They Are Already Here

View the video by clicking on the link below. It is offensive but important to see.
http://view.break.com/278059
You have all heard the argument for the war that goes a little something like this - if we don't fight them over there then we are going to have to fight them in our backyards. Well, they are here and would be in my backyard if it weren't so small. I am not afraid of the terrorist from far off lands but I am afraid of the ones down the road at the local Baptist Church. Our freedom is not jeopardized by the existence of Al-Qaeda. Lets take care of what we have going on at home. After viewing the video at the above link could someone please explain the upside down Canadian flag! Are we to believe that Canada is one sinning country? At what is with the "you will eat your kids!" line?

Are you ready to deal some drugs?

That question seemed a bit funnier when asked by a Hot Cop to George Micheal. I am in need of cops, any kind will do - hot, ugly, short, tall. As long as they have a weapon of some sort, they are welcome in my neighborhood. Yes, this relates to my little yard. You would think that with a thirty-foot wide lot I wouldn't have to worry about multiple drugs deals happing in my front lawn. Superior is full of surprises. Our economy is so terrible that our drug dealers have traded in their four-wheel drives for economy cars. Great! Now Civics can park end to end in front of my house and its party time for the meth heads. Usually I don't mind the drug deals; survival of the fittest at its best. Today was different. I am mad. Trevor and I are going to have to come up with some yard ornament that deters dealers. Maybe they have an food allergy like vampires with garlic. I will look into this and let you know what I come up with. Do you think the "War is Not the Answer" sign in the yard is attracting them? Maybe I should switch to my favorite bumper sticker: CAN'T FEED 'EM! DON'T BREED 'EM!. That bumper sticker was at the dollar store and I found that quite ironic.

Buster Blue (Red, Pink, Orange)

One look and Buster and you know what color our next project will be. It is hard to see in the photos but Buster has orange, red and blue paint all over him. The blue paint is from a few weeks ago and the red and orange are from today's project. Also, you can tell what materials we are using; Buster's hindquarters are covered in sawdust.

Front Yard Improvements

Our little backyard always seems to be where we spend most of our energy. This weekend Trevor "mixed it up" and did a front yard improvement. The area at the base of this tree was pretty plain, so he decided to use some landscape edging we had lying around and make a flower ring. Although it looks a little blah now, in a few weeks we should have quite a variety of summer annuals.

Heavenly Compost

Trevor works very hard to create his heavenly compost. The compost area is near the alley so our neighbors can toss in their yard clippings. The large black barrel is the compost tumbler. Trevor made it out of a 55 gallon barrel, some pieces of wood we had lying around, and a steel rod. Another one of his wonderfully cheap creations; cheap in price not in quality.

Pretty Pretty Peony

The peony had not blossomed when the storm hit and thus they were saved. These beautiful flowers face our neighbors home so we can't even look at them. Next year we are going to thin them out and transplant some in the backyard.

60 mph winds

These photos were taken on a cloudy morning. I wanted to post photos of this years Iris crop and a impending storm got me moving. An hour after I took these photos a 60 mph storm hit our area and destroyed some of our Iris crop. I love Irises because they are virtually maintenance free. Because I like my yard to look a bit overgrown these flowers fit in perfectly.

Genius at Work. Or is it at play?

Trevor capitalized on the length of our deck stairs and the fact the stairs meet up with our fence. He built this nifty flower box out of some lumber scraps in the garage. Lady Runner Beans and moss roses are going strong in this sunny flower box. Kudos to Trevor for thinking outside the flower box!!

Salvaged Style

Three ceramic chimney sleeves make a lovely addition to the garden. The top sleeve contains a tomato plant. I also planted moss roses and ivy. The sleeves block the access to the underside of our deck. This comes in handy because Sylvia loves to go under the deck.

Tiered Tomatoes

My handyman built this in less than an hour. The corner where the fence meets the garage is an odd spot that never seems to let anything grow. When you have a tiny yard every foot matters and we couldn't let this space go to waste. The tiered design allows easy access to all the plants. We have basil, tomatoes, and green peppers planted in this corner. Trevor salvaged a great deal of wood from his work and put it to good use. Another free project!!!

Hanging Tomatoes

We are very happy with our hanging planters. Trevor's work has a ton of 5 gal. buckets and we always love a free project. Each bucket contains a tomato or pepper plant. Trevor drilled a two inch hole in the bottom. Then we used some excess foam, that was leftover from an upholstery project, to line the bottom and hold the plant in place. Space in our yard is limited; we had to think upward (think Hong Kong). We planted an upside down tomato last year and had great success. The fruit never touches the ground and that decreases rotting, bruising, and other blemishes. Also, we use the top of the bucket to plant lettuce!!

Rain Barrels

Our first attempt at rain barreling is a success. Our four rain barrels have been wonderful. Three of the 30 gal. barrels are connected and topped with a small kitchen garden. Crisp mint lettuce, spinach, parsley, basil, oregano, and cinnamon basil are in the kitchen garden. Our single rain barrel is a 50 gal. tank topped off with a variety of flowers. All tanks are covered at the intake out output points with screens to keep out the mosquitoes. The 50 gallon tank is attached to a soaker hose that runs throughout the garden to evenly water all the plants. The barrels don't take up too much space and they provide free water that is actually better for the plants than water from the city's supply. Each barrel also has a vent that is covered with screen and a clear plastic cylinder to keep the soil out. The barrels are from a local car wash and they were happy to part with them. We purchased the fixtures and other hardware. Freecycle supplied all of the hose for the soaker hose. We used vinyl spray paint and it covered pretty nicely. All together the four barrels cost about $12.00 to put together.

Community Garden

Trevor, Mackey, and I decided to rent a community garden plot. The plot is 30X40 and located on the hill in Duluth. There is only one hill in Duluth. For $25.00 your plot is tilled and you receive a bag of fertilizer. We have yet to receive the fertilizer but were please to learn that we wouldn't have to till it ourselves. The second photo is our "Socialist Gothic" portrait. In addition to our $25.00 we must complete at least two hours of community service. Everybody wins in the end. We planted tomatoes, peppers, beans, cucumbers, squash, and various melons. We have a bit of space left where we plan on planting broccoli and cabbage. Our plan is to can salsa, spaghetti sauce, diced tomatoes, and green beans. The squash will be kept in the root cellar. Pickles will be made as soon as the cucumbers are ready and my Grandma Joann shares her sun pickle recipe. The melons will be gone right away. I might even dig in at the garden site. My summer diet consists of melons, strawberries, cucumbers, gazpacho, and ice cream. A great deal of food is also planted in our little yard. I will post photos of some of our creative space saving ideas. Until then, happy gardening.

Seattle

Superior is like Seattle in one way - rain! Our soil is mostly clay and our yard in now waterlogged. Trevor made attachments for my shoes that aerate the lawn. I will take a picture because they look like implements of torture.

Our Lovely Little Yard

I love our little yard!! Summers have always been filled with class, papers, and projects; I never had time to take care of my postage stamp lot. This year I am determined to give my yard the respect it deserves. Many of us that choose to live in town are forced to sacrifice space for convenience. Tomatoes, peepers, ground cherries, peas, and beans can flourish in a small space. The photo to the left is our yard in the spring of 2005; it isn't much too look at so we made some improvements!!