To Pick or Not to Pick

So after 2 months of a record-breaking summer heat, I have exactly one Small Wonder winter squash growing on the vine. It seems kinda lonely but otherwise in pretty good shape (the picture was taken this morning.)

I wasn't a perfect gardener so I didn't record when I planted the vine but I know it was sometime in July. The packets say that the fruit is ready to pick in 75-80 days when the skin is tough. What the heck does tough mean, anyway? I bet I could take it in a fair fight. Anyhoo, that puts pickin' time this weekend (when I'll be out of town.)

On the one hand, I want to pick the squash before a swarm of squash borers find it and go to town on the only squash in town. On the other hand, when this one's picked (or devoured by bugs) I'll have nothing else to look forward to. The vine will be empty. I've seen lots of flower buds on it but they are all male flowers. Maybe I need to look into a different kind of fertilizer next time. Or maybe it was just a bum seed. Or maybe gardening is a lonely life.

Apparently gardening is a nuanced science as well as philosophy....