, it was like another death for us. Then, a month after we brought Jake & Lalo home, my own Dad passed on.
The compounded heartache ignited a great need in me to get my hands in the soil... "horticultural therapy", as they say. But all my plans for an in-ground garden were thwarted by the wild destruction our new boys were wreaking on the back yard. It was the  simple question from a friend, "Don't you know about the EarthBoxes?", that brought about the Nursery. At his suggestion, I ordered 3 EarthBoxes online, put them up out of the boys' reach, and from the moment I planted them, I felt possessed with growing food and getting other people started, too. I had this instinct that knowing how to grow at least some of our own food was a vitally important Life Skill.
Things developed very quickly - not just Seedlings, but Organic Certification, the inclusion of Soils, Composts and Berry Bushes and Fruit Trees, the seven years of Farmers Markets - it all manifested as though meant to be, whether we were game or not!!
Anyway, throughout it all, Jake and Lalo were there...guarding, greeting, babysitting and being Nursery Ambassadors, in general. Then, of course, our third Rescue, Charlie, came along 3 years ago and added to the fun.
But it was our Jake (aka Jake the Cake) who really started it all...without him, there would have been no Lalo, and certainly, no Two Dog Nursery.
As I said, he was shy, but he was also very intelligent and dignified, as Border Collies tend to be... and, privately, he was also very funny and loved to steal Papa's socks or all the towels from Lalo's bed and run wildly around the house with them!! He didn't like his picture taken and was reserved with his affections, but you knew it meant something when he would snuggle close on the sofa. We miss him very much, and so does Lalo, but we feel his quiet presence here and send him all our love. Rest in Peace sweet boy, and thank you for everything.
 
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Of course, we'll be selling tomatoes for months, but we know some of you like to get a real early jump on it!! 
so get yours in now!
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