A few shots from my recent trip to Colorado...
Nature
September 30, 2009
August 07, 2009
The Life of a Tomato
Most of you know that 2009 marks my first official year as a grower o' tomatoes. And sadly, it may be my last. As the season passed, I accepted that I just didn't love the maters enough to actually grow them myself. I'd rather pay $2 for one perfect succulent, striated, heirloom at Whole Foods than deal with daily waterings, cutworms, and ladybugs. But it was an adventure to watch them blossom. I snapped a few shots along the way so I would always remember the life of my Ruskin tomatoes. These shots are chronological, and of the same tomato cluster. The stems sag with weight of gravity as they grow, so the photos toward the end look a little different. This experience definitely gave me a new appreciation for farmers, distributors, grocers, and produce stands. Growing good veggies is hard work. Big props to the agriculture community!
A tender budding flower...
The flower dies...
A baby tomato is born...
It grows into adolescence...
And then into a mature red fruit...
July 01, 2009
My First Tomato
Voila! My first home grown tomato. Technically, this is my third tomato. The first two were devoured by a ravenous, vile, larvae which I've determined is a cutworm. I was so proud of my first two babies. They were red and plump. Lookin fine and perfect for picking. But my supreme farmer instincts encouraged me to leave them on the vine just a few days more. I was greedy for those luscious, 100% vine-ripe tomatoes. No kitchen counter ripening in this household. No sirree, Bob. And that's when they were attacked. I would have taken a picture, but I was so traumatized by the sight of this cutworm creature that I damn near had a breakdown.
Shortly after my first borns were destroyed, I discovered a tweener tomato evolving from green to red. Hooray, I thought. Finally. After all these weeks of nurturing, I was close to enjoying my very own tomato. I watched it quite carefully, and picked it just a few days after it made the crimson turn.
I want to be proud of this pitiful piece of fruit...or vegetable..or whatever. But it has this jagged streak down the side, where it separated from itself. I'm not sure it's safe to eat? Guess this is where Google comes in handy again. *sigh*
The good news is that I have lots more mini tomatos sprouting up. Hopefully I haven't poisoned them with the large amount of pesticide I've sprayed since the cutworm episode. So much for organic produce. Feel free to share any tomato advice you have. I clearly need it.
June 19, 2009
Beach Bums: Part II
While we loved chillaxin near the ocean, we also did a bit of floating in the pool. The pool was grody, but it gave Hunter & Meagan a chance to swim around a little better. And we actually met a real nice lady there, Miss Vicki. She was very engaging so the girls latched on to her, literally. They told her their middle names, last names, birthdays, cousin's name, hometown, teacher's names, favorite movies, etc.
Meagan got real comfortable with our new friend. So comfortable that she asked Miss Vicki....Have you ever seen The Farting Preacher? It was hilarious, especially in her adorable, innocent, four-year-old voice. Now I'm the first one to laugh uncontrollably and even snort-laugh at TFP, but it's a little awkward when the youngins mention it to strangers. Janet and I quickly explained what it was and brushed it off, but I was dying with laughter on the inside. I'm sure Miss Vicki looked it up on YouTube when she got home. Meagan's our friendly little diva....
I had big dreams of building a giant sand castle on this trip. But once I plopped down on the beach, I just didn't feel like thinking and digging and being creative. Luckily, our fellow beach buddies did feel like it. Check out their masterpieces...
I was pretty careless with my sunscreen application on Monday, so my shoulders and chest felt like fried chicken by Tuesday morning. Therefore I spent most of that day wearing a t-shirt, sitting under the umbrella, guarding our beach toys, snapping shots of my feet, and shooing the birds away. Not as exciting observing the crew, but I'll take a bad day at the beach over a good day at the office..any time.
After a few hours of umbrella hibernation, I came out of hiding and helped Avery gather more shells for her collection. We found quite a few treasures. On our last night of the trip, we went to see the movie, UP. Might seem like a weird thing to do at the beach, but the kids wanted to go <me too> ..and it was nice to sit in a clean, stench-free theater, a welcome departure from watching a 13-inch TV at the Bates. I'll say this about going to the beach with little kids. It's in no way relaxing, but it sure is fun. The wee ones had their typical meltdowns, and I think that triggered a few meltdowns in me. Guess I'm just not used to the additional yelping, jumping, crying, and whining that comes with children. I told my sister...I can't believe you don't hit the bottle every night? Throughout the trip, Janet and I were reminded of Summer Rental, the 80s classic beach movie starring John Candy. Our adventure mirrored many of the scenes in this hysterical film. The trip was lots of work, but I laughed a ton, and now I have my own irreplaceable 'Summer Rental' memories.
June 18, 2009
Beach Bums: Part I
I survived my first beach trip with three small children (and their mother/aka my sister). Our trip was full of non-stop action, sandy toes, salty mouths, seafood, and sunburn. With every millimeter of the minivan occupied, we ventured out for a three-day stay at Madeira Beach, on Florida's Gulf Coast. The drive is about two hours, but the kids were troopers and kept us in stitches with their excitement and amusing questions. I think Meagan's inquiries won first prize: Mama, did you pack my clothes? ...Mama, have I been to the beach before? (x4) ...Mama, are you gonna throw me out to the sharks in the ocean?
Our excitement bubble burst rather quickly when we rolled up to the Surf's Inn. From the outside, we thought..it's not so bad. Just a little old. One of those good old fashioned Florida beach motels. Wrong observation. How can I put this nicely? Hmmm..I can't. The place was a dirt hole. The 'large' studio was crammed with over-sized, uncomfortable, shabby furniture. The air from the A/C unit smelled like vinegar, which only enhanced the stale, eternal smoke smell permeating from the walls. The floors were so filthy that our feet turned black within minutes. The bathtub was full of mold. The sink had old crusty toothpaste in it. The bathroom door lock was loose, so we accidentally locked ourselves out. And as dumb luck would have it, Mr. Maintenance punched out 10 minutes prior to the incident, so we jimmied the lock with a bobby pin.
The pool was also very interesting. Seemed like most of our neighbors enjoyed staring at the pool for hours at a time while chain smoking. I couldn't blame them for not wanting to wallow in hot, salty, moldy water. I could go on with more gory details, but I shan't. The only saving grace of this dank dive was its close proximity to the ocean. Score 1 for the Surf's Inn.
After the shock of the room wore off, we got down to business....the BEACH. The waves were calling our names and we answered. There were only a few hours left in the day, so we wasted no more time complaining about the hotel. Meagan and Hunter were a little apprehensive about the waves, so they spent more time on the shore, digging holes. But Avery jumped right into the ocean like a little fish.
The next day, we hit the beach bright and early, complete with four chairs, two umbrellas, a giant beach mat, a plethora of toys, and plenty of snacks. After an hour of jumping and riding waves with Avery, she said...Aunt Lisa, what happens if you need to poop? I've never run that fast through sand before. Whew. Score 2 for the Surf's Inn.
We worked up an appetite after our first full day in the sun, so in the evening, we cleaned up and cruised on over to John's Pass for shopping and seafood. I couldn't resist purchasing the classic beach souvenir: Salt Water Taffy, made fresh in Clearwater. Avery & Meagan went for another beach classic: the sea shell necklace. Avery just couldn't get enough of that shark tooth. I started to think it might have magic powers.
With souvenirs in tow, we moved on to Sculley's for dinner. Their Rum Runner {on the rocks} was killer. It paired very nicely with our lump crab stuffed mushrooms, crab cakes, and blackened Grouper. After dinner, we enjoyed the birds and fish around the boardwalk. Lots of pelicans everywhere.
Next on the agenda: Sunset. You simply can't visit the West coast without watching at least one sunset. And watching it go down over the ocean is even more breathtaking. The kids loved it too. Our sunset walk was one of the few times they seemed completely calm.
Stay tuned for Part II of our beach adventure.........
June 06, 2009
Build a Better Sand Castle
Next week, I'm going on a mini beach vacation with my youngest sister and her cheerun. I don't remember ever going to the beach with wee ones, so I'm pumped about having partners for sand castle making. I'm such a craft nerd that I Googled "how to build a better sand castle" and actually found some really helpful info. Check this out below...
Sand Castle Tools:
- Buckets to carry water and sand
- Plastic straw to blow away loose sand
- Water-filled spray bottle to keep sand moist
- Small soft-bristle paint brush to erase knife marks and brush away loose sand
- Shovels and trowels to help sculpt (For bigger castles, don't use plastic beach shovels)
- Plastic knives, butter knives, and putty knives to carve and shape your castle
Sand Castle Tips:
- It is difficult to impossible to build a castle from the bottom up. While molds are great for simple structures, or to stand alone, the sand you turned over out of the green bucket just isn't packed tightly enough to support the weight of another layer on top of it.
- Ninety percent of the building process is actually sculpting the structure down from a larger pile.
- Start by making a pile about a 12 to 18 inches high. How long and wide it is will depend on what you want the final structure to look like.
- Pack the pile down fairly hard, and smooth off the top so it is flat. If you want to use a mold to make the top of a tower, place it near one of the ends of the flat "base."
- Now use the edge of a shovel - or a ruler or playing card - to "carve" down the rest of the side of the tower, and to form the walls of your castle. By moving down the pile in staircase fashion, you can create multiple levels, position additional tower molds, and exercise your creativity.
- Build towers by forming and stacking sand patties about the size and shape of thick pancakes. Place larger patties on the bottom, and gently shake the patties from side to side as you pile them so that the sand settles. Seal your towers by gently pouring water over them.
- One benefit of working from the top down, is that you can decide to stop at almost any point, and what you have already done will appear as a complete structure, deliberately built atop the base formed by the remainder of the pile.
- Dig a moat around the castle to protect it from invaders, such as breaking waves and dogs.
These tips and tricks were unearthed from various online sources. You wanna know the best tip I found? Here it goes --- "Sand castles are very much like life. The joy comes from the process of living and building, and not in the act of completion."
Note to self: Must remember quote when compelled to yell at young sand castle helpers.
Happy Building!
May 13, 2009
Good Timber
"Good timber does not grow with ease. The stronger the wind, the stronger the trees." -J. Willard Marriott, founder of Marriott Hotels
I was reminded of something today. As I sat at my desk watching and waiting for the impending thunderstorm, I noticed how furiously the trees were swaying and flailing about. Then I thought, wow...it's amazing how strong some of these trees are. The wind whooshes in and some of them are practically horizontal, but then they just pop right back into place.
And then that reminded me of that Biosphere 2 project from the early 90s. Do you remember that? These scientists built a self-contained bio-dome thingie to observe nature and test theories, etc. Well a funny thing happened to the trees they planted. The trees grew fast, but they kept falling over! After the scientists observed and investigated, they realized that the lack of wind created trees with softer wood than they would normally grow out in the wild. They thought of every detail in the Biosphere except for one important factor --- the WIND. Pretty interesting, huh?
So then I got to thinking that people are kinda like trees. If we just floated through life without any trials or tough times (or wind) then we wouldn't know how in the sam hill to cope with a crisis. Sure, maybe the mess we're in makes us feel beat up, and maybe we lose a few branches. Maybe we even go from standing tall to flopped over and skimming the ground. But we eventually bounce back up back to our original stance. And we grow bark ...and we get strong.
There are so many times that I've screwed up or just found myself in the middle of a good old fashioned mess. Every time, I was convinced that my life was surely over...and that I could never recoup this time. No way. Never. Not this time! But my life was never over. The clock kept ticking and I always survived. And I came out stronger, a little taller, and ready for the next storm.
April 22, 2009
March 29, 2009
Acrylic Water
Have you ever heard of Acrylic Water? If not..you've probably seen it at the bottom of a vase full of silk flowers. I experimented with acrylic water for the first time this weekend. I know, I know...fake flowers aren't as purty as real ones. And they don't have the same life/zest/uniqueness as real ones. But sometimes it's a necessary evil. We need centerpieces for our eat-in kitchen tables at the office, so I opted for silks because bottom line...we can't afford fresh flowers every week!
Acrylic Water is also known as Wonder Water, Quick Water, Liquid Floral Foam, etc. You can usually find it where floral arranging supplies are sold. I'm happy with how they look. Pretty sassy! Here's how I did it....
1. Gather your materials: Glass vase, silk flowers cut to desired length, acrylic water kit, disposable tray and stir stick, stones or marbles, rubber pads for bottom of vase (optional).
2. Add marbles or stones to the vase. Doing this adds weight to the bottom since the arrangement may be a little top heavy. Plus, it looks neat!
3. Pour the two bottles in your kit into a disposable plastic container. Begin stirring. You'll notice that the liquid takes on a pearl-like hue. This is normal. Continue stirring for 3-5 minutes, or until the mixture is completely clear. Be patient!
4. When liquid is clear, pour it into the vase, avoiding the sides. Arrange your flowers and set the vase aside for 24-48 hours. Additional patience required!!
Special Note: You may have noticed two boxes of acrylic water in my first photo. I found the green kit on the shelf at Wal-Mart, but there was only one box. So I bought a different brand at Jo-Ann since I had three vases and needed more kits. Well...the kind I bought at Jo-Ann was a disaster. It's called Quick Water (white box). It got cloudier and lumpier the more I stirred. Not good.
So I hunted down a few more of the green boxes at a different Wal-Mart, 10 miles away, which was kind of annoying because that is NOT my favorite place to be. I'll take Target over Wally World any day. Ugh..I really dislike that place, but they have come through for me a few times, especially this weekend.
Anyway, I digress. If you do make these, I can highly recommend this brand below, sold at Wal-Mart. The kit came with its own stir stick, and mixing tray complete with pouring spout. Very convenient. The other brand came with nothing but a big ole headache!
March 25, 2009
New Growth
I experienced something very exciting this morning..new growth on my Asian exotic plant!! It started dying on me last year because I forced it to dwell in an office with no natural light. But NOW I have lots and lots of windows in my office and my baby is growing!!!! I never gave up on my little trooper because I knew she could make it through. And then this morning ...voila! New leaves. They're so sweet, tender, and bright compared to the more thick and mature, dark green leaves. I love my new sprouts. Welcome to the world!
February 16, 2009
Deep Sea Fishing: A Valentine's First
This year, my Valentine's Day was full of firsts. First time deep sea fishing. First time catching a fish. First time spending V-day with a bunch of dudes on a boat. First time listening to country-rap music. Check out these shots of my fantastic day in the Gulf of Mexico!
Tarpon Springs is the official Sponge Capital of the World.
I wonder how old this anchor is?
Our fishing poles are lined up, waiting for their temporary owners.
I caught my first fish (ever) just a few minutes after I cast my line in the water! Baiting the hook was no biggie, but prying the caught fishie off the hook was a different story. It's really hard! They flop around and they're covered in slime. Plus, their fins cut your hands if you don't have the technique down pat. So...Gus and Dad unhooked my catch all day. Fishermen to the rescue!
Da boys.
A huge flock of birds followed us back to the dock. Some of them were so close to the boat that we could almost touch them! Our live bait died, so Mike threw it all out to the birds. Can you spot the mini fish flying in the air???
Here's Gus and Dad with the loot. We caught a whole mess of fish! They were good eats with hush puppies and Mom's homemade coleslaw.
January 31, 2009
Lovely Day
Anyone enjoying this GORGEOUS Florida weekend? I sure am. My lovely day started with a trip to Clemon's Produce for a renewed supply of rabbit food. Look at all this food I got for $16.00! Such a deal. I would have spend twice that much at the grocery store. The big bonus was the strawberries...half a flat for $4.00. What?? Talk about a good deal. That's stupid good. The cashier said they'll only be that cheap for a day or two because of this weekend's freeze. They had to pick them or they'd be destroyed. And to top that off...they had no way of shipping them North because of all the ice storms up there. So that means lots of extra strawberries in Florida this weekend. Works for me!
I knew my cheap berries would go bad in a hurry if I didn't preserve them. So I trimmed them up, froze them individually on a sheet tray, and after a few hours they were ready for Ziplocs. Perfect for smoothies, snacks and desserts. Look at those succulent ruby red gems!!!
After that, I purged my kitchen and threw out two trash bags of junk. Then I walked down to Lake Underhill for some peace and highway. For those of you who don't live here, SR 408 runs right over the lake, and while it's not exactly quiet, it's amazingly tranquil. The constant swooshing of cars sounds like white noise...a concrete ocean, if you will. I met a few friends along the way. What a lovely day. Hope you're soaking it all in too!
January 22, 2009
NYC & Poconos Adventure
I'm baaaa-ack! After a week in the snow and ice, I came home to 30 degree weather. What's that about??? I suppose my trip prepared me for this freezing week in Orlando. =)
I had quite the adventure up North last week. My friend, Julia and I trotted ALL over NYC for a few days. That city will tear you up! There is so much activity and culture and life to soak in **whew** I was worn out after three days in the Big Apple. The rest of our group joined us later in the week, and we all drove over to PA/The Poconos for skiing and snow tubing. Our resort in PA was...hmmmm, what's the PC word? Rustic? Let's just say we used the term resort very loosely. But we survived and had a blast! Your accommodations don't matter so much when you're with friends who can make the best of it. Good Peeps = Good Times.
What a jolly ole time I had away from home! Even though the trip was exhausting, just being gone for a week was good for my soul. My normal life barely crossed my mind. I laughed a ton, observed different ways of life, interacted with people from other countries, admired beautiful art and landmarks, ate some fabulous meals, ate some gross meals, rode in lots of subway trains, experienced the snow in a whole new way, and reconnected with some friends I haven't seen in a while.
The picture above is one I took in Central Park. It was snowing when I snapped this shot. See below for a slide show of my entire trip. Enjoy!
October 22, 2008
Happy Hump Day!
I've been carrying around my camera more often in my regular every day life. The day I took this picture, I worked all day and didn't find one single cool thing to photograph. As the day came to an end, I walked out to the parking lot, pouting about my lack of snazzy shots. As I approached my car, I noticed this "smile" on the asphalt. And there it was. My snazzy photo, staring back up at me and SMILING! I found it interesting that someone drove over this tree branch just enough to split it down the middle, but not enough to pulverize it. This smile reminds me of a friendly cartoon monster mouth or something like that. What does it remind you of? Next time you're out and about, look for something interesting in the ordinary!
October 06, 2008
Bioluminescent Kayak Tour
On Sunday this weekend, I jetted over to Titusville with some peeps from my Young Professionals group. We were so excited for our Bioluminescent Kayak Tour! I'd never heard of this phenomena until recently. Apparently there are a few bodies of water in the world that host dinoflagellates, which are tiny plants that live in the sea and obtain energy from sunlight during the day. In darkness, they emit bright blue light in response to movement within the water.
Sounds cool, right? Well it would have been cool if the dinoflagellates hadn't died off for the season from our "cold snap" a few weeks ago. Our guide told us this right before we hopped in our kayaks, and right after listening to lots of instructions in the pouring rain while darkness closed in around us. Major bust.
It was a rough start. Me and my kayak partner had quite a few challenges (wailing into trees, inability to paddle straight, ya know..the basics). Eventually we got the hang of it and caught up with the pack. Kayaking is way harder than canoeing! Since all the glowing dinos were gone, we pretty much just paddled around in the dark for over an hour. In the rain. With OFF dripping into our eyes. And salt water splashing into our noses and mouths. The best of times.
Then FINALLY at the end, we paddled into a school of mullet that went freakazoid when we shined our flashlights into the water. Literally hundreds and hundreds of mullet were jumping in and out of the water at the same time all around us. It was hilarious! There were so many jumping that it sounded like a major thunderstorm. I could not stop laughing. And..several of the mullet became our new best friends when they jumped into the kayaks. Oh yeah, we're talkin' live fishies outa water here people.
It was pretty fun despite the conditions..and I got in my workout for the month.
