The journey continues...

Brian Bilbrey July 9, 2011

Nothing to see here...

Typical boring weekend day for "homeowner with yard in summer": Yardwork. We actually got a good chunk of rain yesterday - nearly an inch and three quarters, most of that within a one hour span shortly after four in the afternoon. So even though the lawns are pretty darned dead dormant (except around the flower and garden beds), I mowed everything, just in case there's a moisture-induced explosion of growth. That and burning some coffee beans pretty much filled my day. Yes, I said burning. I was reading, and didn't pay as close attention as I should have. The beans…

Brian Bilbrey July 7, 2011

Delayed Condolences

Argh! Argh! I failed on Sunday, my humble apologies! Had I managed to post, I would have spent the Fourth of July mourning these fallen warriors (reported by DoD June 27 through July 3). Our condolences to the families and units of these fine men: Sgt. Marlon E. Myrie, 25, of Oakland Park, Florida, died June 25 while conducting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. Gunnery Sgt. Ralph E. Pate Jr., 29, of Mullins, South Carolina, died June 26 while conducting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. Tech. Sgt. Daniel L. Douville, 33, of Harvey, Louisiana, died June 26 as…

Brian Bilbrey July 7, 2011

Where's the beef?

Who needs beef when there are fresh potatoes? Okay, I do ... but not tonight. I just finished harvesting out the rest of the potatoes (25 pounds worth), bringing the grand total return for 10 half-potatoes plunked into the ground in April up to 40 pounds. Holey Moley!

Brian Bilbrey July 6, 2011

Miles Per Gallon

I may like summer least among all the seasons (except for the output of the garden), but my car loves summer. As long as I can keep the windows down and the air conditioning off, I'm doing nearly 53 miles per gallon in the Prius, according to the data from my Sunday fill-up. A week of driving without side trips costs about 10 bucks. That would have run me 25 to 30 dollars in the 4 Runner. * * * Tonight was the monthly LOPSA meeting - the speaker was a former (he claims to be former, anyway) penetration tester…

Brian Bilbrey July 4, 2011

Garden Ka-boom

First things first: Happy Birthday, USA! * * * Okay, not *really* ka-boom in the Mythbusters C4 sense, but more like the garden is exploding with growth and veg. I took this shot right after harvesting out a bunch of cucumber, and before applying the weekly dose of Neem Oil to discourage bugs and disease. The output of the garden seems like it's going to be prodigious this year. Just look at two days worth of cucumber harvest, plus a couple of zucchini that did not make it into last night's supper: Now I've got more chores to do, and…