I have a lot of circa 2007 era seeds that I have combined into one jar and will plant thickly to see if anything comes up.Sunday, April 25, 2010
Seed combining
I have a lot of circa 2007 era seeds that I have combined into one jar and will plant thickly to see if anything comes up.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Solar Dryer Works!
A rare sunny day and I can test my solar dryer. Look how hot it gets inside!
Mint drying. I learned from this batch that I should first strip the leaves from the stalks. Then dry.
Getting a good angle of the sun.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog Play
The very same day we made sure we were okay in a Fiery Crash, we also saw Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog in play form at the Blue Monkey Theater. I confess, I had no idea until we walked in that we were seeing a play and not the film. It turned out to be great fun.
Dr. Horrible.
He has a Ph.D. in horribleness.
The woman taking pictures took a wedding photographer's amount of photos. It was weird. So I took a photo to capture the moment. Also in this photo: Burt, he of the awesome Dr. Horrible costume. He was feeling under the weather and still managed a smile.
Post show, Matt with Captain Hammer.
Matt and both Captain Hammers.
Captain Hammer and the show's Penny
The two Dr. Horribles.
The play was fun to watch, in that they added choreography and also songs from Commentary: The Musical! It also had a lot of high school students in it, which I always enjoy. It was difficult to watch in that the actors were performing a highly quotable film and they weren't as good at delivery as Nathan Fillion, Neil Patrick Harris & Felicia Day. Performing a familiar work live is a tough tightrope.
Burt lent Matt his Dr. Horrible costume, and Laurie dressed up as Captain Hammer.
Dr. Horrible.
He has a Ph.D. in horribleness.
The woman taking pictures took a wedding photographer's amount of photos. It was weird. So I took a photo to capture the moment. Also in this photo: Burt, he of the awesome Dr. Horrible costume. He was feeling under the weather and still managed a smile.
When we got inside there was a stage setting and it dawned on me that perhaps this wasn't just a screening. Matt was very excited by the Angel doll sitting on the couch. He wanted me to take a picture of it.
Captain Hammer triumphs over Dr. Horrible on set before the play starts.
Captain Hammer triumphs over Dr. Horrible on set before the play starts.
Post show, Matt with Captain Hammer.
Matt and both Captain Hammers.
Captain Hammer and the show's Penny
The two Dr. Horribles.
The play was fun to watch, in that they added choreography and also songs from Commentary: The Musical! It also had a lot of high school students in it, which I always enjoy. It was difficult to watch in that the actors were performing a highly quotable film and they weren't as good at delivery as Nathan Fillion, Neil Patrick Harris & Felicia Day. Performing a familiar work live is a tough tightrope.
Solar Dryer
My brother made me a solar food dryer for my birthday present and here it is!
It's much larger than I thought it would be, and very finely crafted.
I've now got two big racks of drying power, and for free! As in, I don't have to pay for the sun to dry my food, nor listen to the fan noise of the electric dryer.
Because we have no garage to store the dryer in, I have crafted this cover, from a tarp, to keep off the copious Portland rains.
Thanks Chris (for construction) and Mom (for funding construction)!Fiery Crash Party
Why are we at a party where people sit at computers and type? Because we are at a Fiery Crash Party!
What's a Fiery Crash Party? Its a party where people get together and get all their documents together so if they are incapacitated in a fiery crash, their affairs are in order.
Do you have your Advance Directive, Last Will and Testament and Power of Attorney all complete?
Matt works on his will.
The best part was that there were two notaries there to make everything legal.
It took a surprising amount of time and also a lot of signing and witnessing.
But in the end, we are now both ready for a fiery crash.
When I tell people about this party they are either weirded out or incredibly enthusiastic. I am in the enthusiastic camp and I thank Laurie and Burt for having this party, Laurie's parents for hosting and Laurie for notarizing everything.
Should something happen to me, look in the second drawer of the file cabinet. All my documents are there.
What's a Fiery Crash Party? Its a party where people get together and get all their documents together so if they are incapacitated in a fiery crash, their affairs are in order.
Do you have your Advance Directive, Last Will and Testament and Power of Attorney all complete?
Matt works on his will.
The best part was that there were two notaries there to make everything legal.
It took a surprising amount of time and also a lot of signing and witnessing.
But in the end, we are now both ready for a fiery crash.
When I tell people about this party they are either weirded out or incredibly enthusiastic. I am in the enthusiastic camp and I thank Laurie and Burt for having this party, Laurie's parents for hosting and Laurie for notarizing everything.Should something happen to me, look in the second drawer of the file cabinet. All my documents are there.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Watering system
I'm experimenting with a new watering system this year. I've got myself some clay pots and stopped up the hole in the bottom.
Then I fill the pot with water and the water slowly seeps out.
Like this.
The idea is that you bury the pot next to a plant and put a cover over the pot. Then the plants roots grow around the pot and it grows.
This is based on the idea of the ollas which were used in the Southwest. I would like to purchase a few ollas, but they are $25-$30 apiece. Too rich for my blood.
Then I fill the pot with water and the water slowly seeps out.
Like this.
The idea is that you bury the pot next to a plant and put a cover over the pot. Then the plants roots grow around the pot and it grows.
This is based on the idea of the ollas which were used in the Southwest. I would like to purchase a few ollas, but they are $25-$30 apiece. Too rich for my blood.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Hugelkultur!
My super clay soil always needs improvement. As does my neighbor Leo's super clay soil that I garden in. So this spring break, I dug out a new style of beds in his yard and made a hugelkultur.
I'm not sure if "made" is the right term. Could hugelkultur be a verb? I think not. At any rate, here's what I did.
First, I had my brother haul over a truckload of wood trimmings from my Aunt Pat's house. I also used my Christmas tree trunk and branches. I bought a sack of alfalfa pellets at Concentrates, my favorite place to buy amendments. Then I did nothing because school happened and fall happened and winter happened and suddenly it was spring break.
In Leo's backyard, I spread the alfalfa pellets in a U shape, because I was making keyhole beds. Then, I set the branches and twigs, etc on top in the same U shape.
After that, I dug up dirt to cover the branches.
I did this over and over again until I had several U shaped beds. It was a lot of work.
Mine was a small scale project. This link is a bigger bed built with the help of a tractor.
http://www.richsoil.com/hugelkultur/
And here you can see the difference between a hugekultur bed and a regular bed.
http://saponaria-wortsandall.blogspot.com/2008/07/hugelkultur-compared.html
I'm not sure if "made" is the right term. Could hugelkultur be a verb? I think not. At any rate, here's what I did.
First, I had my brother haul over a truckload of wood trimmings from my Aunt Pat's house. I also used my Christmas tree trunk and branches. I bought a sack of alfalfa pellets at Concentrates, my favorite place to buy amendments. Then I did nothing because school happened and fall happened and winter happened and suddenly it was spring break.
In Leo's backyard, I spread the alfalfa pellets in a U shape, because I was making keyhole beds. Then, I set the branches and twigs, etc on top in the same U shape.
After that, I dug up dirt to cover the branches.
I did this over and over again until I had several U shaped beds. It was a lot of work.
Mine was a small scale project. This link is a bigger bed built with the help of a tractor.
http://www.richsoil.com/hugelkultur/
And here you can see the difference between a hugekultur bed and a regular bed.
http://saponaria-wortsandall.blogspot.com/2008/07/hugelkultur-compared.html
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