Ghetto Gardening

Back at the beginning of March, I started a bunch of seeds indoors, based on what I perceived as a warning trend in the weather. 

Here in the real world though, the weather(two days in a row last week it was less than 30 degrees overnight) and my motivation have betrayed me.  While the weather is rapidly warming up(it's not supposed to be less than 42 this whole week) my garden plot is not yet ready to receive.

No one told my beans this though, and two or three of my bean plants are ready to start climbing. 

The solution is not satisfactory, but after 24 hours, the beans seem happy. 

Yes...that is a curtain rod in the one on the right.  On the left, it's half a curtain rod shoved on a wood dowel, with strings running down into the dirt to keep it steady.

They pots should be plenty big enough.  I chose two different sizes to maybe see if the smaller one would get root bound by the end of the season...research about pot size for the future. 

Now I just need to look for a good fertilizer.  I don't worry about the pots being big enough, but I know plants in containers can exhaust their nutrients quickly.  

Terrifying, and more terrifying.

While doing a little internet cruising today, I found two stories that are different, yet each one terrifying in it's own way.

10-year-old girl gives birth in Colombia

Ex-Girlfriend Busted for Brutal Scrotum Attack

Of the two, I would say from a 'scenario that terrifies me' viewpoint, the one about the 10-year old giving birth is worse.  My older daughter turns 10 in June(terrifying in itself).  I can't picture her pregnant.  I mean...I can't picture her engaging in the acts that would lead to pregnancy.  As far as I am aware, my daughter has never even held hands with a boy. 

Home-schooling for the win, yet again.

I realize, that according to this story, the girl belongs to a native tribe in Columbia.  My wife assures me that menstruation can start at age 10(and that I need to be getting ready for it in my daughter(she's turning 10 in June!), and I am aware that in many tribes, the onset of menstruation is what matters when it comes time to talk about 'coming of age' ceremonies. 

I also don't care.  One day my daughter is going to be a beautiful woman...as she is now, NO ONE should be getting sexually excited by, or involved with, her. 

Sigh.

Now...the whole scrotum thing is quite horrible, but, not as bad as the pregnancy just because it is an INDIVIDUAL problem, as opposed to the pain and agony I would be going through while watching my daughter deal with her problems associated with pregnancy. 

Besides...to make a woman mad enough that she tries(and mostly succeeds) to tear your scrotum off with her bare hands, you must have done something to deserve it. 

Learning every day...

Occasionally, as you go through life, you are going to see things that make you go Hmmm.  Sometimes it's neat, sometimes it's fascinating, and sometimes it's something that maybe you should have already known. 

Today, I had one of the 'how did I not know that' moments...and it's so dumb I hope I don't make your brain hurt reading it.

I'm trying to learn to handle a vegetable garden...but when it comes to 'flowering' gardens, I'm fairly ignorant.  The place we owned in Belfair had a yard full of Rhododendron bushes, and we used to put in a few flat's of annuals...but we never really messed with bulbs.  Now since moving in here, we have been enjoying the fruits of other folks labor, with a succession of crocuses, daffodil's and now tulip's coming in. 

Folks...as someone who has only dealt with tulips that I have bought for my wife at the grocery store....I didn't know that tulips OPEN during the day, and close up again at night!  The ones I've had in a vase didn't do that...

Man do I feel like a city slicker...they sure are pretty though. 

Cooking is my excuse...

Getting ready for a sizable Easter Dinner, I didn't seem to have time to make it to church this morning. 

The reason I go to church at all is for my wife and kids....a little unity and consistency by the parents never hurts.  I wasn't raised religous, and haven't found 'faith' on my own.  That doesn't mean I don't appreciate the message The Church puts out...I mean...how can you not approve of a message that says 'Do good things, and live your life properly'?  So...I go, and more often than not, I find myself agreeing with the point of the sermon.  The pastor and I arrive at the same destination...I just take the scenic route.  I mean, two years in a row I have volunteered to help with Sharefest...half of the 'religous' types going to church don't do that...

My two least favorite days to actually go to church are Christmas and Easter.  The crowding is part of it...I've got a craw in my throat for hypocrites, and yeah, I consider Easter/Christmas Christians to be at least minor hypocrites.  I agree with my wife...you can be religious without going to church, and it SHOULD just be about your relationship with the God of your choice...but...hey, going more than twice a year isn't tough.

My big issue with those two days is that on those days, the story of Jesus takes priority over the Live a Good Life message...which probably makes perfect sense to The Faithful.  I however have just enough Jewish background that those two days make ME feel like a Hypocrite.  Because I don't Believe...I tend to mumble certain things are Church while rubbing blue mud in my belly button. 

So...since I don't want my negative vibe cramping anyone elses style...I tend just to stay away on those days.

Next year though, I need an easier to follow up on excuse than dinner for 13 folks....

Baker? Yes. Decorator? Ummm...well, ya' see...

I have my supplemental pork marinating for tomorrow, and my gingersnaps are all ground up for my ham coating.  I also have my carrot cake baked, frosted and in the fridge.

It's the first time I have tried following Alton's carrot cake recipe.  The worst part is having to shred the carrots.  My wife bought a big ol' bag of them, and some of them were quite thin and flimsy...not ideal for shredding. 

The cake smelled great in the oven and while it was cooling...and the cream cheese frosting I got on my hands tasted outstanding...I'm just not sure about the asthetic appeal...

I'd like to say my 6-year old helped me with the decorating, but nope...I deserve all the credit. 

Hey...I know they are carrots.  YOU know they are carrots...the question is would a random person in August know they are carrots?

Checking it twice...

Heading to the store here in a bit so I can begin my two day cooking adventure.  Somewhere along the way, I ended up with 13 folks here for Easter Dinner tomorrow.  The upside is that there isn't one of these folks that will have me rumbling, grumbling or questioning why THEY are here.  Friends one and all, which makes this easier.

The only real negative is that I only bought a 10-pound bone in ham, and I am not sure I am going to get 13 servings of ham out of it(and if I do, the there will be NOTHING left to put in bean soup!!!!!!).  To protect against a lack of protein, I also picked up a package of pork tenderloin.  I follow Alton Brown's City Ham recipe, and so the final cooking stage at 350 degrees should let me get the tenderloin and ham done at the same time. My results from the City Ham recipe have never been less than staggering. 

On the side, we are going to have mashed potatoes, and broiled lemon-pepper asparagus.  The wife is throwing together a salad. 

None of this is tough, so far.  What's going to make it tough is the coordination required to get Brigid's Rosemary and Sea Salt Rolls to the table warm.  Making the dough isn't going to be too tough(although I think I will need two batches).  Baking them so they are still warm and fresh is... I think I will have a window while I am peeling the fat off the ham to cook the rolls.  My only other option is letting the ham rest, and hope it stays warm while the rolls are cooking at the very end.  Or cooking the rolls, and then tossing them back in to warm up again...these rolls are just SOOOOOOO good with warm, dripping butter.

Finally, I will start tonight with making a carrot cake.  One of my friends wives said she is bringing desert...but I hate to trust fate.  I will make Alton Brown's Carrot Cake.  Like most of his recipes, it seems a little more complex than it needs to be...but in the end, it always proves worth it. 

Yup...in the end, Alton and Brigid are my muses...a guy can do worse. 

Grrrr....

I'm 100% fine with punishing people who are guilty of firearms offences to the maximum extant of the law.  Of course, I am also fine with punishing ANY legal violation to the maximum extant of the law.  Forgiving person I am not.

Sometimes though, localities get a little carried away.  Whether it's because they want to 'make an example' or are just clinging to ignorance, who knows...but there are times I want to shake my head.

Case in point: Back in October, according to the official story, a guy dropped a 9mm Glock in an apartment.  The gun 'went off' and fired a bullet into the apartment below, where spent bullet pieces/debris hit a girl without causing any injury.  The gun was originally collected and kept by the police during the shooting investigation....but now the City Attorney doesn't want to give the gun back to it's owner, even though he wasn't home when his brother dropped the gun! 

Things aren't over yet...there is supposed to be a hearing on Wednesday.  It's just an extra pain and expense being forced upon this guy...