New web address

but the same exciting content!
Why the new address you ask? Don't ask. Just deal with it.

Deal with it like Mr. Sparrow deals with things.

Shown here perched happily on his roof back in March.

(His roof on his house that is attached to the side of the neighbor's garage)

Enter the neighbors who decide to side their place this summer.

SO yesterday was operation Sparrow Relocation.

And Mr. Sparrow dealt with it.

Spud farmer

An organic farmer friend of mine told a story on Memorial day about growing potatoes and how delicious they were. I figured what the hey. And less then a month later something has sprouted!

At least I hope those are potatoes that sprouted...

Sorry, blood pressure

Tuesday it was a BK lunch. Today a TB dinner.
I hope my doctor doesn't read this blog!











The Taco Bell was actually double the sodium from the BK. No wonder it came with a drink the size of my head and I'm STILL thirsty. Now I know why when I asked if the nutrition information is posted in the store I was told it is on the web site. By the time you visit the web site you have all ready taken a day or four off your life by consuming 2,835 mg of sodium, 44 grams of fat, 70 mg of cholesterol, 108 grams of carbs and 980 calories. At least I got some fiber and protein... mmm mm.

More fun spam

I receive some spam that is more poetic than spamotic. My first notice of this fun spam was back in February with the avocado pit story.

Here are some new ones:

Friday, June 26, 2009
Subject:
thermo powder reindeer
Message:
scotch neapolitan,
oxidate

Saturday, June 27, 2009
Subject:
He sits down with holy fears, the worship of god is honouring his gifts in other men.
Message:
The sun does descend, and I'll stop the leak in the chimney.
To the bells cheerful sound.

Does he speak of my chimney that I need to finish painting?

The artless wall

I broke my art awhile back. Just the glass in the frame. And then the mat warped. Now I broke it more.

Shouldn't fool with the art. Just let it be.

It's now time for new art.

Sad bare wall needs art on a budget.

Tomato 1

Homely Homer has his first offspring.

Where do I buy empty ketchup bottles?

Or am I making salsa? ¡Olé!

More buggy

This shiny white moth has been coming by to inspect the new house paint job. So far he has found no issues with it. Except that it's not 100% done yet. But it's been too hot and humid! Even the lukewarm tub is getting close to 100 degrees. Is it August all ready?

Sorry, gut

But every once in awhile I'm oh so weak...
(click the pick to see the Burger King 'nutrition total')
and at this point I figured what the &%@#...

How many days of healthy eating did this one lunch destroy?

As a side note I would like to add that the bill came to 4.76 and I gave the (middle aged) cashier 20.76 and got $17.05 back in change. Odd yes, but if I use this as a profit making scheme how soon would the food kill me?

Hose, as energy.

Hose is back!

This time not as art but as solar heat for the lukewarm tub..

Back in May I posted a pic of the art installation "Hose, on Pavers" as displayed on my backyard patio. It was showcased for 3 days in that particular installation until it was rolled up. Although Hose did reappear repeatedly in the last 5 weeks it's artful presence was never quite the same. Now art becomes power!

.

The POC Spa-N-A-Box from Comfort Line Products finally got on my last 'I-can-fix-it' nerve back in August 2007. After a little over two years of fighting to keep the hot-tub hot (and pumping water) I finally gave up. Sad, I know. Too many times having the excitement of a late evening hot tub soak be ruined because the POC heater reset button was tripped (the button that is hidden underneath the unit and not explained in the owner's manual and you find out about it when you call customer service). Since the thing heats up at about 1.5 to 2 degrees an hour it's best to go take a hot shower at this point. When the water stopped circulating the $36 for a new water pump and reheating the water AGAIN was one thing, but two months later when once again there is no heat and the reset button isn't tripped they say "Now you need a new power pack. That'll be $395. Would you like to put it on the same credit card as your previous fixes?" Ummm, no!

Jump to present day. Lots of time on my hands. It's getting hot & humid. Now what? I guess this "spa" could still make a fun mini-pool for the unemployed. Sure it would. With approximate diameter of 62" and a water height of 25" I figured it would cost about $3.80 to fill (assuming my water rates are the same as the last bill) and I can afford that. Sure I can. But can I sit in 62 degree water? No. Can I wait for the sun to heat the water to 80 degrees? No. So that's where Hose comes in. 150 feet of it. The idea is to circulate the water from the tub filter through hose and back in the tub. The output of the system seems to be 2-3 degrees warmer then the input. $3.55 for a rubber connector with clamps and Hose is now a solar mini-pool heater!

Summer Solstice

It's SUMMER!
(Officially as of 1:45 a.m.)

The Summer Solstice results in the longest day

and the shortest night of the year.

It also results in the

desire for summer ales!
.

mmm mm

Samuel Adams:

Brewer and Patriot

and probably lover of summer...

When bad things happen to good plants

Must have been a very stormy night last night! I forgot about my weatherman job so I wasn't prepared. But how does one prepare for such devastation? Where's FEMA? Where do I get the number for 911?

The Tiger Eye Sumac (a.k.a. yellow weed... well that's what I also know it as) had a slight incident in the stormy night. Sad.

Latest farm update

Homer was also planted along with 16 pepper plants of various types. Yes, 16. That's a lot of peppa but a sale is a sale. One of the pimentos has all ready started to give back.

That's going to be a lot of peppas. Did I say that all ready?

Fungus AmongUs

I'm having a mushroom

issue in the lawn this

year more than usual.

.

Maybe make soup?

.

Come on over and try

some out!

Bring crackers...

New career: Weatherman

The forecast I posted yesterday was correct. Both for yesterday & today. Well it was correct for the Detroit area. That's all I was casting for. I don't think I made that clear. It wasn't the forecast for the entire internet! That would be a little more tricky.

Tomorrow I call for sun. A bright and sunny day. A day worthy of chimney painting fun. Soon this painting project will be over. Then what? Stain the privacy fence? Woohoo... 75 feet worth!

The weather report

FYI: don't hold me to the tomorrow part.
I'll know more later on tomorrow.

Ketchup farm

Homer was only $1

so I couldn't resist.

.

I also had to fill in the

empty farm area

due to the spinach

harvest of yesterday.

.

Ketchup production?

Pasta sauce factory?

.

Endless business

opportunities.........

.

Suggestions?

June harvest

A lot of work went into this (somewhat huge) spinach salad with all the soil preparation, planting, watering, fertilizing, weeding, and then harvesting. Looks like enough for two! I'm just glad I'm not farming for a crowd! Don't have that kind of time.

.

The spinach salad made way to plant 12 pepper and a tomato plant. They would be good in this salad but I don't think greens will keep that long. Farming a complete salad all at once seems to have a lot of timing involved.

Godzilla mosquito

Mosquito in Portuguese means "small fly" but this thing is HUGE!

.

Just imagine how much West Nile fear this thing could bring.

But it's not a mosquito at all....

.

just a crane fly...

.

he doesn't even bite...

TV problems?

WHY
isn't
my
TV
working
today
???
.
WHY???
.
Is
the
computer
next
???


Did they finally do it? Did they finally turn off the old and force the country to bring in the new? I thought everyone had cable anyway. I guess they don't.

I want digital now. I feel like I'm being left out of this digital transition. I must have slept in. What am I missing? Is there more to enjoy? More than anyone could ever imagine? I have two analog TVs but I also have cable. What if cable goes off? Then I have nothing. No cable. No digital. No analog. All alone. (insert sad emoticon here)

I know I won't be missing the constant reminders of this transition. When is it going to happen again? I forget.

Today in fish history

In 1770 Captain James Cook discovers the

Great Barrier Reef off Australia

when his ship The Endeavour ran aground.

.

Cowboy wisdom

Timing has a lot to do with the outcome of a rain dance.
(Cowboy Proverb)
.










I've got my saddle.
On my horse.
He's called.... T-t-t-t-t-trigger.
Of course.
(Boys Don't Cry)

From paint to caulk

Almost as much fun as painting is caulking.

And who put a 'L' in that word anyway?

Can't we change it to cawking? or kawking?

.

These arrows times two sides equaled

hours of sticky silicone adhesive fun!!!

I almost got the hang of it... but not quite.

.

In hopes that one day this project will be done.

Monday, Rainy Monday again

There's a pattern forming here.



That's all
I have to say.



But the quick thunder storm was cool!

Not available?

So I'm wasting time and cruising YouTube thinking "I should be doing something productive besides wasting time on YouTube. I should go to Lowe's for the electrical outlet box I need for my latest outdoor project. Then I would have to shower. I guess I don't have to shower, it's only Lowe's. But I didn't shower yesterday either and I painted in the hot sun all day. Still, it's only Lowe's. Hey, I think I'll waste time looking at THIS VIDEO" that is presented to me as a choice on the YouTube home page under "Recommended" so I click on it and get:
This video is not available in your country.
Since when does the internet have boundaries?

Well in MY country I can at least watch a cat play with his new toy to the thump-a-da-thumpa of techno music!

A word about chimneys

A chimney is a structure for venting hot flue gases or smoke from a boiler, stove, furnace or fireplace to the outside atmosphere. Chimneys are typically vertical, or as near as possible to vertical, to ensure that the gases flow smoothly, drawing air into the combustion in what is known as the stack, or chimney, effect.

OR, as I see it...
the last thing I have left to paint on the house.

What kind of pineapple?

I planted this

over a month ago

and still

NO pineapples!

.

.

.

I really could go for

a Piña Colada...

Beer Warning - must read!

Read the labels... carefully.
I love beers. Especially I love summer beers. SO refreshing. The name 'Sunset Wheat' just pulled me into the warm feeling of summer. But why do we need beer with coriander? Why? Small, small print... only on the 6-pack cardboard box. Don't get me wrong... I'm a coriander AND a cilantro fan. I grow the cilantro in my yard and grind up the seeds for chili and other things that would call for coriander. But in beer? Unknowingly.... in beer? Gaaaaaaaa.

More things that are fuzzy

The annoying cottonwood fuzzies appeared just in time for me to start on the second coat of house paint. Oh joy oh joy. Their blowing in the breeze made it a bit more interesting... and resulted in a bit more swearing. Just a bit more. A tiny bit. Really, damn it!

Buggy, part 2

Last Saturday I posted that I would look closer for more bugs.

A bee.

(No birds, just a bee.)

Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea presently classified by the unranked taxon name Anthophila.

and no nom nom nom... just collecting pollen... I assume...

Monday, Rainy Monday

Rainy days and Mondays...
Gaaaaaa...



Orpheus
Fountain
.

Man
saying
"Gaaaaaa"
(I made this part up)

Last day of May

What do you want to do next?
Hmmmm.... let's see....

My Vista upgraded to Internet Explorer 8.
It asks "What do you want to do next?"
How about Win A Million Dollars???

That's all I got.... for the last day of May.
Time to start the second coat of paint.
How much can I get done today since tomorrow it will rain?

Buggy

The latest in garden visitors.

Looks like a Harmonia Axyridis. A large coccinellid beetle (often referred to as ladybird, ladybug, lady beetle, ladyclock, lady cow, or lady fly) originally native to eastern Asia but introduced to North America and Europe to control aphids and scale insects.

I'm sure there's more visitors. I'll start looking closer.

.

Nom nom nom...

Biergarten

If only it were this simple!

.

Things that are yellow

1. Yield signs
2. Some coreopsis blooms
3. Overzealous curb markings
4. Doors on olive houses
5. _________________(fill in the blank...)

Fuzzy poppy update

It was a rainy day today

and I have nothing much to say.

.

Here's a pic from yesterday

to show the fuzzy poppies from the

May 17th & May 8th posts

are in a state of efflorescence.

Farm = crops

I growed things from little seeds! And picked my first snack today!
.
An edible root vegetable of the Brassicaceae family that was domesticated in Europe in pre-Roman times.
.
I grew the garnish too. Fancy, Isn't it?

Summer starts here

Well, unofficially since summer really starts June 21st.

Today we commemorate the U.S. men and women who died while in the military service by eating and drinking and playing out in the sun for 3 days. In Michigan that means a lot of us will go "up north."

.

Memorial Day... in other words.

.

I don't remember most of it but I have an extra $85 for some reason.

Summer means garage sale

Please review the post from April 9, 2009 - Garage sale in 9 steps.


This year was much better then past ones. A new location and a global recession made a lot of my old crap sell.... (I mean precious treasures of course). Things I've been trying to pawn off on the unsuspecting for years and years sold in record time. SO step 9 was more rewarding this time around!

Farm update

I haven't blogged about my farm since Tax Day! Okay, maybe since Earth Day. But so much has happened... or grown. All the seeds have sprouted, the lettuce and radishes are doing great and the herbs are growing like weeds (except for the basil for some reason). It's been an unusually hot and dry May so the sprinkler has been put on a timer (because I'm a busy guy).

With all the activity I thought it was time for a food critic... so I called in a professional....

Nom nom nom...

Down time

All the activity that I mentioned as being a "pain-in-the-ass" the other day was actually a pain-in-the-neck.
.

So now it's time to rest.
Darn home projects.
They'll kill you they will.


How much wine to relieve neck-pain?

Mint = Mojito

Growing in my backyard.









Is this:
1) a weed
2) an herb
3) a delicious addition to a summer cocktail

(if you pick #3 you also get to use the word muddle in a sentence!)

Paint my house - the peak part

Acrophobia - Fear of heights.

Okay, 15 feet isn't that high. And I wasn't all that apprehensive.

But painting them was a bit if a challenge.

(Or shall I say pain-in-the-ass.)

Can't WAIT to do the second coat...

Oberon day part 2

Wednesday, April 1 was titled "Oberon day" (no foolin')
since the 6-packs showed up in my local store.
.
Today I came across this... 5 liters of yumm-o!

Local stroll

I took a walk through downtown Birmingham (Michigan) today.
Here is what I saw....

.

Merely one city.