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Hoover Dam Bridge

too cold to post

Ive turned into a wimp. it's 30 degrees here and i feel like its too cold to function. too cold to cook dinner. too cold to grocery shop. too cold to blog. to cold to do anything but sleep. we do have our thermostat up to 65 now though...that's improvement.

Anyways - so thanksgiving happened since our last blog. we went crabbing with my uncle. i was too cold to take pictures of our crabby feast. too cold to take pictures of the yurt. too cold to do anything actually - but i did get a pic of Uncle Bart before leaving. He's not cold in his thermal coveralls. Doesn't this just make you smile?

3 signs you are a tight wad.

Sign #1
Your heater works, but it's colder inside your house than it is outside.

Sign #2
You are 5'9 and 5'10 and you still sleep on a full sized bed.

Sign #3
You reduced your garbage can to the smallest size possible to save 2$ a month (our garbage can is about 5' tall and only holds 2 kitchen size garbage bags).

Do you have anything to add to the list?

Catcher in the Rye

Weirdo book that reminded me of my self in high school minus the alcohol, smoking, promiscuity and failing school. Mostly because I isolated myself from most other high schoolers due to my hatred of anything phony.

last night over poached pears I was made aware that this book has something to do with terrorism.

Why? Well I'm no authority, but I think it's stems from the title. Holden's dream job is to act as a catcher in the rye - grabbing kids before they fall off a cliff while they are running in rye fields. He feels sorry for outcasts and becomes extremely angry when he finds vulgar vandalism in his sisters elementary school. He hates movies, especially ones about war. He drops out of school because the headmaster is a phony - only giving attention to those who are rich. Basically, he refuses to "play the game" or "jump through hoops" as some would say. Although all of his actions in the book are driven by hatred for selfish "phony" ways of the world, he is somewhat of a hypocrite as his self righteous decisions cause harm to others (especially his family). Although Holden frequently verbalizes that he is a nut job, I think it is his manic thought process - his self righteous hatred for the natural man that leads him to anger, fighting, running away, alcohol, lonliness, and promiscuity - that links the book to terrorists.

But I don't really know. Anyone read this book that has more insight? What do you think about the book? Would you let your high-schooler read it? I learned a lot from the book - but I don't know what I would have thought had I read this in high school.

Hey Joy I want a shirt with this image.









oh yea GO YANKEES!!!!

alone and angry on halloween.

this is why:



rich was off catching aliens (almost dead salmon, arent they sick looking) with his brother in Washington. I was really mad to be alone on Halloween, but someone had to stay home and clean out the gutters.

happy birthday to smokey bear! 29 years!!!

Happy birthday smoopy poo. Thanks for being my bestest buddy in the whole world. I hope the Yankees win tonight.

i usually wash my hair every three days.

Yes, its true. A little tip I picked up from celebrity gossip radio (aka the news) on the way to work. But this week I had to wash my hair two nights in a row. I am really sensitive to smells and I hate it when my hair smells like fire. So after the sesame seeds I was toasting in the oven lit on fire tuesday night......I had to wash my hair. Good thing I had about 2 pounds of extra sesame seeds in the freezer to finish my recipe (thank you amy's friend!).

While I was freaking out in the kitchen, richard ran back to the computer room. He needed to ask google whether it was baking soda or baking powder you are supposed to put on grease fires. (we have a kitchen fire extinguisher....but we didn't want to clean up that mess....real logical huh?) This is what he came up with while smoke was pooring out of the oven vent and filling up the kitchen.

From ehow.com: how to stop an oven fire

1. Close the oven door to cut off the oxygen supply.

2. turn off the oven

3. leave the house immediately

4. call 911 if you cannot put out the fire

Our question was: If you are outside of the house, how do you know if you put out the fire?

It is unfortunate that when I made pumpkin muffins this morning they made the house smell like burnt sesame seeds instead of pumpkin pie ): Another bad smell to add to the house.

The Juno Of my Suburb

Since I was about 12, I have often been accused of being a tree hugger and hippie. Im not too sure why because I really am a city girl (suburb to be specific) and I'm totally afraid of spiders. But I do love trees. I get it from my dad (the man grinning ear to ear in the picture below). Actually, when reading the natn'l geographic this month, I was thinking of my dad quite often, esp when I saw this pic .



But this post isn't about me or my tree loving dad. Its about something that has been looming over my head since the trees started blushing: the tulip poplar in our front yard. As you can see from the picture below, it is a very large tree with way too many leaves (especially when juxtaposed with red flushed baby dogwood next to it). Because it hasn't changed yet, I'm worried that we arent going to be able to get rid of all those leaves....am I supposed to clean up the leaves that float to my neighbors yard from my tree? Oh so much to worry about.

If I'm so worried, then why don't we cut it down? Well, because I love it. This tree and the dogwood were 2 of the deciding factors on the house. Tulip poplars aren't common in Utah - so let me give a little ditty on how awesome this tree is.

Its actually in the magnolia family (which also isn't common in utah) - so it has flowers on it in the spring. The flowers look like this (see the tulip resemblance):

The leaves look like this (taken from THIS cool blog post on tulip poplars)

Kind of annoying, but funny - the tree makes slime (actually nectar) in the early summer for several months. i found out today that you can buy tulip poplar honey online.


They get really big - the largest registered Tulip Poplar is 118 feet high and has an 83 feet spread (see the National Register of Big Trees for more information). However, there are big poplar guys I walk past on my way to work that are much larger than that - and probably close to the age of the oldest tulip poplar (225 years).

Charles Frazier apparently loved the tulip poplar- it is the main tree mentioned in the book cold mountain. I agree with this line from the book: He thought on homeland, the big timber, the air thin and chill all year long. Tulip poplars so big through the trunk they put you in mind of locomotives set on end.

Best of all, President Thomas Jefferson loved the tulip poplar so much he planted them next to Monticello. He called them the "juno of our groves" according to the Thomas Jefferson encyclopedia. The old tulip poplar next to Monticello was treated like a queen until it was finally removed last summer. See this article for more information and the pic's source.



So anyways, I love this tree - its going to make alot of leaves - and it looks like I really am a tree hugger.

millk....it does a body good....or not

So I get this email every day from the ADA-- no, not American dental association, or American diabetes association....but the American DIETETIC association-- and today, one of the links was to this article on people wanting to buy RAW MILK for health benefits.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2009-10-15-raw-milk_N.htm

It reminded me of my friend rachel - who's parents had a cow and always brought her raw milk in mason jars. She tried to convince me to drink it all the time - to no avail - because I don't want campylobacter jejuni (food poisining that can come from milk). There have been several cases where people have died from drinking raw milk. If you grow up drinking it - fine, you're pretty much immune - but I don't think mass distribution of raw milk is ever a good idea- mostly because if a farmer is selling alot of milk, its not likely that his cows are going to be in tip top shape. Unless of course he is charging 10$ a gallon......which would be crazy for rich and I since we just polished off our 4th gallon of milk this week......

Dont believe me? See what the CDC has to say: http://www.cdc.gov/nczved/dfbmd/disease_listing/campylobacter_gi.html (read the section:How do people get infected with this germ?)

not that anyone I know cares enough about their milk to buy it for 10$ a gallon - but hey, just in case you have crazy friends who think this is a good idea (amy)

happy happy birthday bryan dear

happy days will come to you all year. If i had a wish then it would be..........another backpacking trip that's just you and me! (or a GIGANTUAR apple fritter/maple bar for us to share) love you!

New [York] Yankee Workshop

Richard also looks like another celebrity. Norm Abram from the New Yankee Workshop on PBS. Like Norm, Richard now has his own workshop for which he just built his very own workbench. But instead of being a New Yankee - Rich is a New York Yankees fan. While puttering away out there he's been listening to the Yankees win their past few games (i think they did anyways.....that sports stuff is beyond me). Nice Job babe! I'm so glad I could finally organize your tools.......now if only he had a bit of martha stuart to make them stay organized......

Wordless Wednesday

I love having a yard.

hydrangias change color in the fall!

My clearance plant collection (hopefully things look better next year...)

The garden next to our house! We planted a fall garden of winter white onions, cabbage and cauliflower.

The SQUASH PLANT! I can't wait for butternuts!

from the loins of the pink flamingo: part 10, from the grave

My mom(s) ROCK!

My momma sent me a package last week. Oreos for richard and SKELETON FLAMINGOES FOR ME! I love them - thank you!



Richard's parents just left on sunday after a long visit. it was a delight to see them and a special treat because richard's mom taught me how to can! They even brought us grapes to make juice with! On saturday we went to hood river and bought fresh picked bartlett pears......we'll see how my canning skills are solo.....thanks for coming! You should really look into retiring to hood river.

Knowledge is the antidote to fear.

according to ralph waldo emerson.

I decided that I would try to make peace with spiders by learning more about them. I have been buying clearance perennials for the yard and while planting them, I have become rather well acquainted with the spiders in our yard. There is the BIG MAMA that lives in the corner (unfortunately she must have been hunting this morning - instead I got this picture from here.) she is at least 1 inch big.


Then there is the big daddy that lives by the window.....


Big brother has a fantastically large web (hard to capture with my photo skills).

Then there are the 3 sisters who live near the house. One is real skinny that lives by the door. She's the supermodel spider.



They haven't moved their webs for at least a week, must be good hunting (except for anorexic super model sis of course).

I wanted to learn about this little family..... - so of course I did a google search and came up with the following from THIS neat website.

Orb-Weaving Spiders ...low risk - non-aggressive

Venom toxicity - the bite of Orb-Weaving Spiders is of low risk (not toxic) to humans. They are a non-aggressive group of spiders. Seldom bite. Be careful not to walk into their webs at night - the fright of this spider crawling over one's face can be terrifying and may cause a heart attack, particularly to the susceptible over 40 year olds. Spider Identification - an adult is about 2/3 to more than 1 inch in body length - has a bulbous abdomen - often colorful - dark to light brown pattern. The common Golden Orb-Weaver Spider has a purplish bulbous abdomen with fine hairs. Habitat - often found in summer in garden areas around the home - they spin a large circular web of 6 feet or more, often between buildings and shrubs, to snare flying insects, such as, flies and mosquitoes.

My fear basically disappeared until I looked at the FIRST AID for orb spider bites (on the same website).......and now I would say knowledge is the poison of fear and.......ignorance is bliss.

FIRST AID...for Funnel-Web Spider Bite

The patient should be kept calm and rested; all undue movement should be avoided. Reassure the patient - their life is not in danger - an anti-venom is available at the hospital. A pressure/immobilisation bandage should be firmly applied (but not tight) wrapping the entire limb bitten - similar as for a sprained ankle. This compresses the tissue, thus reducing the flow of venom along the limbs - as illustrated by the pictures below. A second bandage can be applied to immobilise the affected limb using a splint. This will minimise movement of the muscle of the affected limb in order to reduce the rate of blood flow and venom therein to the vital organs of the body. Seek Medical Aid immediately. Call the AMBULANCE phone 000 rather than transport the victim. If safe to do so, collect the spider for identification.

Symptoms of a Funnel-Web Spider Bite

Unlike snake bites, the person feels great pain at the site of the bite.

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Nausea and abdominal pain follow.

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The person will also experience difficulty in breathing and a general weakness or numbness of the muscles.

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The body also secretes heavily in several areas.

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Profuse sweating is usually obvious, along with excessive saliva production.

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Heavy coughing is also common.

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Virtually all major hospitals in "Funnel-web Country" carry an effective anti-venom.

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Provided a pressure/immobilisation method has been applied soon after the bite and medical attention sought quickly, a few days in the hospital is the usual outcome with complete recovery.

southern fare

We had grits with greens and bacon for dinner. other than making my mouth feel chalky, it was good. Rich says: "tastes like mush, where's my steak?....but thanks for dinner."

have you ever had real life southern food in the south? Whats your favorite? Bryan (bistcuts and gravy doesn't count)???......Joy????

snozzcumbers

If you can see past the unfocused fuzz ......this came off of our GREEN ZUCCHINI PLANT. what is it, the world will never know (im not eating this mysterious creature.....). It sort of looks like a wannabe pumpkin......but I'm thinking there may be something to bryan's GIANT TOE philosophy.

Which reminds me of my favorite book from elementary....THE BFG. Anyone else just love that giant and still have nightmares about the anthropophagous giants? whizpopper ring any bells? I wonder if this is actually a snozzcumber.........

geoduck = way nastly looking.

see this website

What would I do if this happened to me?

Well I am not sure but it is really funny.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0LdqbGMb7g

What is this???

Please let me know if you know. I think it is edible....it came out of our garden. It is about 100x bigger than any of our carrots.