Beautiful Dirt-Filled Sunday

Sunday was a nice day, it wasn't too hot and it looked like we might even get a little rain. So we took advantage of the day and spent some time working in the yard. We started pulling the dandelions from the grass, planted the Aspen tree sapling that my dad gave us last summer and worked on getting the flower bed weeded. Shauna & I bought a bunch of flowers at Home Depot on Saturday & I'll get them planted on Monday evening when I get home from work. We also picked up another Jiffy container & some flower seed and planted those that evening.

These little purple Pansies have showed themselves for the past three years. They'll look a little better once they're not choked by the dandelions.

This is another of my projects. That big brown spot there, it's not dirt. It's a fine layer of little pokey burrs. So my plan is to dig the burrs up and work the dirt. Then I'll take the cinder blocks, stack them (we have more), fill 'em with potting soil and plant in 'em. I envision plants that will drape down the sides of the cinder blocks, creating a littel flowering wall. What does everyone think? Sound like a good idea? I'm open to suggestions...

Here's our little Aspen sapling that my dad gave us last summer. It sat out on the back patio while we tried to figure out where in the yard we wanted to put it. We didn't think it survived the winter, but little green leaves appeared. So I stood in the front yard with everyone and said "Pick a place for the tree! Hurry!" Now it has a new home and hopefully will be very happy there!

Things are popping out all over...

...well maybe not all over, but in my jiffy pots they are!

The 'greenhouse' has been living in the shed since I planted them.

Since I just planted them on Sunday I wasn't expecting anything.

I got a surprise when I lifted the lid off.

Look! Little green specks!

We have a couple of cucumbers sprouting.

And four of the basils are popping out, too!

What I really can't wait for is the zucchini. I see steamed zuch, fried zuch (yeah, I know, not healthy, but yummy), and zucchini bread.

LOTS of zucchini bread!

Useless Trivial Information

Today is the last day of school here in Elko County and the day that both Elko H.S. and Spring Creek H.S. are graduating their seniors.

As thousands of graduates are preparing to walk down the aisle and accept their diplomas to the tune of Pomp and Circumstance, I googled P&C and came up with these little known factoids:

• The composer was Sir Edward Elgar of Liverpool, England
• Although Elgar composed concertos for violin and cello, he is best known for his 5 P&C marches.
• It was first performed on October 19, 1901
• Elgar was a mostly self-taught musician
• He was knighted in 1904 and appointed Master of the King's Music in 1924
• He was the first major composer to record his works for the phonograph

*culled from the website http://www.brownielocks.com/graduation.html

Wishing all grads and their families a memorable and safe graduation season.

Rainbow Connection

We had a brief thunderstorm on Sunday evening.

It left this behind:

A double rainbow!

You can't really tell from the photo,

but you could see the whole spectrum of colors.

It was awe-inspiring.

Double Shot of Home Depot

On Saturday I stopped at Home Depot to get plants.

I couldn't find the veggies.

I didn't look hard enough.

So I bought some seeds and set of jiffy pots.

But I forgot something important.

I forgot the potting soil.

So Sunday I made another trip to town.

Not just for potting soil,

I met my dad, sis and her family for a very tasty breakfast at Toki Ona's.

After my hunger was quenched, Dad and I headed to HD.

I found the veggie plants.

Picked up some strawberries, a Thai basil and an onion chive.

Here's the onion chive.

And the Thai basil. It's really pungent.

And the strawberries.

The empty pot is not empty.

There were lettuce seeds in Shauna's Kraft magazine.

So that's lettuce.

I got the Jiffy Pots started yesterday, too.

Banana Peppers, Cheyenne Peppers, Carrots, Zucchini, Cucumbers and basil.

Cross you fingers.

Useless Trivial Information

In honor of Memorial Day Weekend, today's piece of Useless Trivial Info is about hot dogs, the original mystery meat!

I found a website ( http://whatscookingamerica.net ) that had all kinds of facts, trivia and legends about these weenies:

• Movie actress Marlene Dietrich once said that hot dogs and champagne were her favorite meal.
• It is said that legendary baseball player Babe Ruth once downed 24 hot dogs between games of a double header.
• Hot dogs are primarily regarded as a fun, summertime food, and most are eaten between Memorial Day and Labor Day.
• Jayne Mansfield was Miss Hot Dog Ambassador in 1950.

There are many combinations of condiments that folks use on their dogs. Catsup, mustard, relish, onions, sauerkraut, etc.

People also like them cooked many ways: Bbq'd, broiled, boiled or on a stick. And there's a restaurant somewhere that deep fries them!

Personally, I like 'em bbq'd almost to the point of being burnt. The outside is crispy and the inside is moist. On a bun with mustard and catsup. My bro in law Gus, he makes me the meanest dogs on the planet! Oh, and after tasting a Hebrew National brand dog, it's the only kind I'll eat. Most hot dogs seem really oily, not these.

Now I want you to share with me how you like your dogs. Or if you're not a hot dog eater, what's your favorite substitute.

Wishing everyone a happy and safe Memorial Day Weekend :)

More Dirt for the Garden

Roomie Jeff found us more dirt for the garden.

From the Fairgrounds.

Dirt, horse poop and hay/alfalfa.

Instant compost!

Jeff & Jesse did the bulk of the work unloading it.

I really appreciate all the work that those 2 are

putting into this little garden effort of mine.

You see, they don't like most veggies.

Jeff, he'll eat brussel sprouts (blech!)

and Jesse will eat raw onion on occassion.

So now the bed is ready for planting.

Finally!

I'll pick up the plants today after work

and get them into the ground.

We'll get this veggie party started!

We had alot of dirt left over, so we used it

to fill in the hole left from having the

septic tank pumped last year.

Jeff also took a wheelbarrow load

across the street to his brother's house.

Cake Pops & Cake Balls!

My sister Stephanie found the recipe for these cute little cake pops on Bakerella's blog http://bakerella.blogspot.com

My roommate Shauna and I bought the stuff to make these little bundles of sweetness weeks ago.
This morning I decided today was the day we would try our hands at Cake Pops and Cake Balls

The brown candy melts had a better consistency than the blue after melting. Our first attempts at dipping in the blue resulted in a gloppy mess. So Shauna put some of it into a baggie and used it to decorate the brown pops.

We used a cake mix with pudding in the mix. That was a mistake. After adding the frosting to the crumbled cake, it was just way too moist. I guess that's what baking is all about, huh? Learning as we go...

Six Degrees of Seperation...Elko Version

1. My little sister Jessica works at a Sinclair gas station.
2. One of the owners is Mike, our mayor.
3. Jessica's husband Gus works for the city street department, so his boss is also Mayor Mike.
4. One of Gus's co-workers is Rich S.
5. Rich's wife Susie is one of the co-owners of Ruby Dome Construction.
6. Ruby Dome did the foundation for my dad's house.
7. Dad worked for Ruby Dome when he first moved to Elko back in the 80's.

Ok, so that's 7.

Useless Trivial Information

It's once again Friday and that means it's time for Useless Trivial Information!



Roomie Jeff collects Hot Wheels. He's got ALOT of Hot Wheels. The den in our house is a shrine to little metal cars. And he's turned one of our sheds into what Roomie Shauna and I call Hot Wheel Hell, where he spends many an evening in the warmer months customizing Hot Wheels for his fellow HW buddies.

Jeff's younger brothers, Brandon and Beaux are also involved in collecting. And when they are together, the conversation will always turn to Hot Wheels. Beaux and his family live across the street from us and it's not unusal for him to call here at 8:30 at night and say "Let's go hunting!"


In honor of the little metal cars that have brought these brothers together, here's a bit of trivia about them:


1968 - The first sixteen Hot Wheels cars were introduced into the market. They featured redline tires, spectraflame paint, a metal collector button, and some had roofs painted black to look like vinyl. The public saw the Hot Wheels Custom Corvette first before the actual car was introduced by GM.

Enjoy you weekend, people!

A Garden Update

Friday I made a trip to Home Depot to pick up

the material I needed for our raised veggie bed.

Here's the first section. Roomie Jeff and I built it on the patio

and carried it over to the spot that we cleared.

Here's Roomie Jeff & Roomie Shauna's son Jesse clearing the weeds that he and Jeff weedeated. And a picture of the finished box. Can't you just see the zuchini and other yummy green goodness spilling over the edge?

Farmer Jeff is hauling dirt from the driveway to the bed.

We need a little bit more dirt then I can start planting my

yummy veggies!

Today I think I will work a little bit on the flower beds in the front of the house.

Maybe.

Maybe not.

Useless Trivial Information

I have a brain that stores mass quantities of useless information that will probably only serve me well if I was picked to be a contestant on Jeopardy. For instance, while playing Trivial Pursuit with the gang one evening, someone asked me the question "Who won the first gold medal in Women's Pole Vaulting at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney?"

"Stacey Dragila!" I blurted out...

...I was right.

I won the game.

Ha!

So now I've decided that every Friday I will share with you some Useless Trivial Information.

In honor of the opening of the new Star Trek movie:

Chris Pine, who is playing a young James T. Kirk, is the son of character actor Richard Pine.

Most of you are probably saying "Richard Who?"

Richard Pine played Sgt. Getraer, Ponch and John's boss on CHiPs. Now I bet you're all saying "oh I remember him!"

Does anyone else hum the theme from CHiPs when they see Highway Patrol Officers? I do.

And speaking of humming theme songs...here's a funny little story:

A couple of years ago, my housemates son went to church with his Aunt & Uncle. When the acolytes (don't know if this is the proper term in LDS speak) walked up the aisle looking so serious, Jesse started humming, ever so quietly, the Imperial March from Star Wars! Too funny!

Garden and other updates

Got dirt yesterday. Good dirt. Already has mulch and some other nutrients or whatever in it.

Here's my dirt. Don't ya just wanna take your shoes off and stick your toes in it? Now all I have to do it buy the materials for the raised bed. Home Depot here I come!

In other news:

Dexie the cat is still M.I.A. Roomie Shauna went to the animal shelter to see if she got picked up, but no luck.

Frick & Frack went to the vet yesterday to get fixed. (Yipee! 2 down, a gazillion to go!)

I went to feed my dad's horse, Tank, yesterday morning. He tried to eat my hair.

That's about all I have for you now...

Lost

Our cats decided to break out of the house early Saturday morning. Three of them - Fearless, Frack and Dexie - pulled the spacer out from between the window mount air conditioner and the window sill and took off. I discovered it right before I left for work at 5:30 a.m. When I went outside, I found Fearless & Frack right away, but there was no sign of Dexie. Walked around the house calling her name, but nothing.

There's still no sign of her. My roomies and their son have walked the neighborhood and Jesse has combed the fields around the house. We keep hoping that she's going to show up meowing at the door.

Hopefully she's suffering from a burst of wanderlust and will be home soon...