As a project manager, gardening is my second best reminder that I can’t control all of the variables in a project. (Parenting is the first.) I can do all the planning and prep that I want, but I have no control over the weather, and realize that the germination rate for seeds varies. So while I’m sad that the okra didn’t germinate – it did so well the first summer in this garden – the next step is to fill that space. I love being able to say that I picked my salad the morning I’m eating it, so I went ahead and planted some salad greens there.
It’s not like the rest of the garden is struggling. Starting in the top left, there’s my star garden out front, my low beds in the far back, my keyhole bed out back, and the garden tower by the driveway.
Herbs and sunflowers; tomatoes and flowers; carrots, pumpkins, and peas; tomatoes, marigolds, and salad greens.
The star is mainly an herb bed, with an overwhelming amount of mint and cilantro (they’re both spreading), chives, and some basil, along with a huge number of sunflowers. At this point, the low beds will be all tomatoes and salad greens this year, along with flowers in some corners. The keyhole bed is being overwhelmed by pumpkins – I had to search for the Brussels sprouts this morning – and a couple of the flowers are already forming pie pumpkins. There are also carrots and peas in there, though the pea harvest will be done well before the pumpkins are ready. The garden tower has bite-sized tomatoes at the top, salad greens in the bottom rows, and marigolds filling in the rest.
I walked into work Monday morning, only to walk back out within the hour carrying about half of my desk’s contents and some paperwork about the layoff process. (I went back later in the week for the other half of my stuff.) This wasn’t a complete surprise – we had been warned by management that layoffs might be happening in the near future due to some business changes – but there’s a huge difference between knowing a layoff might be coming to actually having it happen. I drove home, calling my best friend on the way, and unloaded my lunch bag and the box from my desk. After a quick glance at the paperwork – I knew I wasn’t ready to read the details – I did what felt like the most logical option: I went to a morning karate class. Stress relief seemed like a good idea.
After karate, I came home and polished my resume and copied the updates to LinkedIn, re-read my cover letter, and read through some of the paperwork. The actual job hunt would start Tuesday.
I’ve been at this job for about four years now, and it saw me through a number of significant changes in my personal life, not the least of which were a divorce, buying a new house, the sudden need for a new car, and earning my first degree black belt. That’s a lot in four years, particularly when you take into account that I was working full-time, and for a couple semesters, teaching an evening class on top of that. It takes a pretty incredible company with a good understanding of work/life balance to manage that. Unfortunately, even good companies have rough patches, which leads me to my current predicament. I will miss the amazing people I’ve been working with these past few years, yet I’m curious to see what new opportunities are out there.
I knew when I bought the house that it would need new windows. The existing windows appeared to be from when the house was built, and windows have come a long way since then, both in the glass itself and the way they’re set in the house. New windows – I’m fairly sure they’re all double-paned now – would provide better insulation against the cold and allow less heat in through the glass. In fact, part of the sales demonstration was plugging in a heat lamp in front of a normal window sample and then a new window sample. (The next part was removing a cat from the sample bag so the samples could go back in.) There was also evidence of moisture settling into some of the window frames, which is never good.
All of the bedrooms had casement windows, which were a bit of a pain. In order to open the window, I had to open the screen on the inside, then unlatch and push the window open, and finish by clicking the screen shut again. The window by the kitchen sink was similar, but inexplicably, had no screen or anywhere to attach one, so that one never got opened. (I don’t want to let insects in or cats out.) The living room and large kitchen windows were floor to ceiling, with a casement window at the top of each. While planning the new windows, one of the company’s representatives noted that the kitchen sink and the guest bedroom windows were actually the same casement windows, just turned on their side. Apparently somebody had spare windows in that particular style when the house was built.
The biggest decision when replacing windows seems to be whether to do it room-by-room or all at once. Since my reason for wanting new windows was for better temperature control (among other things, I don’t have A/C), it made sense to do them all at once and finance the change, knowing that the company I chose could almost certainly complete the change in a single day. That meant spending only one of my elusive vacation days, rather than needing to spread it out over several. As with any big purchase, I had estimates from multiple companies. The deciding factor was really that this company, Power Home Remodeling, could replace my three living room windows with one huge bay window.
My timing was just about perfect – the installation was on what had been the hottest day so far this year, the Friday before Memorial Day. Last weekend beat that day with temperatures in the mid- to high-90s all weekend, and I was delighted to have the new windows filtering out some of that heat.
I may post more about our trip to Niagara Falls on later days, but here are some of the thoughts that went into planning it.
Transit
Selecting an airline isn’t usually difficult; Southwest is my preferred airline if it services an airport in the right area. Even when we fly carry-on only, like we did for our Philadelphia trip, I like the option of checking bags for free. The pricing is almost always comparable to the other airlines, so it comes down to selecting times I like for direct flights. (Chicago to Buffalo is just over an hour, an indirect flight doesn’t really make sense.)
I researched options for getting from the Buffalo airport to the Canadian side of Niagara Falls. Quickly dismissed was the Greyhound option; that’s from downtown Buffalo, and only at set times, so it would have required too many transfers. The airport shuttle was more appealing until I realized that I could rent a car for less than it would cost for both our fares one-way. Our lodging included free parking, so renting a car turned out to be a no-brainer.
On the other hand, I didn’t want to drive around all weekend, or bother to pay for parking multiple times in the Fallsview area. We picked up 48-hour WeGo passes, parked the rental car by our cabin, and rode the bus into the downtown area multiple times. When I returned the rental car, they thought I had filled the gas tank because I had driven it so little.
Lodging
I’ve had a KOA (Kampgrounds of America) membership since 2013, when we went on a 13-day road trip; two-thirds of our nights were at KOA sites. On a whim, I checked to see if there was a KOA in the Niagara Falls area. As it turns out, there’s one on each side of the Falls. Having never visited Canada before, I was set at staying on the Canadian side. I didn’t really want to pack a tent (even with free baggage), so I booked a cabin… well, a Kamping Kabin. Because it’s at a Kampground.
KOA Kamping Kabin – outside and inside views
Camping cabins are minimalist in nature. There’s a roof over your head, a door that locks, beds (one double and a bunk bed), and a table with a chair. There’s also a picnic table and seating on the deck. You bring your own linens or sleeping bags, which was most of our luggage needs for this trip. You also have to walk outside to get to the bathroom and the shower stalls. (Pack your own towels too.) In good weather, this works out nicely… and we had amazing weather at Niagara Falls last weekend.
Activities
Niagara Falls – Horseshoe Falls at night
Other than “see the Falls,” I had no idea what we would be doing in the area for two and a half days. I reached out to a friend in Toronto who mentioned that there’s a wax museum with movie stars in the area. Actually, there are two. And a rock stars one. While researching the museum, I discovered that they offered a Fun Pass that combined the museum, the SkyWheel (2 rides if you buy online!), some virtual rides, and a choice of indoor (wizards) or outdoor (dinosaurs) mini-golf. The pass allows you to do each activitiy once, any time within a year from when you activate it. Since we have no immediate plans to return to the area, we did them all Friday and Saturday.
Everything else we did was based on what we found when we got there. We ate at a mix of local (Tim Horton’s, Queen Victoria Place Restaurant) and speciality chain restaurants (Margaritaville and Hard
Rock), watched the nightly fireworks over the Falls, spent some time at the local Ripley’s Believe It or Not museum, and spent Sunday morning at Bird Kingdom. We did some shopping, and then visited the Falls from the U.S. side Sunday afternoon before flying home.
I actually had a different post in mind relating to earning my black belt, until I saw what Google did with the photos that were taken on my phone in the last few days. When you take several photos in quick succession, Google takes the liberty of making an animated GIF out of some of them. This amused me, so I thought I’d share a couple of them.
After receiving our belts, we performed Sip Soo, one of the open hand forms we needed to learn before testing for the 1st degree black belt. This is a fairly small part of it, just what Google decided to clip together.
Part of Sip Soo (“Ten Hands”), the latest open hand form I had to learn to test for my 1st degree black belt
In addition to the excitement of earning my black belt, I received a sword as a gift. I started learning the first sword form a while ago, and practice it infrequently… it’s a black belt form. Now that I’m a black belt, I need to work on remembering it. I carried my sword to class the other night to show my instructor, and took some time after class to test it out on the mat.
Trying out my new sword.
Exciting times! I’ve already started learning the next open hand form I need for when I test for second degree black belt.
The movie Once, which I had never heard of until the Paramount Theatre announced their 2017-18 Broadway season, won an Oscar; the Broadway production won eight Tony Awards. This final show in the Paramount’s season is both heart-wrenching and inspiring.
Guy and Girl (they are never given names) meet on the streets of Dublin and quickly bond over a joint love of music. In less than a week, they share regrets about their past relationships, Girl pushes Guy into taking out a loan for a recording session, and they fall in love. But the unresolved issues of their past relationships loom over them, or as Girl puts it “You can not walk through your life leaving unfinished love behind you!” To find out what happens with their relationship and past ones, you’ll have to see the show.
They make beautiful music, both individually and together, and manage to draw Girl’s family and flatmates into their recording session, along with the banker who approves Guy’s loan. This is a show that will certainly inspire you to pursue your dreams. Much like the opening show of Paramount’s 2017-18 season, Million Dollar Quartet, the orchestra pit is empty – all of the music is produced on stage, showcasing once again an amazing amount of talent. Unusually for us, we saw it almost at the end of its run… this weekend will be the last at the Paramount. I highly recommend seeing it on stage if you have the chance.
My thoughts on Brandon Sanderson’s Oathbringer are long overdue, I actually finished reading the book in February. It’s been a busy three months. I will try to avoid spoilers for this book, but spoilers for the first two are inevitable at this point.
Most of the story follows the same primary characters encountered in Way of Kings and Words of Radiance, who have developed into Radiants. Sanderson does a fabulous job again of bouncing between their current situations and how their histories moved them to this point. Dalinar, in particular, is forced to explore the memories he had blocked of his deceased wife, and Shallan, her conflicted family history. Each of the characters has unsettling experiences, and each in some way challenges society’s rules. Discoveries are made that shake society to its core.
Shallan, still one of my favorite characters, develops unique personalities for each of the faces she draws herself. Among other problems, two of her personalities are attracted to different people; she has to determine which part is the real her and which heart to follow.
Szeth, the Assassin in White, rediscovers his passion for Truth, and reappears, along with Lift, who we met briefly in Words of Radiance, and more thoroughly in her own book, Edgedancer. And Venli, one of the remaining Parshendi, evolves in her understanding of the war between the Voidbringers and humanity.
In a couple years, I’ll re-read all of the books again, to prepare for the release of the next one.
Garden planning is one of my annual goals. Planning generally starts in January or February, since some indoor planting can start as early as mid-February, depending on what I’m growing that particular year. This year was a late start for me, I didn’t plant anything until almost mid-March.
I try to use up my old seeds first, so I sort through them when I begin garden planning, and then see what I need to fill in my planting gaps. This year, I have a lot of leftover seeds, so all I bought was a couple varieties of large tomatoes. This is where hope starts kicking in… I hope the old seeds will still germinate. This was the last year for the pepper seeds, none of them sprouted.
Seed starts, from planting to seedlings. With luck, many tomatoes will be produced and consumed.
As they sprout, I hope I remember to open the curtains, to get some sun in on the new growth. I’m actually fairly good at that. As it warms up, I hope the forecast is accurate… I check it each morning and decide whether to put the pots (well, yogurt cups) all the way outside, just outside the front door (where they’re partially covered), or leave them in the house. Every day they’re in the house, I hope the kitten doesn’t decide to knock any of them down or destroy any of the seedlings. Especially the tomato plants, since the leaves have a nice bounce to them. And I hope I pick the right days to put them out, and the right nights to leave them out to harden as it cools, but hopefully not too much. Here in Illinois, the nights can vary wildly – we may see a 10 degree drop one night, and a 30 degree drop the next – so I have to choose carefully.
They don’t all survive. You can see in the photo that I started with more cups than I have now. Some sprouted and then faded while still tiny. I planted at least 3 cups of basil; I have one left. And while there’s an overwhelming number of tomatoes, half of those are cherry tomatoes that are more likely to make it into the mouth than the house when harvested.
At some point soon, I hope I pick the right time to move them outside. As you can see, they’re getting a bit tall for those little yogurt cups, but we’ve had a couple nights where the temperature was still in the 40s. Once they’re big enough, they’ll probably be OK with a night or two that gets that low, so it’s entirely possible they relocate to a couple different spots this upcoming weekend. I think it’s safe… I took a gamble and planted peas about 10 days ago, and those are coming up nicely.
I recently visited Whiskey Acres, a distillery in Dekalb, IL. As I’ve mentioned before, I do like a good whiskey, and by chance had tried a Whiskey Acres Rye at Hardware recently. It was a bit of a random choice at Hardware, given that there are over 400 whiskeys to choose from, and I try not to repeat the ones I’ve had before. I mentioned to a friend that I had tried a rye from Illinois; he responded by telling me about this distillery that he wanted to visit at some point… I looked at the name and realized it was their rye. And it’s only 30 minutes away!
Whiskey Acres buildings, still (her name is Flo), casks, and the array of bottles for tasting.
We decided to meet for the last tour on a Friday night – it starts at 7pm, lasts an hour, and they close at 8:30. The weather was beautiful (not to be confused with “the weather is here…”), and apparently everybody else decided not to be there that night… we were the only people on the tour. And we learned a lot!
With the exception of the malted barley, Whiskey Acres grows all of their own grains. When they’re ready to start preparing the mash, they notify the farmers of how much corn they need, so it’s fresh off the farm when the start using it. The mash will sit for a few days before being introduced to Flo, their still. (Apparently all stills should be named. Please take note if you have an as-of-yet unnamed still.) The still is a full day process, unless they’re preparing vodka, in which case it goes through the still 3 times, so it’s a 3 (continuous) day process. We didn’t meet Nick, but apparently the vodka is made with his tears… 3 days of continously running the still is a long time.
After the distillation, the alcohol is barreled. We learned that to qualify as a bourbon, it must be 125 proof or lower at the point when it’s barreled, and the barrels must be new. The barrels for bourbon are burnt on the inside before the alcohol is added; that’s where it picks up the brown color.
The aging process of a whiskey varies. The smaller casks age faster, they may only take 18-24 months; the large casks can take 5-7 years. And some poor soul has to check them periodically as they approach the potential ready date. Part of me would love that job, but to be honest, my palate is not particularly discerning, so I suspect I would be bad at it.
The tour wraps up with a tasting of their rye, bourbon, and vodka. I am not generally a vodka drinker, yet was pleasantly surprised at how drinkable it was. It didn’t outweigh my normal preferences… in the end, I walked away with a bottle of their bourbon. (And yes, I am sipping some while I type. It seemed appropriate.) You get a souvenir shot glass with the tour, they’ll even wrap it up for you after your tasting.
The Whiskey Acres tasting room is open Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through November. They don’t serve food, but have plenty of space for a picnic, if you pack one, or you can drive into downtown Dekalb for some lovely sushi or other food options.
Occasionally, I receive multiple review books together. They usually have different due dates, so I prioritize whichever one is due first. If they share a due date, I have to decide which one to read first, and I generally take a “save the best for last” approach. At that point, I only have the cover to go by, and since it’s an advanced copy, that’s usually the back cover, with the blurb, rather than a fully illustrated front cover.
This worked for me well last time, when I read a fantasy book before Side Life. This time, well, after the first chapter of the first (of two) book… I considered that I may have gotten them in the wrong order. The first book had an illustrated front and plain back cover; the description alluded to an existing world that I had no concept of. With no solid expectations going into it, I was rolling in laughter before I finished the first chapter. There were so many quotable quotes, I chose not to flood my Facebook friends with more than a couple. So I confess, I totally misjudged that book (and I’m not telling you which it was) based on the back cover.
And yet, as much as I liked it, I enjoyed the second book I had received that much more. This was what I’ll call a true review copy – plain covers on the front and back – so I only had the blurb on the back to judge by before I started reading. I may share that review at some point in the future; they publish elsewhere first. Based on the blurb, I knew that the protagonist was a half-orc, defending a borderland between the humans and the orcs, and that he discovers during the story that there are things he doesn’t understand. The character development is particularly well-written, you can understand both why the character is missing information and how he adapts as he learns. If you get the chance, read The Grey Bastards by Jonathan French. Then add the sequel to your want to read list; it doesn’t appear to have a publication date yet.
My timing was just about perfect – the installation was on what had been the hottest day so far this year, the Friday before Memorial Day. Last weekend beat that day with temperatures in the mid- to high-90s all weekend, and I was delighted to have the new windows filtering out some of that heat.
