Been a Long Time...

Too easy to just throw a short phrase up on Facebook instead of putting together a blog post. Here goes some catch up from fall on. It is all about the greenhouse I built last fall and worked in today for about an hour (well maybe 15 minutes of it was a nap in the sun...). I was actually sweating in there even though the high today was 37. And all I was doing was weeding and removing some old plants not like I was digging a ditch or anything! I did also pick a nice salad for dinner tonight. Still have a couple lettuces, carrots, beets, herbs, plus some of the bokchoi and tatsuta that have not gone to seed. In the pictures are a lettuce bed already replanted with more lettuce, tonight's salad, the beds out from the floating covers (the greenhouse is not heated but has survived below zero nights on its own), it under construction, and one with snow all around.

Still Waiting

The birds are still commandeering our back door. And now they hold a constant vigil with a constant chirping too. Not bringing food to the nest yet that we can tell and not sitting on the nest all the time as I just saw them switch off sitting on the wire watching. I was too slow to get both the mom and dad bird at the same time. They both were there, then one scooted over close to the one that just landed, then took off as I pointed the camera. We sure would like that door back someday!

Scene from a Scout camp

A bottle of water, a cot for a bed
Perhaps a bottle of Benadryl instead
We'll get a tent far from the street
In a totally unfamiliar place...

That is Blondie the squirrel who frequented camp quite a bit. The last visitor was a young bear after family night who must have liked the smell of Papa Jojn's pizza. After campfire and the rain, the kids went over hill and dale back to camp to startle the youngster that was checking out the trash that didn't get picked up in the earlier run. All in all a good week. Rain every day but at pretty convenient times and short each day. Only a few injuries. The weird one was 7 scouts from all around camp all in sick bay at the same time with a swollen eye or two on Monday. Our one kid of the seven had his swell completely shut. Doses of Benadryl and detox showers and back to camp with them all. Next we had a kid that had to go home after throwing up most of the night Tues. Another camper (not our troop) was choppered out Wed night with an apparent appendicitis. Thursday Ben fell off his horse when cantering but was not hurt. Friday John fell jumping a ditch with not as much luck and took a chunk out of his knee that bled rather well. All are back home and crashed in their beds. Think I will too.

Off to summer camp!

The boys and I (first time for all three of them) are heading out for summer camp at Peaceful Valley Scout Camp. Do to work and a lousy back, I'll only be staying a couple of nights to show the other leaders the ropes and get Ben and John started off okay. For once we are not scrambling at the last minute to pack. We must be forgetting something!

The Things we do

We tend to let the yard go natural whenever possible and this vine is pretty cool so we've let it be over the years. Well it decided to cover our back light, but no biggie. Then while we were gone on vacation the back door (shown) no longer was left open all day for the woofus to go in and out at her leisure. With the quiet, a bird decided to nest in the jungle on top of the light. No harm and we came and went out the door. Until one day when the bird panicked and coming off the nest about hit Lauri. So now for the bird's sake (and ours), that door is off limits and we go around. Poor missy still waits to go out that door while the one over at the sun-room is sitting wide open, but old habits are hard to break. Maybe when the babies fly we can get our door back!

Spring hits Colorado...

Right after snowing for three days straight I might add. Within an hour of the snow stopping it all had gone away and everything was green. Amazing what some moisture will do. Inspired by the weather and Home Depot having a 2 for 1 plant sale today, we decided it was time to finish the plant boxes. That meant finding the vermiculite in huge bags to make my "Mel's Mix" soil for the boxes. Mel is the author of Square Foot Gardening. With the vermiculite found we mixed it with peat moss and several kinds of compost (1/3 by volume of each) then filled the boxes. Our annual Robin pair that had been checking out nesting areas earlier in the day, decided to see how the hunting was in the boxes. To finish the gardening for the day (and my back too), I planted 3 blackberry bushes and 2 blueberries and mulched my 5 apple trees that even though they have been neglected are all doing rather well. Maybe this year I will get more than the one apple I have had the last two years!

My New Favorite Device

I've been stymied in getting music from iTunes to the main stereo due to the wiring needed. But no longer! I was introduced to the Apple Airport Express by a guy at work and confirmed by Sam the Apple geek. Get yours here -> http://store.apple.com/us/product/MB321LL/A?fnode=MTY1NDA0Mg&mco=MjE0NDc0OQ though I got an open box one on eBay for $30 less. By easily replacing the home wireless router (it will do in addition as well), with this tiny device located next to the stereo, all I had to do was connect a stereo cable from it to the stereo auxiliary input. It really is small, only 2" x 3"! Now any computer in the house can play through iTunes to the speakers in the living room or kitchen or both! That replaces the old iPod that was connected to that amplifier which would only work with a remote control as the touchpad quit working a year or two ago. Now that that iPod is liberated, I may have to attempt to fix it again. Last time it worked for a whole week before giving out again. Note that it even does wireless N so it has huge speed increase and twice the distance of G as well! I plan to use them for wireless at our new building. Then we will be able to play music in the big conference room from someone's pc without having a computer hooked to the stereo in there. One more note is that it can connect up a usb printer too to make a network printer without attaching to a PC and sharing to all. Apple really does make some great stuff.