text: The second stand-alone feature set in a galaxy far, far away – Solo: A Star Wars Story roars into multiplexes this Memorial Day Weekend. Alden Ehrenreich takes over the role of a young Han Solo in the part made iconic by Harrison Ford. Costars include Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clarke, Donald Glover as Lando, Thandie Newton, Paul Bettany, and, of course, Chewbacca. Ron Howard serves behind the camera in a move that garnered much press attention when he took over from Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. They exited the project after creative differences with Disney after months on the job.
  Reviews out today are mostly positive with 73% currently on Rotten Tomatoes. That said, that’s the lowest meter of the four entries since the vaunted franchise came back in 2015. Our first spin-off, 2016’s Rogue One, debuted with $155 million one year after the record-breaking grosses of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. These offshoots are not expected to reach the heights of the traditional “episodes”. Solo does certainly have the added bonus of returning a beloved character, even with the natural speculation and some cynicism about another actor playing him.
  One thing seems fairly certain: Solo should have no trouble breaking the current Memorial Day record held by 2007’s Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End which made $139.8 million for its start. Given the extra day of grosses, Han and Chewie could exceed that by over $10 million.
  Watch this video of the 2012 squash vine borer invasion and learn what I am doing to mitigate damage.
  I’m pretty fortunate to work with a lot of people who have gardening experience and I always share what is happening in my gardens with them. This year I have been keeping a vigilant watch for the Evil Squash Vine Borer but somehow they slipped past me. I have had to pull 2 of the 6 squash plants I had growing and producing squash because these pests have bored into the plants and basically ate them from the inside out and cut them at the stems beyond repair.
  To combat further losses I learned from my colleagues that I should bury the stems as much as possible to prevent further damage. To do so I first made a wonderful mix of homemade compost, peat moss, potting soil, hummus and manure and top soil. I then buried the stems of the four remaining plants as much as possible and then it rained to help compact the new soil around the plants. If all goes well the remaining plants will be prepared to ward off future invasion and produce delicious squash for at least another month. Stay tuned for the results. E-mail me with your questions and experience warding off the Evil Squash Vine Borer and I’ll post them in a future episode. TonyTeolis@ToDoListHome.com