Life after Shaq?

"Why didn't you cover it?"
"all that effort wasted!"
"I'm going to turn you into the 'Pumpkin Endangerment Agency!!!'"

These were just a few of the comments I was greeted with this morning at work. The overall mood was that of disappointment, disbelief, and anger.

How could I, Mr.Trash talker himself, let something so simple as covering the plant end the growing season? Seriously? I built a freakin green house to protect the emerging seedling, but overlooked the same weather later in the year. Why, because SHAQ had grown to GIANT status? Was I satisfied with his size and became complacent thinking I had this thing won? I don't know why, but I didn't cover him up, and I must take this mistake to the grave. What could have been.

OK, enough of that talk. What's done is done. I must "man up" and live with the results.

I cut SHAQ off the vine,(more like cutting the vine off of SHAQ) and will put him in a shady spot under the deck.

Final measurements-
100 inches in circumference= ~250lbs
230 total inches=~250lbs

I rolled him onto the bathroom scale laid across some bricks and the scale read about 265lbs. I'll get a much more precise weight on weigh day.

This could get interesting

The furnace kicked on this morning and I rolled over. Three day weekends are great for sleeping in, and cool weather is great for sleeping, so why not sleep in. Another cold front passed through last night, only this one actually felt like a "COLD" front. The season is changing and I usually enjoy it. This year is a little different because of SHAQ. I was hoping for another month of good weather, and we still might get it, but it won't matter now.....
When I finally rolled out of bed I looked outside to see SHAQ and his frozen leaves. I was talking to Randy a couple weeks ago at work, and he said you know your plant has froze when all the leaves are drooping. Yep, that's what they are doing. I'll be optimistic and hope they're just playing dead. Four weeks of potential growing have turned into four weeks of hoping the competition doesn't catch up. This could get interesting.

4 weeks left

98" and he weighs about 225 pounds. With some good weather and great luck he might reach the 300 pound mark.