Meanwhile, Back in the Garage...

Back in July, when I finished up one mosaic project, and before I could get distracted, I started working on finishing up another one. Yup, there is a surprising (discouraging?) amount of stuff that needs to be "finished up" in the garage.

You might even think that it's a big garage, but really, a modern-sized car would barely squeeze inside. It's just crowded. But then, I think most garages live quiet, cluttered lives.

Anyway, I constructed the form, once again starting with a ball covered in concrete, and went on from there. The resulting piece stands about 36" tall and helps keep inattentive guests from falling down the deck stairs. So I guess that you could say that it's useful. And it even is compatible with a little planter that I put together years ago. No doubt the garage was crowded then, too.

And remember, after Halloween comes Shopping Season Vote the Bums Out Day!

When Life Gives You Melons

Consider dyslexia. I have to all the time.

But in fact we truly did get melons, something almost completely unheard of in the cool and foggy Bay Area.

Yup. Five ripe ones, a number of ripening ones, and a number that are probably going to make the worms in the composter very happy.

Granted, the melons weren't that big (1-2 lbs) and could easily fit in your hand. Now I'm not completely convinced that I love them (perhaps I'm just not a melon person?) but everyone else seems to think that they are pretty alright.

So what are they? The Kazakh melon which is adapted to low water (now that's a relative statement) and cool nights. My neighbor who grew up in Iran recognized them immediately. They are very sweet, with tremendous fragrance and a medium-soft texture. Think honeydew melon, but then keep on thinking.

















I knew when I planted them that it was an unlikely experiment, but each year seems to bring out a new experiment (I'll spare you some of the other ones). Will it appear in next year's garden? Dunno yet, but there is someone here lobbying for planting them again next year, and his name isn't Princess.