Sunday, May 07, 2017

Sunday Garden


18 comments:

  1. Hallo all!

    I felt you deserved something beautiful after yesterday's photo! That fungus would be like a mushroom, right? I mean, you should be able to cut through it with a large garden spade/shovel, true? Not this thing! It must have been petrified fungus! And that white thing...you'd think styrofoam would break apart with a little encouragement, yes? Not this thing! I finally managed to scrap the whole thing off in one big chunk and double bag it! We had not seen it the day before as we tromped through that spot. Weird!

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    1. Might it have been a tree fungus of some sort? Those are nearly as firm as wood. In any event, it should have been a fruiting body; the mycelium won't be disturbed by loss of same.

      Alan

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    2. A tree fungus is an intriguing thought. It wasn't anywhere near a tree, but you never know what Nature might try.

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  2. On Saturday, Eldest came over. He is now an expert at cutting trees. He has taken advanced classes and done all sorts of cutting on his own 40 acres. Very cool! He arrived wearing a bright orange tee shirt that read STAFF on back in big white letters. :-D We stood back and marveled that we have STAFF! Ha!

    First he took down a Hemlock that has been blocking light from our Serviceberry, and reaching into our driveway. Then he took down our old outdoor Christmas tree, as it has been dying in the middle, had grown to have three tops and was now too tall for us to decorate anyway. It soon will be replaced with a 6ft Balsam!

    Last he took down three Gray Birch trunks that have been bent over for two years. Sigh. It was time. Fortunately there are three more growing fine, in that clump! :-)

    I also got a Forsythia planted!

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    1. Hmmm....should I get a "STAFF" shirt for my retirement? That sounds like a good joke for a little while. Can't say as I like T-shirts as outerwear, though...

      Alan

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    2. I haven't found STAFF on the back of a button down shirt, though I did see a tee that read:
      "STAFF: Mess with us and we'll spell your name wrong. " LOL!

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  3. Then we were off to the Sailing School's annual Hardware (Awards) Day, when trophies from last year are given out. Mah*Sweetie and Root*Center*Son both got trophies, as usual. It was good to see everyone and the day turned out FINE with blue sky and 70's despite some wind.

    Friday night there was so much wind across central and southern Vermont that some folks may not have power until Sunday. Wild!

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  4. Barrow, Alaska (300mi N of the Arctic Circle) has had 16 consecutive months of above normal temps...so far.
    https://www.wunderground.com/cat6/barrow-alaska-16-months-above-normal-and-counting

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    1. PhD*Son is headed to Alaska for six weeks of research, starting in just a few weeks. They will be tagging birds, carrying rifles (to fend off Polar Bears) and hoping the mosquitoes aren't the worst ever.

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    2. Polar bears sounds like the North Slope, where in summertime mosquitoes were said fifty years ago to be more abundant during the season, pound for pound, than all other forms of animal life combined. And before the mosquitoes (at least in parts of Alaska, come the black flies, which locals say are worse; they bite. So no loafers, only boots. Insect repellant on the lower legs and ankles before putting on heavy socks, tightly wrapping pants legs around ankles before inserting them into boots and lacing tightly. Roll up (long) sleeves, apply insect spray to arms, roll down sleeves and button cuffs tightly. Spray insect repellant into all down inside shirt collar (unbuttoned for the occasion, before putting on neckerchief and securing it beneath well-buttoned collar. Then insect repellant worked into hair, onto neck, face and hands before donning hat with mosquito net properly fastened. Sleeping attire and precautions the same except for lack of boots. Sleeping bag zipped up so that only mosquito-net covered face is exposed. Mosquitos will use said net over face as a roost. That was for a normal year in central Alaska, where the mosquitoes were said to be less numerous than the North Slope. I remain dubious about mosquitoes carrying off adult humans to consume them in more pleasant surroundings.

      Alan

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    3. Well, the mosquitoes are pretty vicious. And, yes, son has been on the North Slope. He has been up there for four months at once, and what I recall is that they tried to use more Deet on their clothing than on their skin. Otherwise the Deet could harm you as much as the bites. Of course, these days mosquitoes bring more than itchiness.

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  5. Thinking of the Cuban Revolution, if memory serves me well only eight men from the Granma, with six civilian rifles, escaped the Army dragnet and into the mountains. In time they overcame an army (with tanks, one might note) and an air force with fighters, level- and dive-bombers.

    --Alan

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  6. There ought to be a market for consultants who know how to protect the communications and records of a political campaign from Internet snoopers. Older, non-Internet technology ought to be be backbone of the system, with lots of false leads and honeypots to boot.

    Alan

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  7. 🇫🇷 The world has turned course. Viva la France! 🇫🇷
    We sigh in relief with you! 🇫🇷 Indeed, tonight we are all French.

    http://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-election-idUSKBN183003

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    1. ^ "The centrist's emphatic victory, which also smashed the dominance of France’s mainstream parties, will bring huge relief to European allies who had feared another populist upheaval to follow Britain's vote to quit the EU and Donald Trump's election as U.S. president."

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  8. Yikes! That's HIGHLY unsettling!!

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  9. Don Fodor wrote:
    Here in BC, Canada single payer universal healthcare works well. We each pay $75. per month. All the best in you struggle Sen. Sanders and the American people. Pass this onto your friends.

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