This year I am gardening with two other people who wanted to give John Jeavon’s Biointensive Gardening a try. One of the main ideas is that you start EVERYTHING from seed in flats, even corn, beans and peas. These are some marigolds I started quite a while ago. It really has made gardening a brand new experience for me. I’ve tried to start things from seed before and failed miserably. It’s going better this year due in large part to the grow light Steven put together for me, but I also have a very different attitude about it. In the past, I’ve always bonded with each little seed and plant, WANTING it to thrive, but you know, nature just isn’t like that. And the spiritual lesson for me has been: maybe God isn’t like that either. Most plants produce an abundance of seed and you wouldn’t want it all to survive. I get upset at myself for each little failure, sometimes making it monumental. But this week I’ve realized, I need to make lots of efforts, and only some of them will go on to grow and produce fruit, and that is just the way nature is. And God, the Master Gardener, knows that and has planned it that way.
Archive for Uncategorized
Brick and Board Shelves
Way back in the 60′s I learned the brick and board shelf technique from my brother. It must have been a popular college decorating style back then. Besides holding up the shelves with concrete block I painted red, I like to use plastic storage to support the shelves too. The second shelf storage boxes are drawers and easy to use. The ones on the bottom are for long term storage such as baby books or decorations only used once a year. The boards were pre-cut from the lumber yard and the concrete blocks were there too. Paint the boards and block to match your color scheme!
Fall Kitty
Think of everything you love about fall….the crisp air, the golden glow everything has, the smell of burning leaves, the sound of leaves blowing around….and then add your favorite kitty……and a wonderful guy who is willing to hold the slightly skittish kitty as you drive to the park….that was my perfect fall Saturday!
This Week’s Preview
Burgie’s Orangutan
I had coffee and coded data with this guy today, my favorite place of all in Ames to drink coffee and work!
It was a beautiful 60 degree F in the heartland!
Team PrISUm ISU solar car
Looking back over my 2010 photos, I ran into this and it gave me hope for spring, and the future. Do you think we’ll ever be driving cars that look like this? Around Earth Day last year, Iowa State University groups showcased their earth friendly initiatives on our beautiful campus. Check out Team PrISUm’s web site for more great photos!
Fall Idiosyncracies
Seems like I am never quite ready for fall when it arrives and every year I am surprised again by the little quirky things that have to be dealt with, like:
figuring out whether or not you need a coat or a sweater and if so, whether you should have long sleeves or short sleeves underneath the outer garment, having to pour hot water into the coffee mug in the morning because the cupboards get chilly over night, fumbling back and forth between hot/cool and defrost/vent/heater/airconditioning in the car, having to allow extra time in the mornings to defrost or defog the car windows, wearing a scarf and gloves and then trying to remember not to leave them behind at meeting, needing to use my inhaler when I walk outside in the chilly air, trying to remember that it could still be late when I wake up even though it’s still dark outside, AND the perennial kicker – getting a slow start on the day and then not having as much light at the end of the day as you’d like.
Ahhhhwellll, I’ll adjust pretty soon hopefully! How is your fall going? (or spring, depending on what hemisphere you inhabit!)
My brother’s van
We don’t all quite fit when we gather at my sister’s cottage, so my brother brings his bedroom/kitchen/living room on wheels. I don’t know all the details about how he converted it himself (did Dad help with this conversion?) All I know is that it is very cozy and I could certainly live in it for a few months! This time, I made sure I got some van pictures!
Love the cozy moose light. What a great place to read at night when they are camping in Maine!


















