Gardening Picture Blog

It's picture blog time! It's May, and here in NC, that means gardening season is in full swing.

My corn is knee-high. Every time we go check on it, my little one asks if it has ears yet. She has a hard time believing that will be even taller than mommy in just a few weeks, so I can't wait to see the look on her face when it is.

I had some volunteer pumpkins this year. Apparently my compost didn't finish cooking enough to kill the seeds of our jack-o-lantern from the previous Halloween, so when I moved the compost, I got a few sprouts. I honestly didn't expect them to make it, so I didn't put much effort into helping them grow. In spite of my neglect, the sprouts survived, so I recently put a small fence around them so that my landlord wouldn't run over them with the lawn mower. I now I have an impromptu pumpkin patch, and I hope not to have to buy pumpkins for jack-o-lanterns this year.

I keep getting a handful of peas at a time. I will definitely have to plant more peas next time, because these are SO delicious, but there isn't enough of them to share.

I finally gave up on my bare root strawberries sprouting, and so I purchased potted strawberries instead. This is so much nicer than looking at an empty pot.

Here's a ladybug hanging out on our carrots. These are Danvers heirloom carrots, and the roots are just starting to turn orange. I can't wait to have fresh carrots with my salad!

My tomatoes are now taller than this, and they're starting to bloom. The 2-liter bottle is my totally advanced watering system. It has holes poked in the bottom so that it can gradually deliver water to the plant's roots. Soon, I'll need to make cages for them. Homemade salsa, here I come!

This is my first time growing potatoes, but they seem to be doing well. We'll see whether or not they actually produce, because all I did was plant some grocery store potatoes. A lot of books I've read say that store-bought plants won't produce because they're not seed potatoes and have been treated with something to prevent them from sprouting, but these potatoes grew eyes and leaves within a week of me bringing them home. I thought it was worth a shot, so we'll see how it goes.

I planted some more lantana in my little one's butterfly garden because I just can't get enough of the the stuff. I just love the blending of colors in the blooms.

Be sure to stay tuned for my craft picture blog - coming soon!



Progress Report

You know, it occurs to me that I never followed up on how I'm doing with my resolution to buy fewer prepackaged items. I would say overall it's going well; I have not purchased cookies from the store since my last shopping trip in 2011. I have successfully made my own laundry detergent and granola cereal* since January. I even made my own liquid dishwasher detergent**. If my family needs a snack, I'm on the job. The only snacks I buy from the store now are chips, saltine crackers, and the occasional box of graham crackers (this may change shortly, as I have found this promising recipe). I now no longer purchase Hamburger Helper mixes, or Pasta-Roni mixes, or Zatarain's rice mixes. I also stopped buying packages of shredded cheese; if I need shredded cheese, I now use my once-neglected Pampered Chef rotary grater. Alas, I haven't worked my way up to making my own cheese.

Now for some honesty. How do I like making my own things? Well... It's more time consuming, it's more messy, sometimes it's hard. I don't always feel like making cookies for my husband or mixing up a batch of granola for breakfast. I definitely don't care for cleaning up the kitchen afterwards. Sometimes I try to make something, and it goes terribly, horribly wrong. However, I still love doing it myself. I feel pride and a sense of accomplishment at the end of the day. I get to bond with my daughter, who just loves to help me in the kitchen. I think the food tastes better, and I know it's better for us. (Have you seen the amount of sodium in a box of Hamburger Helper?) All that, and I save money too. My grocery bill averages anywhere from $50 to $100 a month less than before, and that's without using a single coupon. Typically, my trips to the store are also quicker, since my grocery list tends to be shorter. So yeah, I'd say the benefits outweigh the burden.

Here's a list of things I still want to try to make myself:

• Baby wipes
• Mozzarella cheese
• Household cleaners
• Wheat Thins
• Chocolate syrup
• Fruit leather (previous attempts were unsuccessful)
• Pop Tarts (my daughter is begging me to do this)
• Gummy bears (also my daughter's idea)
• Various and sundry seasoning mixes
• Pretty much all condiments except mustard

Think I can do it? We'll see.

*I don't follow this recipe to the letter. I leave out the almonds and raisins, because almonds are expensive, and I don't always like raisins in my granola. I melt the brown sugar in with the honey and oil instead of mixing it with the dry ingredients because I feel it coats the oats better this way. Also, I don't bake the granola for 40 minutes. Maybe it's my oven, but anything past 20 minutes, and the granola gets dark and tastes burnt. Pro tip: if you want granola clusters, don't stir after you take the granola out of the oven. Let it cool on its own and then break it up into clusters before storing. If you like loose, flaky granola, then by all means, stir away.

** I'm all for natural cleaners, but I don't recommend making this detergent. It's not at all cost effective because it calls for liquid Castile soap, and once the detergent is cool, it clumps up and is impossible to remix. It worked great for cleaning at first, but over time, I noticed a film on my Tupperware and glasses, even when I used the recommended rinse aids. I went back to using a phosphate free, eco-friendly premade dishwasher detergent when I finished up using the batch I made.

Dead or 85

So, you haven't heard much from me because I've been busy:

Had to include the picture Az and Lucy worked so hard on. It looks great!

My guild leaders issued a challenge to all Outliers to help the guild achieve the Stay Classy Achievement, which awards an eighth bank slot to our guild bank. I offered to help by rolling an orc rogue, Teyerahshank (unfortunately, TyraShanks was taken). She is currently level 83, and I'm hoping to achieve max level by the end of next week. For the Horde! For Outliers of Draenor!

Gardening and Harry Potter

I guess I've left you guys hanging since I got all spun up about the SOPA and PIPA bills, so it looks like it's time for an update! I'm extremely excited that spring is nearly here. Our whole family has been working to prepare for the upcoming gardening season. My husband is building raised beds and a compost bin for me, and my little one and I just put snow peas in the ground.  We've also made a small bed that will become a butterfly garden, and my little one is doing chores to earn money to buy flowers for it. I'm going to be starting some seeds indoors before long; it's my dream to have a plentiful garden this year. Very soon, I intend to do a picture blog to show you some of the things I've been up to in the craft room.

The other thing I've been up to is reading the Harry Potter series. Years ago when the Harry Potter craze first started, I made a conscious decision not to read them until the hype had died down. After the video release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part Two, I decided that it was okay to finally read them. So I picked them up this January, and I practically devoured them. I now wish that I had read them sooner, because then I could have discussed the books with my friends. My husband has been obliging enough to discuss his opinions with me and debate some questions I had. I have also purchased the box set of HP movies, and am watching those as well (I saw all but the last two in theaters, but it's been so long that I couldn't remember much about them). Now I guess all that's left is to visit Universal Studios and go to their Harry Potter theme park. The only question is - what to read next? Gardening books, most likely. Happy soon-to-be spring, everyone! 

SOPA/PIPA Update

Yesterday, We the People won a small victory. In light of both physical and online protests, as well as thousands of emails and phone calls from concerned citizens, at least 18 senators, 3 bill co-sponsors, and President Obama himself have withdrawn their support of SOPA. We cannot celebrate just yet. This victory was not by any means complete. The bill is not dead - the House of Representatives will revisit the issue next month. PIPA is still on the table; the next Senate vote is scheduled for January 24th.

Google says 4.5 million People Signed Anti-SOPA Petition

U.S Senators Withdraw Support for Anti-Piracy Bills

Were SOPA/PIPA Protests a Success? The Results Are In

Unfortunately with yesterday's victory, we also suffered a loss. Apparently the Supreme Court ruled that the US could take works out of the public domain and put a copyright on them. I wasn't even aware of this ruling, but apparently this is the third case that was meant to challenge US copyright laws as a violation of the 1st Amendment.

Supreme Court Chooses SOPA/PIPA Protest Day To Give A Giant Middle Finger To The Public Domain

We need to continue the vigil. Yesterday, 4.5 million people signed Google's anti-SOPA petition, and 350,000 emails were sent to Congress via Fight for the Future's various sites. It's a good start, but with just over 300 million people in the US, it's far from the best we can do. If you haven't already, sign Google's petition. Visit http://americancensorship.org/ and fill in your info. They'll send an email to your Senate rep. for you. It's just that easy. If you like a more personal touch, look up your representatives and write them a letter or give them a call. If we don't stand up for our rights, we won't have any.

I HATE CENSORSHIP!

Today is the day for SOPA/PIPA protest blackouts. Wikipedia is down, as well as other sites to raise awareness of the dangers of SOPA/PIPA and the dangers of internet censorship. If you'd like to get involved you can sign Google's petition here: https://www.google.com/landing/takeaction/


This site will help you find more ways to join the protest: http://sopastrike.com/


Would you like to boycott SOPA/PIPA friendly companies? If so, here's a list to get you started (it isn't comprehensive): https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xjisu18X6s7lPtAsIQg5Ol3KJjymPT2az1kasQVwGiw/preview?pli=1&sle=true

xkcd.com also has links to information about SOPA/PIPA and what you can do to stop them.


Let's not let Congress limit the freedom of the web!

Gelatin for Beauty

My New Year's resolution to cut down on prepackaged items, while starting with food, is meant to extend into all areas of my life. I'd like to become more self-reliant by being able to make my own food and household items. So when I stumbled on some do-it-yourself pore strips, I was stoked. I have used Biore pore strips in the past, and I absolutely love them. They work wonderfully and, unlike so many products today, actually live up to their claims. Unfortunately, they're SOOO expensive. Now don't get me wrong, I normally do not mind paying good money for a product that works, but times are tight, and nice pores aren't really a necessity in my line of work, so I can't really justify $8-$10 for a box of 14 strips. Considering I need three strips to do all my problem spots, that's a $1.71 every time I use them, and if I use them once a week (which is recommended), that adds up to about $89 a year. Yikes!

Anyway, on to the doing it ourselves! I found the how-to here: http://petitelefant.com/how-to-pore-strips/. All you do is mix a packet of unflavored gelatin with a couple of tablespoons of milk, microwave it for a few seconds, then slather on your face, and let it dry. When it's all dry, peel it off and behold your new, unclogged pores! No, it's not too good to be true, it really does work. However, after trying this per her instructions, I found a few helpful hints that I want to pass on for you:

• You may not need the whole packet of gelatin. I slathered this on nice and thick over my entire face, and I still had some left over. I will probably only use half a pack next time, maybe even less, because I only have a few problem spots and really don't need a whole face mask.
• Give this stuff a couple of seconds to cool off. I know the how-to says not to wait because it sets up fast, and she's right, but if you put it on too quickly, you might just burn the piss out of yourself. Use common sense and be careful.
• Don't spread this on too thick. If you do, it will take ages to dry. I was trying to use up everything because I hate waste, but in doing so I found that it took 30 min. + for this to dry, and even then, some spots were still gummy. Gummy spots are no good because they don't grab onto the blackheads as well. That being said, you also don't want to spread it on too thin, because it won't peel off very well. I figure after a couple of tries, you'll have the desired thickness down to an art.
• You will look like you starred in a porno while you're doing this treatment. You probably shouldn't answer the door while this stuff is on your face. (Or maybe you should, depending on your sense of humor.) Also, if your husband is like mine, a never-ending string of dirty jokes is in your future if he sees you like that. Fair warning.
• For the love of God, whatever you do, do NOT get this on your eyebrows or up your nose. Personal experience speaking here: this stuff could easily double as a bikini wax, so if you peel off a piece that has come in contact with these hairs - well, let's just say that childbirth is less painful.

Now for the math. I said before that it was roughly $89 a year for me to use the Biore strips. A box of 32 packets of gelatin costs me $7 dollars, or 22 cents a packet. Add in the cost of the milk, which where I live is about $4 a gallon, and there are 256 tablespoons of milk in a gallon, so that means the two tablespoons you'd use for this would cost you 4 cents. That makes our grand total per use 26 cents, which adds up to $13.52 a year. Wow.