Whenever Luis and I go to LA or Calexico for the whole weekend, I never feel very rested at all. There's something about home here in SD that really relaxes me that other homes do not.
Anyway, this weekend, we went to have crepe brunch with the Alpha Cats and played a rather contentious game of Word on the Street. The game rules weren't very clear, so we had to duke things out. Things with buttons: keyboards (belly button count?), type of bed: tempurpedic. It's like finding pants in the sky.
In the evening, went to Peter D's, got drunk and skipped to PB for a last hour at Tremors. Lauren and I both had the right idea in wearing black tops and jeans. Could be dressy, could be casual. Gave me a great excuse to put on a shit ton of makeup that I normally wouldn't wear for daytime. Seriously, need contact lenses. Seriously, need health insurance.
For whatever reason, whenever Lauren and I get buzzed or drunk, we just want to go dancing. Peter D's was not providing the right type of music so we took off to Tremors. It's been too long since I've felt music with my body. It's like giving up to the music and let the rhythm control my movements. Sometimes I can feel the bass coursing through my muscle cells and blood vessels. Biology major, or the alcohol.
The great thing was that I didn't have a hangover. The same cannot be said for Luis however. I fell asleep to him vomiting into the toilet.
We spent Sunday mostly at home. I cooked, cleaned, and made more mess to clean. Hovered over my plants, my dog, the former because apparently on some subconscious level I think they grow faster if I look at them. Hey, a watched pot and all right? The dog, well, because he's just the cutest.
Resolution: floss more. Apparently it contributes to heart health.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Day 5 of planting
Oh my god things sprouted!
Thyme in the foreground and oregano:
Closeup of the thyme: Aren't they adorable with the little leaflets?
Not a very good picture, but closeup of the oregano. You can see the little seeds sprinkled on top. I originally planted those about 1/8 of an inch, but then the detailed directions told me to just sprinkle on top. So I sprinkled more on top. I don't know if you can see it, but the seeds have cracked their skins and sent out roots. I'm sure in the next few days I'll be able to see leafs and such.
The tarragon. You can see one little leaflet in the picture, but there are others coming up.
Also, I know my tomatoes are sprouting too. I can see their stems trying to clear the soil. Couldn't really get a good picture.
As for the other plants that I have, nothing has died yet, so that's good. Everything been nice and wet because of the rain. I'm just a little worried about the temperature because it has been pretty cold for the past month or so, with the strange exception of a few warm days. I made little green houses for the plants with clear cellophane from flower bouquets. Once the seedlings grow bigger, I'll have to scavenge for some two litter soda bottles to put over the pots for a mini greenhouse.
First hurdle cleared. Next one is coaxing them to actually feed for themselves. I usually have a bit of problem with that stage as it seems like growth just stops with maybe two sets of leaves. We'll see when we get there.
In other news, I checked on the worms and they are acclimating it seems. I lifted the top bucket with the castings and without even stirring, found quite a few worms moving around in their new home. Meanwhile, I've been chopping up kitchen scraps and saving them in a trashcan along with the extra newspaper and leave cuttings so they can get started with composting before I feed everything to the worms.
Thyme in the foreground and oregano:
As for the other plants that I have, nothing has died yet, so that's good. Everything been nice and wet because of the rain. I'm just a little worried about the temperature because it has been pretty cold for the past month or so, with the strange exception of a few warm days. I made little green houses for the plants with clear cellophane from flower bouquets. Once the seedlings grow bigger, I'll have to scavenge for some two litter soda bottles to put over the pots for a mini greenhouse.
First hurdle cleared. Next one is coaxing them to actually feed for themselves. I usually have a bit of problem with that stage as it seems like growth just stops with maybe two sets of leaves. We'll see when we get there.
In other news, I checked on the worms and they are acclimating it seems. I lifted the top bucket with the castings and without even stirring, found quite a few worms moving around in their new home. Meanwhile, I've been chopping up kitchen scraps and saving them in a trashcan along with the extra newspaper and leave cuttings so they can get started with composting before I feed everything to the worms.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
The imperfections of women
I pick up the San Diego Reader and many of the pages are dominated by adds for plastic surgery. To me, they scream out, "Here's what's wrong with you! Let us fix it!"
Examples:
Have hair again: You look ugly without a full head of hair!
Laser hair removal: lip/chin -> you are hairy, both underarms -> you are hairy, brazilian -> why do you have hair down there?, basic bikini lines -> trim them!
Wrinkle treatments -> hag
Skin rejuvenation treatments: melanage for pigmentation -> because being a uniformly colored blank canvas is natural and good looking, skin toning & firming -> don't look old!
Latisse: who the fuck came up with the idea that having less lashes is a fucking medical condition? Oh right. The pharmaceutical industry. Like having a bush right above your eye is beautiful.
Here's one that comes out and just says it, "unsightly veins."
And my personal favorite: labiaplasty, vaginoplasty. What? Really? So whose idea of beauty of these body parts are we conforming to?
Unwanted body fat! Get your belly toned tucked & tightened! Brazilian butt lift, liposculpture, cellulite, loose skin, dental implants.
Breast augmentation is so pedestrian that it doesn't even jump out at me anymore.
Looking at all of that really makes my blood boil. Don't get me wrong, if someone really has a true need for a cosmetic procedure, the plastic surgeons have my full support. If my labia is so long/large that it's constantly draping out of my panties, ok, maybe, or maybe just don't wear underwear. I can't imagine what vaginoplasty does. I also can't imagine a man turning down sex because a woman's vagina or labia isn't pretty enough. I mean to me, a pretty vagina is a disease free one. The prettiest vagina (whatever that means) with warts is not not all that great.
Why do we want a butt that's not too big or small? Why do we need to lose 15 pounds, constantly? Why are we always searching for straight hair for girls with curly hair and curls for girls with straight hair? Why are we trying to be whiter when we have dark skin and tanner when we are white? Why do we want a profusion of hair on our lashes and head but wish death upon hair anywhere else? Why? So much criticism and unhappiness with what we have. Life happens. Take care of yourself and maybe we can look like Helen Mirren when we are older instead of Joan Rivers.
Just needed to get that off my chest.
And with that, I am so appreciative of Luis for always supporting me and telling me that he loves me no matter what I look like, even if I have sagging boobs and wrinkles. I would love to be a beautiful grandmother whose home smells like awesome food all the time.
Examples:
Have hair again: You look ugly without a full head of hair!
Laser hair removal: lip/chin -> you are hairy, both underarms -> you are hairy, brazilian -> why do you have hair down there?, basic bikini lines -> trim them!
Wrinkle treatments -> hag
Skin rejuvenation treatments: melanage for pigmentation -> because being a uniformly colored blank canvas is natural and good looking, skin toning & firming -> don't look old!
Latisse: who the fuck came up with the idea that having less lashes is a fucking medical condition? Oh right. The pharmaceutical industry. Like having a bush right above your eye is beautiful.
Here's one that comes out and just says it, "unsightly veins."
And my personal favorite: labiaplasty, vaginoplasty. What? Really? So whose idea of beauty of these body parts are we conforming to?
Unwanted body fat! Get your belly toned tucked & tightened! Brazilian butt lift, liposculpture, cellulite, loose skin, dental implants.
Breast augmentation is so pedestrian that it doesn't even jump out at me anymore.
Looking at all of that really makes my blood boil. Don't get me wrong, if someone really has a true need for a cosmetic procedure, the plastic surgeons have my full support. If my labia is so long/large that it's constantly draping out of my panties, ok, maybe, or maybe just don't wear underwear. I can't imagine what vaginoplasty does. I also can't imagine a man turning down sex because a woman's vagina or labia isn't pretty enough. I mean to me, a pretty vagina is a disease free one. The prettiest vagina (whatever that means) with warts is not not all that great.
Why do we want a butt that's not too big or small? Why do we need to lose 15 pounds, constantly? Why are we always searching for straight hair for girls with curly hair and curls for girls with straight hair? Why are we trying to be whiter when we have dark skin and tanner when we are white? Why do we want a profusion of hair on our lashes and head but wish death upon hair anywhere else? Why? So much criticism and unhappiness with what we have. Life happens. Take care of yourself and maybe we can look like Helen Mirren when we are older instead of Joan Rivers.
Just needed to get that off my chest.
And with that, I am so appreciative of Luis for always supporting me and telling me that he loves me no matter what I look like, even if I have sagging boobs and wrinkles. I would love to be a beautiful grandmother whose home smells like awesome food all the time.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Worms!
I have asked for red wrigglers for composting for two years now from Luis (we are not very good at giving each other presents) and now I finally have them! Not in the quantity that I wanted, but it's a start.
The whole thing has three buckets all together. Two 5-gallons (in the foreground, stacked on top of each other) and a shorter three-gallon (covered with a red veil/sash).
The 3-gallon is the top one composed of delicious worm casting, perfect for vegetables.
It sits on top of this next one which contains the bedding of shredded newspaper, leaves, and stems. Mixed in their is their first feeding of molded blackberries, wilted flowers, pear parings, and butternut squash. (It just occurred to me that my dog would probably eat all of that as well...disturbing.) Now I'm going to leave it alone for about a week before I open it up again and check on it. I can't wait! It's like controlling myself to not open Christmas presents.
And the last bucket to catch the yummy worm tea. Yes. That's what it's called. It's very good for plants. The worms naturally produce this.
Isn't it awesome? I'm super excited. I hope the worms don't die.
Some other ideas for the planters:
Potting mix: I told Luis that one of these days we will go to go to the little known Miramar Greenery to pick up some free compost and mix that in with free dirt that I can find on CL.
DIY tomato cage: find some free bamboo stakes on CL and wrap that together with garden twine/galvanized wire that I bought at Home Depot.
In other news, I'm trying to teach Butters to kiss on command, turn which he mostly got, and to go and stay on his sleeping mat. Here's the cutie being a sentry:
The whole thing has three buckets all together. Two 5-gallons (in the foreground, stacked on top of each other) and a shorter three-gallon (covered with a red veil/sash).
Some other ideas for the planters:
Potting mix: I told Luis that one of these days we will go to go to the little known Miramar Greenery to pick up some free compost and mix that in with free dirt that I can find on CL.
DIY tomato cage: find some free bamboo stakes on CL and wrap that together with garden twine/galvanized wire that I bought at Home Depot.
In other news, I'm trying to teach Butters to kiss on command, turn which he mostly got, and to go and stay on his sleeping mat. Here's the cutie being a sentry:
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Preparations for spring
After a 3-day visit to my parents' place, it really got me thinking about gardening again. Two of their chickens started laying eggs now, though still inconsistently. The lighter colored one is the youngest. It's the one out of 20 that my parents bought in Chinatown that survived chick-hood.
This and the one in the background I bought for my parents at City Farmer's Nursery. Full-grown now. One's a bully and the other shy. The shy one is the more consistent egg-layer. The big one squawks when she lays.
Anyway, I thought the inconsistent egg-laying might have something to do with the lack of protein in their diet. Since it rained, Luis and I went down our street and picked up earthworms by the curb. We got a good handful. The worms were going to die anyway, so they might as well die for a good cause right? The chickens loved them. The handful of worms lasted all of 10 seconds. In other news, my roses are doing beautifully. My favorite one though still hasn't sent out any long shoots like it did two years ago. I wonder if I didn't prune it enough. Sad. Anyway, this got me thinking about everything I can do this year in my patio on a budget here in San Diego.
First, vermiculture! I love composting. It's something that makes absolute sense to me. Why should I have to spend money to buy back fertilizer when all it is garbage that I throw away? I have tried composting on and off several times since I learned it in 5th grade (2nd thing besides duck and cover that I took away from elementary school), all with really good results. Whether it smells or not doesn't matter. Even if you ignore it, sooner or later, kitchen scraps will turn into awesome dirt. Seriously, how cool is that? I remember two years ago, my mom and I opened up a garbage can worth of compost (which by the way, does not make a very good container as I had no idea dirt can be so heavy), and it smelled so fresh and earthy. It felt good to dump it all onto our vegetable patches.
Anyway, I spent a good part of yesterday evening googling a DIY worm bin. I was all set to go beg/barter for a few nursery trays, or scavenge at thrift stores for some storage bins, when I remembered that awhile back Luis' friend, Laura, wanted to give me her worms. So I traded a bottle of my homemade vanilla extract for her system, with a bottle of homemade red wine vinegar too. The worms weren't all dead, though I still would've taken it even if it smelled or had no worms. It simply meant I didn't have to buy containers. Anyway, turns out that it still had some worms and a ton of casting. Perfect for my new garden.
On the way home, we picked up some free newspaper to make bedding for the worms. I also scooped up some leaves around the apartment complex. Now they are all set, nice and comfy in their new home and will eat and reproduce. Hopefully.
For the garden, Luis is creating two planters for me out of wood from shipping pallets. That will be a work in progress for the next few days, which hopefully won't turn into weeks.
Meanwhile, I am planning how and what I'm going to plant in the planters. Ultimately, I would like to take advantage of the size of our patio to have summer dinners and not just have bare walls and concrete to stare at.
In the first planter, I wanted to plant shade plants, predominantly, a maidenhair fern (which I'm probably going to harvest some rhizomes from my now four-year old plant back in LA), periwinkle (maybe) and something else. Again, in progress. It'll be a delicate looking planter reminiscent of something out of a forest. Or at least what my imagination thinks of as a forest where A Midnight Summer's Dream took place.
The second and larger one will be a vegetable/herbs planter. Based on the size of the boards of of the pallet, this larger one will be 48"x20"x15". I wanted to plant two cherry/grape tomatoes since they are really productive plants and expensive in stores. My mom plants them and hates them because she can't be bothered to pick the fruits and they grow everywhere. Anyway, they'll be awesome for salads during summer! For herbs, I've decided this year I'm going to rotate my basil since they tend to mature fairly quickly. I'm going to keep planting new ones to keep up the production of usable leaves. Green onions because I never have them when I need them. Sucks having to go to the store just to get something that's 33cents, or being ripped off at two to three times that much at Vons. Same thing with cilantro and parsley. Other herbs: English thyme and Greek oregano. I'm going to grow most of these from seeds this year, see how that turns out. I bought a pot of rosemary because it's a perennial and it seems worth $2.99 for me to get productive sprigs without having to wait too long.
Other plants will be hanging baskets of periwinke (again, not sure), geraniums/pelargoniums (still can't tell the difference between the two), and pothos as well as another crack at a strawberry basket. Tall people beware, I am setting my traps. Mwahaha...
So! Without further ado! The new members of our little family:
The pots all contain seeds of the various herbs, my wisteria seeds from last year, and cuttings of strings of pearl and pothos I took from various other gardens/nurseries.
Next my geranium/pelargonium cuttings, again generously donated by my apartment complex and Home Depot. The one in the back should be pure deep red and the one in front a purple. Both should be sprawling.
Lastly, from the back, a purple calla lily (or some variation of), my stupid dendrobium orchid that I rescued from Costco two years ago, my new rosemary, and finally a phalenopsis that Luis rescued from the dumpster. It's my third free try at orchids. I think I'm going to repot my dendrobium and stick it outside. I'm tired of it not doing anything. It's not dying and it's not growing. So I'm going to try to force it to make a choice. It's either going to die or grow.
It's too dark to take a picture of the vermiculture bins, but I will put up more of the pictures tomorrow.
So that's it! Day 0 of planting. And we are ahead of the game for the most part this year if all goes according to plan!
Anyway, I thought the inconsistent egg-laying might have something to do with the lack of protein in their diet. Since it rained, Luis and I went down our street and picked up earthworms by the curb. We got a good handful. The worms were going to die anyway, so they might as well die for a good cause right? The chickens loved them. The handful of worms lasted all of 10 seconds. In other news, my roses are doing beautifully. My favorite one though still hasn't sent out any long shoots like it did two years ago. I wonder if I didn't prune it enough. Sad. Anyway, this got me thinking about everything I can do this year in my patio on a budget here in San Diego.
First, vermiculture! I love composting. It's something that makes absolute sense to me. Why should I have to spend money to buy back fertilizer when all it is garbage that I throw away? I have tried composting on and off several times since I learned it in 5th grade (2nd thing besides duck and cover that I took away from elementary school), all with really good results. Whether it smells or not doesn't matter. Even if you ignore it, sooner or later, kitchen scraps will turn into awesome dirt. Seriously, how cool is that? I remember two years ago, my mom and I opened up a garbage can worth of compost (which by the way, does not make a very good container as I had no idea dirt can be so heavy), and it smelled so fresh and earthy. It felt good to dump it all onto our vegetable patches.
Anyway, I spent a good part of yesterday evening googling a DIY worm bin. I was all set to go beg/barter for a few nursery trays, or scavenge at thrift stores for some storage bins, when I remembered that awhile back Luis' friend, Laura, wanted to give me her worms. So I traded a bottle of my homemade vanilla extract for her system, with a bottle of homemade red wine vinegar too. The worms weren't all dead, though I still would've taken it even if it smelled or had no worms. It simply meant I didn't have to buy containers. Anyway, turns out that it still had some worms and a ton of casting. Perfect for my new garden.
On the way home, we picked up some free newspaper to make bedding for the worms. I also scooped up some leaves around the apartment complex. Now they are all set, nice and comfy in their new home and will eat and reproduce. Hopefully.
For the garden, Luis is creating two planters for me out of wood from shipping pallets. That will be a work in progress for the next few days, which hopefully won't turn into weeks.
Meanwhile, I am planning how and what I'm going to plant in the planters. Ultimately, I would like to take advantage of the size of our patio to have summer dinners and not just have bare walls and concrete to stare at.
In the first planter, I wanted to plant shade plants, predominantly, a maidenhair fern (which I'm probably going to harvest some rhizomes from my now four-year old plant back in LA), periwinkle (maybe) and something else. Again, in progress. It'll be a delicate looking planter reminiscent of something out of a forest. Or at least what my imagination thinks of as a forest where A Midnight Summer's Dream took place.
The second and larger one will be a vegetable/herbs planter. Based on the size of the boards of of the pallet, this larger one will be 48"x20"x15". I wanted to plant two cherry/grape tomatoes since they are really productive plants and expensive in stores. My mom plants them and hates them because she can't be bothered to pick the fruits and they grow everywhere. Anyway, they'll be awesome for salads during summer! For herbs, I've decided this year I'm going to rotate my basil since they tend to mature fairly quickly. I'm going to keep planting new ones to keep up the production of usable leaves. Green onions because I never have them when I need them. Sucks having to go to the store just to get something that's 33cents, or being ripped off at two to three times that much at Vons. Same thing with cilantro and parsley. Other herbs: English thyme and Greek oregano. I'm going to grow most of these from seeds this year, see how that turns out. I bought a pot of rosemary because it's a perennial and it seems worth $2.99 for me to get productive sprigs without having to wait too long.
Other plants will be hanging baskets of periwinke (again, not sure), geraniums/pelargoniums (still can't tell the difference between the two), and pothos as well as another crack at a strawberry basket. Tall people beware, I am setting my traps. Mwahaha...
So! Without further ado! The new members of our little family:
The pots all contain seeds of the various herbs, my wisteria seeds from last year, and cuttings of strings of pearl and pothos I took from various other gardens/nurseries.
Next my geranium/pelargonium cuttings, again generously donated by my apartment complex and Home Depot. The one in the back should be pure deep red and the one in front a purple. Both should be sprawling.
It's too dark to take a picture of the vermiculture bins, but I will put up more of the pictures tomorrow.
So that's it! Day 0 of planting. And we are ahead of the game for the most part this year if all goes according to plan!
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