Garden Update

I swear this isn't a gardening blog.  I WILL post artsy fun stuff soon!  But I'm sort of up to my ears in dirt... I mean soil... right now.

We’ve got stuff blooming!

We’re putting up chicken wire around the entire yard to keep out bunnies.  I decided I’d rather have one fence rather than trying to barricade every single garden plot.  
 

Securing chicken wire with zip ties and a little edging left over from the previous owner of our house

There is a rabbit that bolts practially every time we open the front door, and it is only a matter of time before he realizes that there is a buffet in the backyard.

I realize that squirrels and birds will still have their way with our crop, but at least the little seedlings will have a fighting chance.  The tricky part is going to be the gate.  

And I am so ready to put these little guys in the ground.  They don't seem very happy in their pots.

Questions, comments, and suggestions welcome.  

Rain Barrel Update

We put out our rain barrels May 6.  We decided to not worry about the last freeze day being May 15.  Hopefully that is ok.  I'm hoping that since water retains heat somewhat, it will make it through a frost, should we get one.  If it doesn't, you'll hear all about it....

Last year's rain barrels coming out of the garden shed.

Belovedest also got another rain barrel to put next to the shed which is actually near the garden

This drain looks like it will go right into the barrel, but when we poured water into the gutter, it arced out and landed in the center of the lid..

We had to shorten the gutter.  Happily, my dremel came to the rescue.  We've ended up using it much more for cutting than crafting, but I'm going to work on that.

Then we tested it:

The barrels have been full!  Pretty much as soon as we put them out, it started raining regularly.  You're welcome!

TIPS:

• Elevate your rain barrels!  You'll get more gravity power to move the water where you want it.
• Water your houseplants and garden seedlings with rainwater.  Water softener water will kill them.  We discovered, fortunately, that our outdoor faucet water doesn't go through the water softener so we use that when we don't have rain water.
• Decorate your rain barrels before they are full of water.  Yup.  I forgot again!.
• Before buying one, check your local agencies like the extension service and city offices.  The rain barrel class that we took was sponsored by the city watershed management office, and was cheaper than buying a similar barrel.  My sister lives in a city where they are free.

Did You Know? RE: Paper-making

As part of the process of making paper by machine instead of by hand, it was "wrapped around a cylinder called the dandy roll, which was invented at the London-based firm of T. J. Marshall in 1826.  The name came, charmingly, from the comment made by one of the Marshall workers upon citing the results of this invention: 'Isn't that a dandy!'"

From Paperie: The Art of Writing and Wrappingwith Paper, a fun coffee-table book from folks at Kate's Paperie with Bo Niles.  Even if the book does mention their business more than once, it's lavishly illustrated with pictures and artful photographs and exhaustively research by people whom I don't hesitate to call obsessed.  Page 52

Two Quotes for Today

"To find out what one is fitted to do, and to secure an opportunity to do it, is the key to happiness."   -- John Dewey

"To business that we love, we rise betime

and go to't with delight"

            -- William Shakespeare, Anthony and Cleopatra, Act IV, scene IV

And to do endlessly what one is not fitted to do is right next door to Hell, I would imagine.  Or perhaps, I remember.  But for those readers who are trapped in jobs they are not suited for: remember that your job is not all that you do... yes, remember this while you plan your escape!

Weekly Round-Up

This week I ....

... finished grading, turned in my grades, and ordered books.  Now I don't have to go to work until August.  I will, though.  I have some summertime ambitions.  Just not for a while.

... spent time on a golf course.  (Longer than to cut across a corner of it while geocaching.)  I joined the students and faculty for the annual Golf Scramble (i.e. Finals Are Over Celebration) in Friend, Nebraska.  I just walked along since I've never golfed before and making a laughingstock of myself in front of students is generally a bad idea.  But it was a lovely day for a leisurely walk, I learned what a birdie is, and I got to spend time with pleasant folk.

... enjoyed hanging out with my niece.  She wants to make a dress from recycled T-shirts which she plans to cover in "hearts, flowers, rainbows, and sparkles."  Stayed tune...
Here she is helping with dinner by preventing the potatoes from exploding in the microwave.

And here she is learning to sauté.

She's growing so fast!  But she's always had fun in my kitchen, and I hope we are making happy memories.

Melting marshmallows for Rice Krispie Bars

Sugar-Free Summer

... begins today! 

(Or maybe Monday, if there are chocolate chip cookies at the graduation reception tomorrow.....)

Who Knew?

McDonald's teaches its employees that the fastest way to put out a shortening fire is to dump frozen French fries on it.
-- from Who Knew? Things You Didn't Knowabout the Things You Know Well by David Hoffman