Just Another Wednesday in the Garage

Before Grouting

So while Hilda was working away on her gorgeous planter, I was poking around with mosaicking a small birdbath/pollinator watering hole for the backyard. Completing this little piece also contributed to the on-going and everlasting Clean-Out-The-Garage project by clearing off a small shelf. Win-win for me, and maybe even for the local wildlife. 

So far though, Luna is the only one who I've observed drinking from it. 

Wednesday is the Best Day

Not because the work week is almost over. But because it's Do Mosaics in the Garage Day, which means that every week has a holiday smack dab in the middle. 

And my friend Hilda is quite the adept. She only started in with mosaics a little more than a year ago, and now look:

Photo Courtesy of Hilda West

I can't claim that my garage is the most comfortable or attractive "studio" (nope, I'm not sharing photos of that workspace) but somehow we manage to create beautiful things there. Especially Hilda.

Once Again, That Votey-Changey Thing

You know what to do, and by when to do it. And I'm pretty sure that at least some of you have been doing this for long enough to not be reminded. And reminded, and reminded yet once more (that texting stuff is only useful for making the texter feel good about "being involved" and zip for the ones receiving the dopey upbeat messages from strangers, or so I think).

But I'm not so sure I know what to do this time in Oakland. Ten candidates for mayor, all pretty much no-names, all mouthing the same words about the same on-going issues, and I'm supposed to rank my preferences? Or up to five of my choices, when I can barely decide upon one? I know that I will figure something out, but along with so many other things, it's kinda depressing. 

And is anyone else really, really, completely really tired of dialysis in California? Yes, it's an important concern, but does it actually belong on the ballot, year after year? 

Okay, okay, enough of the grumpy whining - I will do my part in voting, and I hope that you will do yours as well.

Brag, Brag, Brag #8: Michael Reardon

 So we got out of town. Yup, hard to believe, but we left Luna in the world's most capable and loving hands and headed to Sta. Barbara for an art show. An art show at the Thomas Reynolds Gallery featuring, ta-da!, Michael Reardon. And a bunch of architects who also can paint pretty darn well. 

 We saw family and friends, caught rain and dodged tumbleweeds on the drive, and generally had a wonderful time. The shows up until the end of October, so if you happen to be in the vicinity of Sta. Barbara, I recommend stopping by. 

Desert Blooms

The little cacti in the side yard have been very busy this summer, pumping out blooms and providing a wonderful habitat for many spiders (no, I do not dust the outdoor plants. That is most definitely someone else's job).

The most unexpected bloomer was the Tiger Jaws (Faucaria felina) from South Africa, technically not a cactus, but amazing in its own way. 

T

The Zucchini Sex Goddess Returns to Work

Tromboncino Zucchini

I didn't think it would happen this year, given how late the squash seeds got in the ground, how long they sulked and how s-l-o-w-l-y they grew. 

But now that it's almost September, some long-suppressed urge to procreate must have kicked in because the squash are finally, finally, finally taking off. 

So maybe by October, there will be plenty enough zucchini and squash to share with (scare away?) the neighbors.

Marina di Chioggia Winter Squash

SummerTime

Red Sun Sunflower

Local History

Ocean Beach, San Francisco

It didn't start off as a beautiful day - foggy and cool - but it turned out just fine. And we even learned a few things.

So we all know that the Cliff House closed in December, 2020. And that it has mostly been sitting vacant since then, right?

Except, except for a remarkably fun pop-up museum organized and staffed by this relatively off-the-radar organization, the Western Neighborhoods Project.

Titled The Museum at the Cliff, the show features interactive displays of the strange and wonderful history of Lands End, including Sutro Baths, Playland at the Beach, as well as the Cliff House. Music, maps, historic photographs, old menus (watch out - the price of a glass of wine back then was unbelievable!), and other art pieces and artifacts help take you away.

The Museum is only open on weekends (Sat. & Sun) from 11am - 5pm until August 21st, 2022. Tickets are free, but you must get them in advance through Eventbrite.

Playland Cowboy

Kittens and Flowers - Enough Already!

Yeah, we've been pretty much stuck at home these days, and it shows. But sometimes we do get out, even if it's not very far away. 

Like the Cataract Falls Trail on Mt. Tamalpais. We had hoped to hike the Coastal Trail but the overgrown grass obscuring the trail and swarming with ticks (no, I didn't see any, but I just know that they were lurking there, ready to suck my blood) was a huge deterrent. 

As it turned out, the Cataract Trail was a better choice this time as it wandered through dappled shade and small water seeps. Lots of bird sounds, too, to try and identify. I think we'll try this hike again, but next time we'll go when there is a better chance of more water. 

And then there was the visit to the UC Berkeley campus to watch the peregrine falcons fledge. I mean, really, nature in action right in the middle of the city!

The young female had already taken her first flight by the time we arrived, and the young male was not quite ready to take the big step (he flew the following day) but we did hear them and see one of the parents standing watch on the tower. 

There was a lot of drama and sadness with this year's family - disappearing mom, dad killed by a car, brand new stepdad - so I wish them the best of luck.

It Wasn't the Worst of Times

But it wasn't pretty, either. Yeah, covid. One full week of sickness, and nearly two more weeks of lingering yuckiness - still not completely gone. Cannot recommend the experience for anyone, except perhaps for a few of those named and unnamed during the January 6th hearing last night...

We caught it at a small outdoors event with other vaccinated and boosted people. Actually, everyone of that group of six caught it. The lunar eclipse was lovely, though.

So keep washing your hands, wearing that blankety-blank mask and testing if your worried. Oh, did I mention washing your hands?

Salad Days

Over the years I have trialed many varieties of lettuces. Almost all have been good, if not very good. But Bronze Arrow has stood out as an excellent performer winter and summer, wet and soggy, or with little water under sunny, hot skies. Pretty to eat, and highly edible.

Bronze Arrow

Feline Fashionistas

Birdsbesafe®. Yes, those silly, brightly colored fabric collars that are designed to keep your sweet kitty friend from massacring your sweet birdie friends. And "brightly colored" works. According to researchers at St. Lawrence University, "cats wearing collars killed 19 times fewer birds than uncollared cats.

But really it's all about making a fashion statement. Sebastian, for example, looks absolutely gorgeous modeling the newest design (yup, I made them myself - just as easy to sew as to buy - and shared a few with friends).

Photo courtesy of Judy Chess

And doesn't Luna cut a lovely figure showing off an older model? It's actually, a hand-me-down from Princess, but Luna doesn't seem to mind. 

And Sebastian once again, sporting another lovely design, handcrafted by his guardian, Judy. So adorable.

Photo courtesy of Judy Chess

Available online or from your local sewing machine. 

The brighter the better!

Keep your local birds happy and safe!

Captured!

The most excellent painter, Elsa Gonzalez Zorn, has captured Luna. I don't think anyone else could have done it better. It is beyond perfect!

Oh So Pink

As one reviewer stated on Dave's Garden, "Overall, this plant is only for cactus experts and/or masochists."

I know I'm not the former, and I hope I'm not the latter, but I haven't found this cactus to be too difficult. On the other hand, the reviewer is right - the hooked spines of Mammillaria senilis are ferocious.

But the blooms! Those big, glossy pink blooms!

Time Flies

Luna (aka Leela), August, 2021.

Luna (aka The Furry Troublemaker), March, 2022. 

New Digs

It only took four tries to get something that didn't end up back in the clay pot. And then three trips to the hardware store with an additional trip to the Oakland Tool Library to engineer the hanging system. Thankfully, everyone was very helpful.

But the old, worn (decrepit, even, one could say), albeit well-loved gourd has now been replaced. I only hope that the wrens are as pleased with it as I am.

Talking to (Solar) Power

There's a lot of people out there who really don't like PG&E, the regulated public utility company that supplies power to much of Northern California. 

Add over one million more households - all of us who have solar panels on our roofs - plus all those millions more who benefit from rooftop solar or want to put rooftop solar on their homes, apartment buildings, schools, farms, parking lots, etc.. Why are we all so pissed off?

All of the big public utilities in the state now want to rollback and penalize those people who want to use the sun for their energy needs, rather than continue to kill the planet by burning fossil fuels. For all the ins and outs:

Environment California

Save California Solar

Even Arnie thinks it's a dumb idea

What to do? Get the current governor involved!

Call Governor Newsom at 916/445-2841  

Sign any and all of those petitions that you can find online

Hand write a letter to Governor Newsom at 1021 O Street, Suite 9000, Sacramento, CA 95814. Since so few people now remember how to use stamps, your efforts here might really get noticed.

SAMPLE SCRIPT (cribbed from Solar Rights Alliance): 

“I am opposed to the CPUC’s proposal to make it more expensive for people to put solar panels on their roof.

Consumers should not be penalized in any way for making solar at their homes, schools, businesses and houses of worship. California should do more to promote local solar, not less. People need relief from high energy bills, blackouts and air pollution. 

 

Making rooftop solar and batteries more expensive for everyone, especially middle and working class people, makes no sense. It’s the wrong direction for California. Please step in, protect the public interest, promote more rooftop solar for more people, not less. 

 

[CPUC Docket #: R.20-08-020]"

Thank you!