Category Archives: Random Thoughts

>Pest Prevention and Plot Preparation: Mission Accomplished

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It’s a typical spring weekend. We slept in – me until 7, Husband a little later, Amigo up at 8 to listen to his favorite shows on Public Radio. I had the coffee on and newspaper in, but I was still in my pajamas when Husband came downstairs fully dressed and full of philosophy and energy. He focused that energy where it would do the most good, and moved the car to make way for the roto-tiller.
As he put it, he took the long way around the garage. Knowing we live on a small-to-medium city lot, the “long way” can’t be that long, can it? Wrong: it can. He pulled out and kept going all the way to the Moto-Mart for a box of Krispy Kreme donuts.
I followed the special treat with my usual Saturday: sorted laundry, got dressed, got ready to start the first load (jeans and sweats, by my Green Routine). At that moment, Husband came inside. He’d rototilled the entire garden plot, turning the compost into the soil. Laundry could wait while he showered.

The danger of frost is very real in Wisconsin in May, so the best I can do right now is prepare the garden for the seeds. It was a perfect job for a cool and pleasant Saturday morning.

I re-used old fence boards and deck boards to create walkways and block a few square-foot style raised beds. These walkways keep me from over-compacting the soil, prevent weeds from growing in the unplanted areas, and allow me to harvest without changing into my dirt-friendly garden shoes. I “installed” the bean trellis and put up the old rose supports that will help brace the tomato plants this year. They’re taller than the old wire cages, coated so they’re less likely to damage stalks, and I can gently tie up the tomato plants with rags as they grow. I hope this will work well. It has to work better than the wire cages did last season!

Next, I took a few more deck boards, the 4X4 size, and braced them against the chicken wire that keeps the critters out. I love my bunnies, and I don’t mind seeing the wild ones make my yard their habitat, but I don’t want them eating my produce. I buried the big boards slightly and piled up enough dirt to bury the fencing a few inches underground. It’s not perfect, but it’ll keep most of the neighborhood fauna from finding their way into my lettuce and spinach and parsley.
At that point I took a break. Washed up, more laundry, sipped a Diet Coke to rehydrate a bit, and thought about lunch. Instead of making lunch, though, I went back outside to document my progress.
Getting my hands (and shovel) back in the dirt feels so good, so productive.

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>Pandemic Preparedness without panic

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>I can’t prevent swine flu, or any other illness for that matter.
We have travel plans for the summer, Amigo has summer school/camp plans, and La Petite will be hopping on a plane for Italy in mid-May.
We’re not canceling anything.
We can, in the good Girl Scout way, Be Prepared.
If Amigo becomes ill, we’ll bring him home and isolate him. Swine flu hadn’t reached Italy yet last time I checked, and no cases had been confirmed in my area – yet. La Petite’s trip should be relatively uneventful. Our own trip is still in the planning stages: we might be wise to check cancellation policies on everything from Amtrak to hotels to flights.

In the meantime, I just went over the informational newsletter for Public Health volunteers. Most is consistent with the publicity in the newspapers and online. Stock up, take basic precautions to prevent germ spreading, etc.

Store a two-week supply of food. Okay, consider it done.
Select foods that do not require refrigeration, preparation or cooking. No preparation or cooking? Nothing spoil-prone, I get that point. But no cooking? Are we expecting the power to go out, too?
Plan for your pets as well. Done. I usually buy two bags of rabbit pellets and hay whenever I stock up. Their main food is hay, green veggies next, and pellets last. If we run out of fresh foods (and the neighbor’s dandelions are all eaten by the wild ones), our bunnies can eat pellets. They’ll be fine.
Store a two-week supply of water, 1 gallon of water per person per day, in clean plastic containers. Avoid using containers that will decompose or break, such as milk cartons or glass bottles. This makes sense if there’s a hurricane or ice storm on the way, but a pandemic? Will swine flu prevent our water system from working? If worst comes to worst, I could boil what’s in the rain barrel. Oh, wait, that would require cooking and preparation (see above).

After sifting through the advice and visiting the Red Cross disaster preparedness site, here’s my plan:
Keep the pantry stocked. We keep a fair supply of canned and jarred food (and coffee, of course) along with basic baking goods. I can make everything from a chili to bread to a fruit cobbler with the contents of our pantry.
Water? I won’t store any extra. We keep plenty around the house in one form or another.
Keep bunny litter and food handy.
Stock up on firewood in case of….in case…oh, what the heck, just stock up on firewood.
Plant a garden! Fresh food! Little or no preparation! Bunny food, too! Now there’s motivation to start planting!

Can anyone answer my questions above? Would basic utilities be at risk in a pandemic? In 1918, the last killer pandemic flu, did the water supply get interrupted? Electricity? Gas? What do you think, knowledgeable readers?

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>Will swine flu fizzle or present a pandemic?

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>Timing is everything, and “shoulds” are bogus, even when a pandemic is threatening.

I should make sure our medicine cabinet is stocked.
Reality: I usually buy over-the-counter meds when they’re on sale, especially vitamins & supplements. They run 2 for 1 specials so often I never want to pay full price.
End result: We have lots of some meds, we’re almost out of others.

I should make sure our cupboard is stocked.
Reality: Fear of Mother Hubbard Syndrome is alive and well, and we have plenty of canned and frozen foods – including the beef stock I made last night after grilling steaks. That will be one. good. soup.
End result: We’ll be able to last a few weeks if we’re quarantined. A month? That might be tougher.

I should go over my files and records from Public Health Training.
Reality: I barely have the time and energy to get my school papers corrected and recorded.
End result: I’ll pull the files when the first case gets reported in my state or in town.

Heck with all this! I should be gardening!
Reality: Wisconsin weather is fickle, and there’s still the potential for frost later this week.
End result: Planting will wait until the end of May.

I should write a knowledgable post about swine flu.
Reality: Swine flu posts abound, as do up-to-date articles. Search any reputable news site for swine flu and you’ll find updates.
End result: I think I’ll go check the medicine cabinet and see if I need to make a stop at Walgreens!

In between writing the rough draft and hitting publish, I received the latest newsletter for public health volunteers in my fair city. The advice is routine, and I hope the situation remains so. ——->Prevent germ transmission in standard ways, stay home if you’re sick, etc.
–>Store a two week supply of food and water and pet supplies, stock up on nonprescription medicines, and keep prescriptions current.
–>Keep a good supply of basic health supplies such as thermometers, gloves, soap and hand sanitizers, and cleaner/ sanitizers such as bleach.
–>Plan ahead: know how family members will be cared for if they’re sick.

Hmm…with aging parents and a kiddo in college, the last item on the list isn’t as easy as it sounds. Maybe I “should” make a few phone calls.

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>Going green: am I ahead of the game?

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I signed up for our wellness coordinator’s Go Green program. I’ll get a cool t-shirt when it ends, and I get to examine my lifestyle and incorporate green habits into my daily routine.

Or not.

I read the list of activities and realized I’m way, way ahead of the people who wrote this list. This is a good program for beginners, but for my family? It’s so easy it’s almost laughable. Encouraging, perhaps, knowing that my efforts are significant. Sad, though, that so many people don’t already participate in easy, easy ways to lessen their impacts on the Earth.

In the Home category:
Insulate your attic. Done, along with the new roof five years ago.
Install a programmable thermostat. Immediately when we bought the house 13 years ago
Get an energy audit. Shortly after we moved in; we’ve gradually taken steps to improve the energy efficiency in our 1890 Victorian. Currently on the list? Replacing old windows.
Create a compost pile. Hahahahaha! I’ve had one for ten years and plan to start a second.
Install a low-flow toilet. Turned off the old water guzzler in the basement, the other two in the house have been replaced with low-flow.
Insulate your water heater. Again, we did this years ago.

As single items, these make a lot of sense. The way I use them in combination, they work even better.

I think I’ll clean the rabbit’s litter box, dump the soiled and biodegradable litter in the compost bin, and rinse the litter box with rain-barrel water.
Next I’ll use a rag formerly known as Husband’s t-shirt to clean the oven window with my 7th Generation multi-surface cleaner. Then I’ll be able to watch what’s baking without opening the oven and releasing heat, forcing the temp down and starting a mid-cycle reheating.
I made a serious and successful effort to reuse packing materials as gift wrap last Christmas. Packing material is also great for mailing books with my Paperbackswap account.

Some goals have to be modified. Using a clothesline is a great energy saver. In my climate and due to my family’s environmental allergies (hay fever, etc.), a clothesline isn’t realistic. Instead, I choose to wash by color and fabric type, then dry by weight and wetness. The heaviest and wettest clothing (jeans, sweats) get washed first and dried last. They hang on a drying rack in between so they’re merely damp when go in the dryer. I just started using anti-static dryer balls to save money on fabric softener and use fewer chemicals. The balls work well on regular laundry and not so well on delicates, so I’ll continue to use Downy on sweaters. The change is still worthwhile. The fact that the box from the dryer balls is the perfect size for wrapping gifts (in re-used packing material of course), is a bonus.

It’s a good feeling, this knowledge that I’m doing right by the planet. Going Green is more than just a 30 day activity. It’s a way of life.

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>Will she clean for her mother’s visit?

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>I’m staying in my daughter’s apartment Friday night. La Petite, age 22, is in college and lives in a place suitable for, well, college kids. Once in a while, she and her roommate clean the place. Sometimes.

The kitchen usually isn’t too bad. The girls like to eat, they cook decent food (the boys down the hall drool with envy), and they wash their dishes. They’ve even been known to wash dishes by hand because the dishwasher and the town’s hard water don’t clean thoroughly. Well, maybe not during midterms or final exams.

The bedrooms are okay for the most part. If the laundry is growing its own compost, I won’t see it. She hides it in the closet, and for that I’m grateful, even though I think she really hides the hamper to keep the pet rabbit from chewing holes in the sweaters.

But the bathroom — the bathroom. It’s an adventure. The landlord replaces parts with no regard for color matching. So even clean, this bathroom is an experience. Mint green toilet with a white seat, a sort of goldenrod for the tub and shower, and a 60s style shade (does it have a name?) for the floor – and remember, that’s when it’s clean.

I asked her if I should bring my own sheets, and she said she has extras. I trust that means clean.

I’m not sure anyone dusts the light fixtures; hopefully they don’t need it. Maybe now that the ducks and geese have flown north for springtime someone can spare a feather duster…

The rest? I’ll take my chances. She’s a college senior with a full course load and more; following Fly Lady’s cleaning tips isn’t on her agenda. Frankly, it’s not on mine, either. Spotless it isn’t, but whose home is? It’ll be a little more comfortable than being a guest in her old dorm room!

Parent Bloggers Network wants to know how people clean. Honestly, I’d rather garden. But gardening tracks in the dirt, so I can’t help but clean a floor and a sink once in a while. I don’t have any Pledge Multi-Surface Cleaner yet: am I missing the boat? Will it replace the crowded shelf I call the Cleanser Bottle Graveyard? Is it environmentally sensitive? Is this disclaimer a little too long and a little too silly? I blame the wine we had with dinner. At least I’m looking forward to a fun weekend.

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>Does Sears know it’s Earth Week?

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Green, frugal, or both, I decided to use a mall gift card on Sunday. The card was a student gift that was still burning a hole in my purse. The mall’s parent company had been in the headlines because they just declared bankruptcy, so I decided I’d better use the card ASAP, PDQ, before it lost its value.
I started at Sears. They had pruning clippers on sale. Craftsman (warranty), on sale (frugal), sharpen-able (is that a word?): I bought one. While the clerk was running my gift card through the register, I pulled out my chico bag and said, “I don’t need a bag. I have my own.” The clerk replied, “Oh, you can’t use that here.”
WHAT??!!? I can’t use my own shopping bag? You’re forcing me to take your worthless piece of plastic? He insisted, saying it was because I’d be stopped by security if I carried merchandise in any bag but one clearly labeled Sears. I fumed and grumbled my way through the rest of the store, avoiding the clearance racks and other deals for fear of collecting any more wasteful packaging.

At my next stop, Target was actually giving away reusable cloth shopping bags to the first several hundred customers. I sighed with relief and headed to Bath & Body Works for foam soap. They let me use the Target bag and commented on how much they liked it. My last stop, Williams-Sonoma, didn’t have the cloth napkins at a price I liked, but they had some sale merchandise from Easter (okay, chocolate) that cost just enough to use up the gift card. They, too, were happy to allow me to use my own shopping bag.

Sears? I’ve heard rumors that they’re not weathering the economic downturn very well. The small plastic bag they forced on me didn’t cost the store much, but if they lose many eco-conscious shoppers like me, that’ll hurt.

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>R & R; I think I’m getting this technique down.

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>I’m getting better at this relaxation concept. Today was much more low-key than yesterday.

Housework: not much. Made cinnamon rolls for breakfast to go with the coffee, made supper (with Husband’s help) – home made pizza. Put away the remainder of the clean clothes.

Schoolwork: none. None!!

Relaxation: afternoon nap. Ooh, that felt good.

Garden: It was mighty cold outside and very windy, so I didn’t spend much time on it. I just dug out another wheelbarrow load of compost and dumped it into the garden, and then I loosened what was left in the compost bin with a pitchfork. The compost is really compacted tightly; tough to get out and spread.

Reading material: Started Carry Me Home by Sandra Kring. She’s one of the authors coming to town for our Book Festival later this month. It’s a good book so far: strong story made unique by the point of view from which it’s told.

More reading material: Amigo has a braille copy of Tales of Beedle the Bard, so I sat with him (and my print copy) and we read together for an hour. I hope he doesn’t outgrow this simple pleasure anytime soon.

Simple fun: watched Country Music Awards with Amigo, chatted online with La Petite, sipped a beer with Husband.

Feels like a break, at long last.

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>Weekend Update, Spring Break R & R, Daisy style

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>Saturday summary:
Relaxation: slept in until almost 7. If you’re thinking “Only 7?” I need to remind you that I get up at 5:30 AM on school days. This means an extra hour and a half of rest.

Schoolwork: checked school email. Nothing urgent, deleted a bit of junk. Now I can let that rest for the remainder of break.

Housework:

  • Laundry. Lots of it. Typical Saturday in that way.
  • Cleaned bunny’s litter box and cage (see garden, below).

Garden:

  • Dumped compostable litter (very dirty) into garden. Spread it out on top of soiled paper, unrecyclable. By the time I plant in late May, this “garbage” will either decompose or be tilled into the soil.
  • Arranged overflow pipe from rain barrel so that any additional water goes directly into the garden plot. Used water from the rain barrel to rinse bunny’s litter box.
    Despite accomplishing very little in the garden itself, I am feeling very green!

Reading material: finished (and enjoyed) The Eyre Affair. Now I’ll start a few of the books I picked up at the local independent bookstore yesterday. One side-benefit to using Paperbackswap.com: I know I spend less on books than I used to spend, and therefore I can buy a few new ones now and then. I’ll keep those that warrant a reread, and I’ll post the rest on PBS. With those credits, I’ll get more books for me and audio books for Amigo. All that and stimulating the local economy, too — must sit down and take a breath.

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>R&R, spring break, Daisy style

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>It’s all about balance. Always. My balance for the just-begun spring break is part plan, part recipe, part goal/ to-do list.

Relaxation is top of the plan. Stressful job, stressful economy, potential stress at every turn of the newspaper page or channel change: letting go is important. Very, very important.
Keeping up with schoolwork is part of the break. Amigo has homework to do, too. Our plans include taking the long weekend (Friday, Saturday, Sunday) off from schoolwork, and then working on a little each day. When he’s doing homework, I’ll work on schoolwork.
Preparing the garden is part of my plan, too. It’s too cold to plant, and will be for some time, but I can start getting the soil ready. This kind of work could be tedious, but it’s not. It feels good to get the garden ready to grow again. There’s a definite connection between the garden growth and my own feelings of contentment and competence and calm.
Spring cleaning usually happens in June in my house, but I’ll get a few things done. Mainly, I plan to bake and keep the kitchen in good shape! Amigo and I often make a laundromat trip with all the blankets and comforters in the house. It’s an easy chore, but one that can’t be done at home because the blankets are too big to fit in my regular washer.

Progress so far: Spring Break R & R update, Friday
Relaxation — slept past 8:00 AM, stayed in pajamas until 11
Schoolwork — nothing formal yet, but laundered the old socks I use as white board erasers
Gardening — removed stepping stones and trellises and tomato cages from garden, emptied two pots of dead herbs & potting soil over the fence, took “before” pictures of garden to use for contrast when I finally reach the “after” stage
Spring Cleaning — scrubbed kitchen (easier than it sounds; the cleaning service was here a few days ago. I just maintain what they’ve already done.) Mailing another Paperbackswap package could fit in here, too.
Relaxation, part 2 — had a Funday Friday lunch with Amigo and Husband at a local downtown diner. I had their Greek skillet with hash browns; delicious. After lunch we walked down the street to a bookstore (an independent, no big chains) and bought a few books related to the city’s upcoming book festival. The pleasure reading from these will last long beyond the week-long break.

This break’s off to a good start, I’d say. Now I think I’ll take another relaxation break with my laptop, check Twitter and Plurk, read some of my favorite bloggers as well.

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>Musings with the remote control in the morning

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>On watching morning television, a pastime not usually on my list:
Local news is full of layoffs. I feel lucky to have a secure job — for the moment. Husband has to cover these layoffs in his TV news job. Tough to handle. I think I’ll change the channel.
Morning television can be ridiculous sometimes. The hosts just randomly called someone, asked them to name the presidents on Mt. Rushmore. They could only get two. My fourth graders can answer that! I think I’ll change the channel.
Spring cleaning advice! Vinegar water solution and crumpled newspaper to clean a mirror or a window. That’s old news, people. The cleaning staff at my school use a vinegar-water mix to clean chalkboards. I associate the scent of vinegar with clean — or with Husband’s German potato salad. Change channels again.
International news is talking about head injuries and kids. Sad, but useful information. I’m on break; I want something less stressful. Change channels!
Weather!! “Very nice weekend.” Now we’re talking! It’ll still be cold here. I hope it warms up enough that I can dig in my garden. Ooh, these commercials are really bad. At least I can laugh at them.
Click. Click. Click. Click. All these channels – and nothing on! More coffee, maybe I’ll turn it off and browse the blogs.
That’s the answer. I’m on break. No guilt, just relaxation. Browsing the blogosphere, here I come!

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