Tag: personal

Birthday Celebration

Eat, drink, and be merry
Good Friends, Good Food, Good Drink

I turned thirty on April 17. To be honest I never thought I’d make it this far. But, here I am. I didn’t want to do anything big for my birthday. D insisted that something had to be done to mark the occasion. If only going out and socializing with friends. So, that is what we did and it was great.

Thanks to everyone who came out and everyone else who wished my a happy birthday! I’m lucky to have such wonderful people in my life!

Thanks Teeples for the gift!

You already know about the present D got me. My friends the Teeples picked up this board game (I got cards and free drinks too!) I can’t wait to have everyone over (or 2 to 6 of you) to give it a go.

The Build a Civilization Kit

Global Village Construction Set in 2 Minutes from Open Source Ecology

As regular readers of DiMortuiSunt (now False(B)logic) -Ed) probably already know I’m a big fan of DIY. I grew up living an average suburban lifestyle: separated from the people, processes, land, and animals that make my life possible. As I’ve grown up I’ve recognized this glaring absence in my life. D and I have been trying, slowly, to become more involved. We belong to a Co-op; we garden and compost; we are learning to make our own food products; we are pickling and canning. I grew up being a consumer and I want to make sure as an adult I am a maker.

I’m not the only person who feels this way. There is an entire movement among my generation of people who are trying to get back to a more sustainable and authentic lifestyle (by authentic I mean one in which the person is making something, working with their hands, and creating tangible items). Some people are taking it farther than others. Everything they are doing, is amazing. Some of them I’m sure will change the world, like the man in the video above.

The idea of a DIY Civilization kit seems ridiculous on its face. The task of knowing how to and being able to create all the things necessary for the comforts of a modern lifestyle are just too complicated for a single person or small group of people to know. Despite that though the Open Source Ecology Project is an attempt to put all the plans, instructions, know-how, etc onto a single DVD that will allow the owner the ability to build and operate advanced technologies to jumpstart an economy and even a civilization.

You Want to Eat This Sandwich

All the deliciousness. All of it.

Devere’s Irish Pub has these delicious BLTs that I tell everyone about.  They use their own housemade Irish bacon, lettuce, tomatoes, and mayo, just like any other BLT. But, then you can have a fried egg put on your BLT too. I looked at that option many a time before actually trying it. I wish I hadn’t wasted all those opportunities! I am the last person who’d have thought that a fried egg on any sandwich, let alone a minimalist masterpiece like the BLT, was a good idea. I was wrong and so are you. The egg adds so much flavor and depth!

Stop whatever it is you are doing right now, go home, make yourself a BLT, fry an egg, combine them, and eat it. I’ll be waiting here when you want to thank me for giving you the idea.

For something even more decadent try the grilled cheese and egg sandwiches in this month’s (April ’11) Bon Appetit. That is the sandwich seen in the picture above: pancetta, provolone, arugula, green onions, and a fried egg on sourdough bread. Truly, to die for.

Time to Get Planting! Spring Garden 2011

Down among the seedlings

It’s been a little iffy these past few weeks but I think it is safe to say Spring is finally here! Spring is the herald of many things (one of the best being Easter candy; I’m looking at you Cadbury egg) what it means in our household is spring cleaning and spring planting. The cleaning is all mostly done (I’ve just got to steam clean the carpets) so, that means it’s time to get our hands dirty in the garden.

Before we could plant we had to take everything else out. The winter garden still had celery, spinach, chard, arugula, and carrots in it; they all had to go:

After harvesting, all the greens had to be cleaned
Tiny carrots are yummy. I think we grew them too close to each other
Once cooked all this spinach will fit in a one measuring cup
Arugula is delicious. This was previously unknown to me

We kept the celery in the garden because it seemed so happy and I have no idea what to do with 4 heads of celery… Once the winter plants were out  all the ready compost out of our composter and went in, along with a bag of manure fertilizer, and soil to revitalize the plot. Then we laid out where we were going to put everything. Learning from last year we picked up fewer tomatoes and zucchini plants and got more cucumbers. We’re also attempting beans again this year to see if we can do better than the single green bean pod we got last year.

 

tomatoes, zucchini, cucumbers, eggplants, basil, parsley, peppers

 

Everything in its place.
I swear I helped put this garden in. It wasn't all D.

 

 

Beer traps in Sluggo spread. It begins!

I’m hoping that we do get a lot of produce this year. D and I are both looking forward to learning how to can and pickle vegetables! I’m still trying to figure out what to do with all the celery. As it is we’re putting it in absolutely everything.

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