And poor homeowners! This is a lovely pond, home to ducks and other waterfowl, a scenic little place very close to my home growing up. I used to go there all the time!
Some extremely thoughtless thieves stole $15 worth of copper from four homes (that's $15 TOTAL) - the lines that run from the homes' furnace oil tank. And because of this, there is MONTHS of work that needs to be done and untold thousands of $$ in cleanup. Furnace oil is in the pond, leeching into the soil, traveling to connecting waterways. It's a huge, huge mess. And I thought people stealing copper from churches was bad...
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/nova-scotia/story/2011/01/28/ns-oil-spill-causing-problems-for-homeowners.html
[EDIT: Oh, and it turns out they've hit local businesses too, same M.O. They HAVE to catch these guys! http://www.cbc.ca/canada/nova-scotia/story/2011/01/27/ns-dartmouth-oil-leaks.html]
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Monday, January 24, 2011
Ice...
I love the patterns that ice makes throughout winter, some are really amazing.
This one was the result of overflow of our gutter, followed by a slight thaw, then freezing. I've never seen crystals grow out like that before.
This was an area near our door - you can see the shattered remains of the ice that was there previously through the thin areas of the current ice sheet.
And this was Jack Frost on the windows this morning! The patterns are just so amazing, they remind me of the lovely vining designs of medieval manuscripts.
And closer...
And closer...
Lovely, lovely stuff... it's -15 deg C out there right now, with a windchill of -26 deg C. More ice to come! :)
This one was the result of overflow of our gutter, followed by a slight thaw, then freezing. I've never seen crystals grow out like that before.
This was an area near our door - you can see the shattered remains of the ice that was there previously through the thin areas of the current ice sheet.
And this was Jack Frost on the windows this morning! The patterns are just so amazing, they remind me of the lovely vining designs of medieval manuscripts.
And closer...
And closer...
Lovely, lovely stuff... it's -15 deg C out there right now, with a windchill of -26 deg C. More ice to come! :)
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Natural Farming
I've been coming across a lot of information on this style of farming lately. Today, via Reddit, I found this article on Natural Farming practices in Hawaii - and before that, I read up on Fukuoka's "One Straw Revolution" which he started back in the 1070s. (Also read Mother Earth News' article on Building Fertile Soil). These and others are advocating less human intrusion in the growing process, and allowing nature (and soil microbes/worms/etc) to do the majority of the work. There are only a few times in the growing cycle that humans need to be involved in, but they must be done at just the right time and the right way, for the crops to be successful. It's very specific to each region as well - the methods and cycle that work in one area is not really directly transferable to other areas - so you have to take the ideas and adapt them to your local area.
I really love the idea of stepping away from the process and allowing this underground network to do most of the "heavy lifting". And best of all, this is a "no-till" system! It's a rather radical change from the way we've been doing farming, but with comparable yields to modern farming and NO pesticides, it seems to be something really worth looking at! Check out those articles, they're great reads.
I really love the idea of stepping away from the process and allowing this underground network to do most of the "heavy lifting". And best of all, this is a "no-till" system! It's a rather radical change from the way we've been doing farming, but with comparable yields to modern farming and NO pesticides, it seems to be something really worth looking at! Check out those articles, they're great reads.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Great article on Eating At Home
I read a great article today on the Huffington Post via Time magazine - How Eating at Home Can Save Your Life, by Mark Hyman, MD. Well worth a read, it talks about the changes to the American (and by extension Canadian) diet over the last one hundred years have led to problems for the environment, obesity, and the loss of valuable cooking skills to future generations. Two points that were shocking and sad to see:
1) "In 2010...one in five breakfasts [was] from McDonald's."
2) "In his series, 'Food Revolution,' Jamie Oliver showed us how we have raised a generation of Americans who can't recognize a single vegetable or fruit..."
Regarding 1), I love McDonalds as a special treat, but it's not a good idea to have that much deep-fried goodness so often!
Regarding 2), I enjoyed taking pictures of fruit and veggies in situ during Agrifest in 2006 as a way (hopefully) that kids could see what these things look like in the ground, as they often look different when they get to the grocery store, and different again when they reach the plate. But it's shocking to hear that kids wouldn't be able to identify them even in their grocery store form. That is really scary. A fruit cup puree is not a fruit. There's almost always added sugars and syrups. Worse than a fruit cup puree is (probably) no fruit at all.
It used to be that you'd run into the occasional person who couldn't cook, and it was a bit of a joke. But if NO ONE in your family cooks, that is a serious concern! (Heating microwave dinners doesn't count as cooking!) If no one can cook, you're either a) eating too much take out - which has a lot of foods that are purchased for their long shelf life (preservatives, TONS of excess salt/sodium), deep fried, or processed meats (as above, preservatives and salt), or b) buying convenience foods from the grocery store, which pretty much have the same drawbacks. If you don't have to chew your food very much, then it's probably too processed (and a crispy fried coating outside doesn't count!). :) Our bodies don't run their best on stuff they don't even have to work at to digest.
Annnywayyyyy, the article is very interesting, and definitely worth a read. There's lots of good tips in there!
1) "In 2010...one in five breakfasts [was] from McDonald's."
2) "In his series, 'Food Revolution,' Jamie Oliver showed us how we have raised a generation of Americans who can't recognize a single vegetable or fruit..."
Regarding 1), I love McDonalds as a special treat, but it's not a good idea to have that much deep-fried goodness so often!
Regarding 2), I enjoyed taking pictures of fruit and veggies in situ during Agrifest in 2006 as a way (hopefully) that kids could see what these things look like in the ground, as they often look different when they get to the grocery store, and different again when they reach the plate. But it's shocking to hear that kids wouldn't be able to identify them even in their grocery store form. That is really scary. A fruit cup puree is not a fruit. There's almost always added sugars and syrups. Worse than a fruit cup puree is (probably) no fruit at all.
It used to be that you'd run into the occasional person who couldn't cook, and it was a bit of a joke. But if NO ONE in your family cooks, that is a serious concern! (Heating microwave dinners doesn't count as cooking!) If no one can cook, you're either a) eating too much take out - which has a lot of foods that are purchased for their long shelf life (preservatives, TONS of excess salt/sodium), deep fried, or processed meats (as above, preservatives and salt), or b) buying convenience foods from the grocery store, which pretty much have the same drawbacks. If you don't have to chew your food very much, then it's probably too processed (and a crispy fried coating outside doesn't count!). :) Our bodies don't run their best on stuff they don't even have to work at to digest.
Annnywayyyyy, the article is very interesting, and definitely worth a read. There's lots of good tips in there!
Friday, January 14, 2011
Really bad news about the contest
As I mentioned recently, Hope for Wildlife was up for a $100,000 grant to finish their Wildlife Hospital. Just got the horrible news that they have been disqualified - I'm heartbroken, I don't know how badly they must all be feeling.
What happened was, they offered for anyone who wanted to support Hope for Wildlife, but didn't want to spend the time it takes to vote everyday (I have to say, voting is a bit of a pain, you have to click "Vote for this idea", then login, then do a Turing test, THEN click on "vote for this idea" again. But I love these people, so I do it), :) that you could send HFW your user name and password, and once a day one of the volunteers would go in and do your vote for you. Not flooding with false votes, or more than one vote a day or anything, just trying to save people who wanted to help time out of their busy day. But apparently Pepsi considered that "proxy voting" and that is against the rules. So they were kicked out of this round, and have to try to get into an upcoming round.
They were doing so very well, and could have used that money so much for their new facility. I feel absolutely miserable. It's all just so unfortunate.
They do plan on running again, and when they do, I'll post the info here.
I'm going to go be bummed now.... :(
What happened was, they offered for anyone who wanted to support Hope for Wildlife, but didn't want to spend the time it takes to vote everyday (I have to say, voting is a bit of a pain, you have to click "Vote for this idea", then login, then do a Turing test, THEN click on "vote for this idea" again. But I love these people, so I do it), :) that you could send HFW your user name and password, and once a day one of the volunteers would go in and do your vote for you. Not flooding with false votes, or more than one vote a day or anything, just trying to save people who wanted to help time out of their busy day. But apparently Pepsi considered that "proxy voting" and that is against the rules. So they were kicked out of this round, and have to try to get into an upcoming round.
They were doing so very well, and could have used that money so much for their new facility. I feel absolutely miserable. It's all just so unfortunate.
They do plan on running again, and when they do, I'll post the info here.
I'm going to go be bummed now.... :(
Monday, January 10, 2011
Vote for Hope For Wildlife!
Here's some previous posts I've made regarding Hope For Wildlife as well:
http://annmorash.blogspot.com/2008/01/hope-for-wildlife-to-rescue-again.html
http://annmorash.blogspot.com/2007/11/save-time-this-christmas-and-make-real.html
They're on facebook, too! http://www.facebook.com/#!/hopeforwildlife
Friday, January 07, 2011
Food pics from last night
Here's all the dishes I made for dinner last night:
From the top right, clockwise:
Baked Haddock fillets, McCain's Spicy Fries, salmon fish cakes, compote, fried mushrooms and onions with beer. Missing from photo: Greek salad, home-made pickle.
And the Cape Breton Post is running an article on Old Christmas featuring the parish of the Holy Ghost Ukrainian Catholic Church in Sydney (where my mom grew up and we still have family). Check it out here!
Have a great Christmas day!
From the top right, clockwise:
Baked Haddock fillets, McCain's Spicy Fries, salmon fish cakes, compote, fried mushrooms and onions with beer. Missing from photo: Greek salad, home-made pickle.
And the Cape Breton Post is running an article on Old Christmas featuring the parish of the Holy Ghost Ukrainian Catholic Church in Sydney (where my mom grew up and we still have family). Check it out here!
Have a great Christmas day!
Thursday, January 06, 2011
Sviat Vechir dinner tonight
Tonight is Ukrainian Christmas eve, aka Sviat Vechir. Traditionally, twelve meatless and dairyless dishes are served (in honour of the 12 apostles, or from pagan times, the 12 months of the year). But when you have a small family (just Dave and I, in this case), some of the traditional dishes are just too elaborate to warrant making. So, adapting is sometimes necessary, and in this case, I try to present a variety of small meatless dishes in lieu of the traditional twelve (and suited a bit more to our tastes). :)
My menu will consist of
- fried haddock
- a mushroom and onion stir fry - mushrooms usually feature prominently in the Christmas eve dinner
Chopped shiitake, button and crimini mushrooms with diced onions, cooked in canola oil with a little beer added in the last 5 minutes of cooking. Cook until liquid is evaporated.
- fish cakes
A small can of salmon, mashed with 2-3 mashed potatoes. Formed into patties, coated in flour, and fried in canola oil till crispy on the outside.
- Greek pasta salad, without added feta cheese
- compote
my own style, based on fruits we have around the house - a few raisins, dates and apples, simmered in water, with a touch of honey and spiced rum.
McCain's spicy potato wedges
- homemade relish pickle made in the summertime
There's tons of great recipes for the traditional 12 dishes served, here are a few links to get you started:
Enjoy your Christmas eve dinner! And the lovely smoked-meat-fest that Christmas day will bring - I know we will! :D
[EDIT: Here's some great pics from around the world of people celebrating Christmas this night: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12128728]
My menu will consist of
- fried haddock
- a mushroom and onion stir fry - mushrooms usually feature prominently in the Christmas eve dinner
Chopped shiitake, button and crimini mushrooms with diced onions, cooked in canola oil with a little beer added in the last 5 minutes of cooking. Cook until liquid is evaporated.
- fish cakes
A small can of salmon, mashed with 2-3 mashed potatoes. Formed into patties, coated in flour, and fried in canola oil till crispy on the outside.
- Greek pasta salad, without added feta cheese
- compote
my own style, based on fruits we have around the house - a few raisins, dates and apples, simmered in water, with a touch of honey and spiced rum.
McCain's spicy potato wedges
- homemade relish pickle made in the summertime
There's tons of great recipes for the traditional 12 dishes served, here are a few links to get you started:
Enjoy your Christmas eve dinner! And the lovely smoked-meat-fest that Christmas day will bring - I know we will! :D
[EDIT: Here's some great pics from around the world of people celebrating Christmas this night: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12128728]
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
From all of us here....
Casey...
Lila...
Baby Boy...
Peepers...
And Kuroi...
Lila...
Baby Boy...
Peepers...
And Kuroi...
We hope you had a great Christmas holiday, and a wonderful 2011! Here's to a new year, with new hopes and new opportunities!
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Veseys Catalogue Arrival: Awesome new stuff for the new season
Like many people, money is tight with us these days. And since we rent, and our landlord has the house on the market, we never know if we're going to be here during an entire summer (hence last season's semi-portable bag garden). BUT, if we had a bit more $$ and guaranteed lawn, Vesey's has some AWESOME stuff in the catalogue this year (just in time for Christmas, folks!)
Just a note: I'm not affiliated with Veseys in any way, I really do just love their stuff! :)
Birdfeeders (always popular):
The Blue Moon feeder is made out of sparkling crackle glass, with built in protection to shelter the birds during storms, looks lovely! My second choice is the iron and aluminum Acorn Bird feeder, very elegant looking!
For assistance in gardening/seed starting, etc:
The Canadian designed Root Training Propagator looks way cool! It trains roots to be long and thin in a straight line. The product opens like a book, so you can inspect the roots, and there's minimal disruption to the plant during transplanting. COOL!
Having not done such a hot job of supporting my snap peas this past summer, this lovely contraption looks like it would be a big help! The Wire Cucumber Trellis folds flat for storage, but when in use provides a lovely diagonal growing surface for all your climbing veggies like peas, but more suited for heavier produce like cucumbers and squash. They even say you can grow lettuce underneath which will mature before your cukes get too big and block out the sun.
Connecticut dairy farmers developed these great plant pots leftover from cow manure after they've extracted the methane to use to power their farm. Cow Pots will dissolve a few weeks after insertion in the ground, providing fertilizer to boot! A great idea!
Perfect for people who are stiff and have trouble doing all the bending over required in gardening, it's a Stand Up Garden (and it's self-watering, too!). A garden on stilts basically, it lets you have the fun of gardening without bending - and you get to start your soil off right by buying it (and compost) in bags! ;)
Some cool new and new-to-me flowers and veg:
Chocolate Tomato - a gorgeous looking velvety chocolate/red colored tomato, an heirloom that they say has tremendous flavor.
Broom corn - grows like corn, but instead of a husk it grows these gorgeous seed heads. Great for crafting projects - and you can even make a broom from them, if you like!
If you love squash, you'll love their Wild Bunch combo of many varieties of strong vining squash. For eating and for crafts & fall displays, you'll get a little bit of everything!
Gorgeous flowers: the Zahara Starlight Zinnia (blooms the whole season!) and always a fave of mine, the Gerbera Daisy. And a funky green sunflower, would really stand out!
And a couple of books, to boot!
The Backyard Homestead - an "indespensible guide to self-sufficiency". Talks about everything from raising chickens to pickling the results from your veg garden! (*Ann dreams...*)
Four Season Harvest - a great guide to growing veggies and herbs year-round in colder climates like mine! Sounds a little challenging, but very rewarding!
So that's what's on my gardening wish list for this year! If you have any you'd like to add, mention it in the comments section! :)
Just a note: I'm not affiliated with Veseys in any way, I really do just love their stuff! :)
Birdfeeders (always popular):
For assistance in gardening/seed starting, etc:
The Canadian designed Root Training Propagator looks way cool! It trains roots to be long and thin in a straight line. The product opens like a book, so you can inspect the roots, and there's minimal disruption to the plant during transplanting. COOL!
Having not done such a hot job of supporting my snap peas this past summer, this lovely contraption looks like it would be a big help! The Wire Cucumber Trellis folds flat for storage, but when in use provides a lovely diagonal growing surface for all your climbing veggies like peas, but more suited for heavier produce like cucumbers and squash. They even say you can grow lettuce underneath which will mature before your cukes get too big and block out the sun.
Connecticut dairy farmers developed these great plant pots leftover from cow manure after they've extracted the methane to use to power their farm. Cow Pots will dissolve a few weeks after insertion in the ground, providing fertilizer to boot! A great idea!
Perfect for people who are stiff and have trouble doing all the bending over required in gardening, it's a Stand Up Garden (and it's self-watering, too!). A garden on stilts basically, it lets you have the fun of gardening without bending - and you get to start your soil off right by buying it (and compost) in bags! ;)
Some cool new and new-to-me flowers and veg:Chocolate Tomato - a gorgeous looking velvety chocolate/red colored tomato, an heirloom that they say has tremendous flavor.
Broom corn - grows like corn, but instead of a husk it grows these gorgeous seed heads. Great for crafting projects - and you can even make a broom from them, if you like!
If you love squash, you'll love their Wild Bunch combo of many varieties of strong vining squash. For eating and for crafts & fall displays, you'll get a little bit of everything!
Gorgeous flowers: the Zahara Starlight Zinnia (blooms the whole season!) and always a fave of mine, the Gerbera Daisy. And a funky green sunflower, would really stand out!
And a couple of books, to boot!
The Backyard Homestead - an "indespensible guide to self-sufficiency". Talks about everything from raising chickens to pickling the results from your veg garden! (*Ann dreams...*)
Four Season Harvest - a great guide to growing veggies and herbs year-round in colder climates like mine! Sounds a little challenging, but very rewarding!
So that's what's on my gardening wish list for this year! If you have any you'd like to add, mention it in the comments section! :)
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
The Mystery of the Red Bees
Yup, you read right - bright red bees. Bright red hives. And really crappy honey.
Found this story from the NY Times, via Reddit. The disappointing truth that, like people, bees don't always eat what's best for them. Garbage in/garbage out. :) Fascinating story! It does point out some of the complications that can occur with urban farming.
Found this story from the NY Times, via Reddit. The disappointing truth that, like people, bees don't always eat what's best for them. Garbage in/garbage out. :) Fascinating story! It does point out some of the complications that can occur with urban farming.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Gorgeous Day
Amazing weather, a perfect fall day. So many leaves were damaged and twisted around during Hurricane Earl, I thought autumn might not turn out so well this year. But, so far, so good! The colours usually peak around the 18th of October, but it still looks like there's a lot of green out there, so it might last a little longer this year.
Thursday, October 07, 2010
Me and Eeyore down at the Fair
I petted sheep and goats and little baby donkeys and some sort of highland cattle...it was awesome! Another fun trip down to the Maritime Fall Fair. A few more pics to come. :)
I wanna raise chickens SO BAD........
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Cats will be Cats
Kuroi (Pretty Kitty) has a fun game he plays every morning for about a half hour. He chases around a (imaginary or real) kibble that escaped the dogs' dish. Perhaps at one point, there actually was a kibble that ended up underneath the old drip tray we use to protect the floor from the water bowl. Now, who knows? But Kuroi is convinced it's there, and every morning, pokes randomly under the mat - it's quite hilarious. Today, Peepers watched in quiet awe while he did this, wondering what the heck he was doing. It's the first time one of the other cats has taken an interest in Kuroi's little hobby.
God, cats are such spazzes. :D
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Cats in the Area
There must be some new cats to the area - I saw an adorable marmalade cat sleeping on our anthill, enjoying the sunshine the other day (reminds me of my kitty when I was little). But this, or another cat, knows how to hunt, and hunt well.
We had a spate about 5 months ago of one shrew a night dead at the top of the hill, waiting for me and the girls when we went to play in the morning. Then mercifully it stopped. But last night must have been a banner night, for there were 3 dead shrews up there this morning. Well, parts of them, anyway. One was complete, but dead from a side puncture wound. But the other two...only their heads remained! *gack* The girls (Casey and Lila) managed to find them all (whenever they look intently at something, I come to look in case it's a little froggy who needs help getting out of our yard). I took the shrews and shrew bits and put them into the forest beyond the fence, with a little prayer for their little furry souls. Poor little guys, they do love our yard with all the tall grasses and such to hide under...but that makes it tempting hunting ground for the cats... :/
More disturbingly, I found a small cluster of male pheasant feathers - they're absolutely gorgeous, with a metallic sheen of blues and greens when you look at them moving in the light. But while I'm worried a cat made a go for him, I don't see any blood, and no body to be seen, so I'm sure one swipe is all the cat got in before the pheasant made a getaway.
So, we'll hope the pheasant keeps his eyes open, and hopefully the little shrews will keep safe - but I will keep burying them if they don't.
We had a spate about 5 months ago of one shrew a night dead at the top of the hill, waiting for me and the girls when we went to play in the morning. Then mercifully it stopped. But last night must have been a banner night, for there were 3 dead shrews up there this morning. Well, parts of them, anyway. One was complete, but dead from a side puncture wound. But the other two...only their heads remained! *gack* The girls (Casey and Lila) managed to find them all (whenever they look intently at something, I come to look in case it's a little froggy who needs help getting out of our yard). I took the shrews and shrew bits and put them into the forest beyond the fence, with a little prayer for their little furry souls. Poor little guys, they do love our yard with all the tall grasses and such to hide under...but that makes it tempting hunting ground for the cats... :/
More disturbingly, I found a small cluster of male pheasant feathers - they're absolutely gorgeous, with a metallic sheen of blues and greens when you look at them moving in the light. But while I'm worried a cat made a go for him, I don't see any blood, and no body to be seen, so I'm sure one swipe is all the cat got in before the pheasant made a getaway.
So, we'll hope the pheasant keeps his eyes open, and hopefully the little shrews will keep safe - but I will keep burying them if they don't.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
New Male Pheasant
Only got to see him for a moment, while we were scaring the crap out of the poor guy. He was up on our hill feeding (getting spillover from the bird feeder) and me and the girls came tearing up the hill to play Frisbee. Poor guy, hr ran around and around while the girls chased him, I'm yelling at them to stop, trying to grab at them - finally he takes off to the sky and flies away. He was beautiful, from what I could see, but quite small, so I think he's young - probably one of the ones I saw earlier this year in the yard. Poor guy, hope he's not too traumatized, and will come back. A short time later, I heard a few little noises from the woods nearby, I think he had a companion that was wondering what was going on - I'm sure they'll meet up again soon.
He didn't get away too badly off, though - he picked apart one of only 2 chili peppers I managed to grow! At least he picked the unripened one. :) I've picked the other one, in case he comes back - it can finish ripening indoors.
I do hope he comes back - now that I know they're still in the area, I'll have to make sure I check outside before we go out!
He didn't get away too badly off, though - he picked apart one of only 2 chili peppers I managed to grow! At least he picked the unripened one. :) I've picked the other one, in case he comes back - it can finish ripening indoors.
I do hope he comes back - now that I know they're still in the area, I'll have to make sure I check outside before we go out!
Friday, September 10, 2010
Too Cool! Airshow Practice!
Once again, after a long absence, the air show is at Shearwater, AND I'm in the city. When I was a kid, the airshow was always at Shearwater, which is not (flying wise) very far from my house - we used to get on the roof and watch the show at a distance, or stand on street and watch down the road. They had to move the airshow around to different locales when I was an adult, and I lived out on the outskirts of the HRM for a long time, so it's been a while since I've seen it. But now, they're back, and I'm back, and they're doing some practicing for the air show this weekend. And they're practicing over our house! Very cool, nothing like a jet fighter trainer flying low and fast, rattling your windows! They turned a couple of times directly over the house (COOL!), but mostly they've been going by, practicing doing that straight up climb, then straight down maneuver, turning, and a little spinning, too.
When I lived out on the Eastern shore, my parents still enjoyed watching the air show, and chose one year to go to the cliff behind our house to watch it. Our Canadian aerial acrobatic team, the Snowbirds, come annually to the air show, and do an awesome performance. When I was a kid, and still today, some of the Snowbirds perform their turn-arounds (to get back to Shearwater to do some more formations), right over our house. You can imagine how cool that was, and is! So my folks were in a great position to watch the occasional Snowbird fly by very low, as in you-can-look-in-the-cockpit low. Mom, being the silly goofball that she is (a trait she has passed on to me, I might add), would wave every time they went by. And on the last flyby, he flew extra low and waggled his wings back at her! It happened to be her birthday too, and let me tell you, she was thrilled! Something she'll always remember, and still talks about. (So, whoever you are out there, Mr. Pilot, you made Mom's day!).
All the performers will be showing up sometime today, likely, so we'll be hearing a lot of airplanes in the air as they fly by en route to Shearwater. Don't know if I'll make it to the show, but I definitely will watch down the road, to see what I can see, at a distance. :)
When I lived out on the Eastern shore, my parents still enjoyed watching the air show, and chose one year to go to the cliff behind our house to watch it. Our Canadian aerial acrobatic team, the Snowbirds, come annually to the air show, and do an awesome performance. When I was a kid, and still today, some of the Snowbirds perform their turn-arounds (to get back to Shearwater to do some more formations), right over our house. You can imagine how cool that was, and is! So my folks were in a great position to watch the occasional Snowbird fly by very low, as in you-can-look-in-the-cockpit low. Mom, being the silly goofball that she is (a trait she has passed on to me, I might add), would wave every time they went by. And on the last flyby, he flew extra low and waggled his wings back at her! It happened to be her birthday too, and let me tell you, she was thrilled! Something she'll always remember, and still talks about. (So, whoever you are out there, Mr. Pilot, you made Mom's day!).
All the performers will be showing up sometime today, likely, so we'll be hearing a lot of airplanes in the air as they fly by en route to Shearwater. Don't know if I'll make it to the show, but I definitely will watch down the road, to see what I can see, at a distance. :)
Wednesday, September 08, 2010
You're *sure* its local? An interesting way to be sure...
In Japan, convenience stores don't just sell pop and chips, as the often do here - they sell vegetables, and/or fresh food products. In response to customers' requests for safety and quality, as well as avoid price fluxuations from suppliers, they've started their own farms. By growing all their own veg, they can have start-to-finish quality control over locally produced vegetables. You can read more about it on Mainichi today: (http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/business/news/20100908p2a00m0na014000c.html)
So, that would be like Sobeys or Superstore/Loblaws actually owning and running local farms all over the country to sell exclusively to their own stores. It's an interesting idea...I mean, certainly you could be sure of the "local"ness of your product. It might be a way of saving a lot of small struggling farms - but I'd be worried that they'd turn into a vegetable version of those giant conglomerations that run meat processing, where animals are mistreated before slaughter. Not that I think the veggies would be mistreated :) but the land might be, by large-production methods (read: heavy pesticide use), etc. But if people didn't want those methods used, they could directly hit the chain's bottom line by not buying from them.
Oh well, it's certainly an interesting thing they're trying out, and an idea worth at least playing with here in North America...
So, that would be like Sobeys or Superstore/Loblaws actually owning and running local farms all over the country to sell exclusively to their own stores. It's an interesting idea...I mean, certainly you could be sure of the "local"ness of your product. It might be a way of saving a lot of small struggling farms - but I'd be worried that they'd turn into a vegetable version of those giant conglomerations that run meat processing, where animals are mistreated before slaughter. Not that I think the veggies would be mistreated :) but the land might be, by large-production methods (read: heavy pesticide use), etc. But if people didn't want those methods used, they could directly hit the chain's bottom line by not buying from them.
Oh well, it's certainly an interesting thing they're trying out, and an idea worth at least playing with here in North America...
Tuesday, September 07, 2010
Surprise!
Went out with the girls for their playtime a few minutes ago, and saw this in my Miracle-Gro bag garden (well, what's left of it...the peas are all finished for the year, so they're gone. I put an extra potato I had from my crop that needed a few more weeks, in, and there's my two pepper plants, which didn't do so well in the "generic soil", so I moved them over to see if Miracle Gro would help). ;)
So....where did these guys come from?? Mushrooms are strange critters....I flipped up the edge of one of them to see what the gills were like, now I gotta go figure out what kind of mushrooms they are.... :)
So....where did these guys come from?? Mushrooms are strange critters....I flipped up the edge of one of them to see what the gills were like, now I gotta go figure out what kind of mushrooms they are.... :)
Saturday, September 04, 2010
We were lucky!
A *lot* of people lost power - even my parents, who live only a few streets away! We were very lucky.
Right now my parents and their neighbour are moving a tree from the property line that fell right on my parent's vegetable garden - right on the tomatoes! Oh no! It damaged the yard fence, the garden fence, and tore the clothesline right off the post! Yikes. We didn't lose any trees, ourselves, we're lucky.
Dave's mom also lost power, but since she lost virtually all her trees to Juan a few years back, there probably won't be too much damage.
So, Earl did give us a pretty good punch! But they hope to have the power back within a couple days, so it won't be another Juan, for sure. *phew*
Right now my parents and their neighbour are moving a tree from the property line that fell right on my parent's vegetable garden - right on the tomatoes! Oh no! It damaged the yard fence, the garden fence, and tore the clothesline right off the post! Yikes. We didn't lose any trees, ourselves, we're lucky.
Dave's mom also lost power, but since she lost virtually all her trees to Juan a few years back, there probably won't be too much damage.
So, Earl did give us a pretty good punch! But they hope to have the power back within a couple days, so it won't be another Juan, for sure. *phew*
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
The Family