Grateful

“Let us be grateful to people who make us happy: They are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.”    Marcel Proust

Link to more sunflowers.

Adaptive Popcorn

DH has joined my school of cooking - "Hmmm... what's been in the cupboard a long time? Cook that."   See the Now We are Cooking post here. 

It was a cool evening.  We were working hard on something we didn't want to do.  We needed a snack.  He cooked the microwave popcorn that's been in the cupboard for a while (best by January 2012).  

Only, we don't have a microwave.  Why did we have microwave popcorn when we haven't had a microwave oven since our apartment when we first moved to WA 20 years ago?  Good question.   What is important is that the popcorn is gone and we made it through the difficult task. 

Watch "Half the Sky" now through Oct 8 (& Tanzania)

Did you see the recent PBS broadcasts of the documentary Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide? 

 

In the US, you can watch them online now -  Part One through Oct 8 and Part Two through Oct 9.  Go to http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/half-the-sky/  See the links to Part One and Part Two in the beginning of the article under the picture.

Why watch? The film represents the reality of many women, I think even the majority of women, worldwide. It's heartbreaking to realize this, but what speaks even louder is the strength, potential, courage and spirit you see in the faces of the women in spite of their situation. 

“Talent is universal; opportunity is not.” –Nicholas Kristof

You'll see the faces of the people making opportunities for change for themselves and their communities, even at the risk of their own lives.   The change is infectious, especially with women and those around them. 

In Tanzania, we saw people working hard to ensure education and economic means are a reality.  Everywhere we went, we saw people, especially women, creating or seizing opportunities.  People value new education and economic opportunities while still embracing their own wonderful culture (it is many different cultural communities that make up today's Tanzania).   We also saw some situations, unimaginable to us, that left us in silence and with little hope for change.

We met this group of girls and boys at Tumaini School, after discussing schools with our guide.  He knew the founder of the school and invited us to stop by (this school teaches in English).  We told where we live and what work we do.  Some of them asked us questions and told us what they wanted to do.  One of the girls near the windows quizzed & corrected me on coffee tree growing and harvesting.  

They were in a class on this Saturday, and not in their uniforms, because they were preparing for an upcoming national exam for their specific grade level.  The school started in a house with 17 students.  It now has over 500, and 50% are girls.    (This blog - http://adventuresofadelicateflower.wordpress.com/ has recent graduation celebration pictures.)

Go to http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/half-the-sky/  See the links to Part One and Part Two in the beginning of the article, under the pictures.

From outside the US, if this site or the videos don't work for you, try this website to find out more about it or local broadcasts http://www.halftheskymovement.org/   It is inspired by the book of the same title by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn.

Training Method Transfer

Hmmm... DH has picked up on my slug training methods. Now he is using them on me!

To train a slug, you simply change something enough to make their bad behavior less convenient or satisfying. For slugs who eat my seedlings, I surround the plant with ground coffee. So far, it has worked and the seedling has a chance to grow large enough to survive. I think the slugs will avoid the places with ground coffee (texture?) and stay in places without ground coffee. See these links to slug training post I and post II.

DH decided to clean out his desk drawers and bookshelf, but then went out of town before doing something with the treasures he found.   This makes it very inconvenient for me to use his desk!   Now, he will say it started with those fuses(?) I cleared out of the kitchen and left on his desk.  I agree his desk drawers are much cleaner now.

I will give him credit.  As an incentive for me to use this desk instead, he quickly set up a monitor and a key board before he left.  Usually, it is his desk looks like this.  We still have work to do on this alternative desk set-up, though.     I think I've been trained. 

DH: Happy Birthday!

DH:  Listen to your Mom (above)!  But remember how much fun we had on those slippery slopes in Germany?   

He took a nice a running start at his slope on Saturday with a few friends, dinner, Costa Rica-inspired beverages, cheesecake, iphone app instructions, a special t-shirt that will show up in travel photos and an age-appropriate geocaching travel bug.  

Thanks to the friends and chocolate, I now have the start to the collection of photos that will come out for his 80th birthday party....  

He bought his own Glenmorangie. (Or is that for me?)

Grab the sled - No doubt we'll enjoy the ride.

Our Kitchen Time Capsule

Just some of the items found on a convenient kitchen shelf that is supposed to hold only our address book.

2004 We moved into this house
2004 Starbucks Card I was given for a project (I used it today)
2004 Sunflower seeds from Kansas
2005 Seeds from our first, & largest, pumpkin
2006+ Geocaching treasures
2007 Coins from Japan
2008 Ferry schedule
2009 Wisteria pods from Arizona
2010 Pet license tags (the cats refuse to wear them)
2011 Shells, rocks & chestnut from a trip
2012 Iron drops from a foundry
And other assorted seeds, parts and mystery things

What will I find in the junk drawer?

To Be for 180 Days

What would you do with 180 days outside of your usual routine?  Maybe some of your usual routine, but without a lot of it, too?   Link to Sleepy Bee.

I'm off from work this summer.  The garden calls.  And so does the list of previously neglected to-do's beyond the garden.  My recycle basket was filled several times today.  Link to busy bee with pollen baskets (yellow spot on his leg).

...there are some flights scheduled.  Link to hummingbird and beans.

And this is just a reminder to pay attention!  Link to danger bee.

Life's Shower

 Life's Shower

These valves are here for you today

Which wheel to turn is yours to say

Your choice is right

There is no wrong

The flow from each makes mankind strong

(seen along the street in Puyallup, WA)

 Love - Patience - Mercy - Tolerance

Honesty - Faith - Peace - Hope

(I took a long shower in patience, mixed with faith no one will get hurt and a twist of all others to prepare for being an adult volunteer for a project this evening...)

This sign was also nearby.  It is DH's favorite: 

Grandma's Roses

I unboxed and washed my Grandma's tea set.   Washing the last piece, the teapot, I realized I was washing them in her old dish pan, too.  This immediately took me back to many hot Kansas summer days standing at her kitchen sink using the same dish pan.  And sitting out under the big shade tree for the afternoon.  She's been gone for 23 years.    

Here is the rest of the tea set.  It has moved on to the hands of a family I hope will have many tea parties to remember.

Sunglasses Keeper

DH thinks I won't see his new place in the kitchen to keep his sunglasses.   At least he'll be able to find in them when we head out soon to enjoy this sunny 4th.  Wishing you a sunny day where ever you are too.  

My Garden Looks After Me

What a nice surprise to finally slink out to the garden and find a little dinner (some weeks ago). Without watering (or rain) the beans are not so prolific, especially the runner beans. These purple climbing beans have produced just enough for dinner now and then. The tomatoes probably had too much shade from giant hyssop plants and not enough water for a bumper crop.

I cannot complain. I've left the gardening to the bees this year. ... and Petunia (the snake). They've done a fine job, just to their tastes.

Too many trips and interruptions this summer, but these years happen.

Another (fun) trip later in September and then a good fall garden sort out is on the calendar for October!

Happy 2010!

Best wishes for 2010

to you, your family and your garden!

I don't know about you, but I really enjoyed (needed) that first cup of coffee in 2010! Even so, it was well worth it to see the old year out and the new year in with friends.

The Anniversary Decoder

What? You didn't know? Now there is just the gift for the 21st year!

The Pocket Decoder Geocoin. DH's honey-do list will never be the same!

It will stay with me and check in and out of caches or events I visit.

You can follow its travels at this link.

Welcome, Fresh New Year

Well, no, this isn't a resolution to keep my desk clean. It does look like a fresh new start, though, doesn't it?

This is my new, old Post Office desk I posted about here, on Dec. 1st! I finally washed it, shuffled out the temporary table we had in the room, and brought in this one. This room also has an office desk of about the same age and color. The office desk is rather consumed by all things electronic, so, the Post Office desk will be handy for other projects. Garden planning too, as many books and catalogs end up on the shelves behind the desk.
Above, you can see the underside of the desk. It says "Property of the Post Office Department Mfg. by Corbin Cabinet Lock Co. New Britain Conn. 1946." I had thought that it could be the zip code of 01946 since I've seen the 0 dropped sometimes. Apparently, it was made in 1946. Connecticut zips seem to start with 06.
You can see "we" didn't waste any time moving in. This wooden chair goes with the other desk I mentioned, above. However, for computing comfort we have a different chair we prefer. This one works just fine for the Post Office desk.

And for those New Year Resolutions? I prefer a more goal oriented approach. See Carol's guidelines for garden goals (or otherwise) using P.L.A.N.T.S. as a handy reminder.

Happy New Year, everyone!

Alternative Mistletoe

In our last house, Opus was a permanent fixture on one of the lights. When we moved a few years ago, somehow he was misplaced (just like Opus for this to happen to him, too). Finally, I found him today! It may be the only decorating we need to do this year.

We have a number of Bill the Cat / Opus ornaments from over the years. We haven't found one offered this year. It may be at the end of an era, or at least a creative license! While we resist most collectibles, Bloom County has been a favorite going way back when. Being the first to remember to look for Opus very early in the Christmas season was an annual challenge for each of us.

Mistletoe doesn't grow here like it did where we lived in Alabama. This Opus has been our answer to that problem.

Happy Thanksgiving

For each new morning with its light,

For rest and shelter of the night,

For health and food, for love and friends,

For everything Thy goodness sends.

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Welcome Matron!

So here is the exciting garden blogger event I mentioned on Sunday. Matron and her US friend visited Petunia's Garden! Oh, how fun it was to meet them, talk gardening, kick around the soil, and see that glint in another's eye when surveying decomposing leaf mulch.

A little surreal to meet a fellow garden blogger in person, but what a great common background we all have in gardening. And, she gave me a copy of Grow Your Own magazine. It is new to me and just full of veggie & fruit guidance. I will have some of these tips on my 2008 planning list, soon to be posted.
Here is my view across the pumpkin. Visit Matron, at Down on the Allotment, for her view!

I told Matron this pumpkin was soon to be in the oven. Finally, last night, I cooked it... half of it that is, since that filled the two large baking dishes I had. It weighed about 18 pounds. The cooked half filled a 7 cup storage container. Tonight I'll cook the other half, make a pie and freeze the rest of it for later.

Thanks, Matron, for fitting this visit in your busy schedule and for the wonderful magazine. Enjoy the seeds, and tell me when you are getting them started. We can keep a running comparison next year to see how they grow.

Join the Special Shopping Event Today

If you are in Western Washington, head over to the Auburn Supermall today for the Magical Day of Giving (11 am - 6 pm)! For a $5 contribution to the participating nonprofit organizations, you get discounts at many retailers and a chance to win these door prizes. The nonprofits receive all of the $5 contribution (& let me tell you, it adds up). In the past, the event has been quite festive with different musical organizations performing and other seasonal fun.

Now, I'm not one to send anyone to the mall, and I do very little holiday shopping. But most of us do have some shopping in preparation for the upcoming holidays. Even Dear Hubby is going to shop for dress shirts (non wrinkle) with the special discount at one of his few favorite stores. It always gets me thinking about the holidays in time to not be rushed.

We'll both spend some time helping out at one of the doors with ticket sales, welcoming shoppers, etc. along with other Way Back Inn volunteers. (At the Aviation Court entrance maybe?) Hope to see you there!

P.S. Please do go visit the Way Back Inn page even if you can't visit the Supermall. Also, the photo is from the our visit to the Gingerbread Village last December

Seed Money Waiting for You?

So let's talk about Unclaimed Property / Abandoned Property / Escheat. Or could it be serious seed money? If you've been visiting now and then, you might know I work with taxes, etc. Unclaimed property is one of etc.'s.

This is that paycheck, deposit, refund or other check (or 15 paychecks) that you might have forgotten to cash (??). US businesses have to turn these funds over to the states where they keep them safe until the owners show up. And there might be something for you! Go to this NAUPA site where you can use the Missing Money website or go directly to various states. Search broadly see what you can find!

Oh yes, don't forget inactive bank accounts, dividend checks, stock shares, bonds and forgotten safety deposit boxes (but your goodies may have been sold and you are left with the proceeds).

Property usually goes to the state of last known address the business had for you, but if the address is unknown, then it probably went to the company's state of incorporation. So, search broadly! Maybe you moved around, maybe your address was entered wrong, maybe records were lost, etc. Again, search broadly.

I've seen some hefty checks go off to the states even after trying to locate the owner. Sure, many of them are quite small, but why not do some searching. And if you have any questions about this post or what you find, send me an e-mail. Who knows, you might have those spring seeds covered, and more!

Voluntary Peas

Voluntary Peace