Morfydd St. Clair

Judson Carroll wrote:

Morfydd St. Clair wrote:Thanks for the information!

For the European Permies, note that Oregon Grape is a common landscaping plant in Germany.  Many nurseries sell it, and you might be able to forage it, with caution.  (It kills me that the park near me that is full of berries every year also has big signs warning about rat poison.)

It is very easy to transplant and grows well in containers. Maybe you can grab one.  Even if you break off most of the root, a small one will survive.

Thank you!  I have two young bushes in my Kleingarten that I bought from a nursery.  So far they give me a nice handful of berries every year.  I'm reluctant to go nab one from the park but maybe I can divide these?  I'll look it up.

Thanks for the information!

For the European Permies, note that Oregon Grape is a common landscaping plant in Germany.  Many nurseries sell it, and you might be able to forage it, with caution.  (It kills me that the park near me that is full of berries every year also has big signs warning about rat poison.)

Christopher Weeks wrote:We tried a modified this last night: https://globaltableadventure.com/recipe/baked-belgian-endive-with-ham-and-cheese/


It was OK, but we won’t repeat it.

Interesting; why not?  I have a similar recipe (using a Gruyère pseudo Béchamel sauce).  I love the taste, but the endive tends to get very wet and sort of slide away from the knife and fork.  Maybe I can find a way to use the same ingredients in a bite-sized dish…

I can see using endive leaves as a carrier for stuff as a fancy appetizer (or informal eating-with-you-hands meal).  Because it’s bitter, the “stuff” should be fatty or meaty, probably.

NB: I love bitter and could munch on endives by itself - your mileage may vary.

I’m going to ask a really dumb question:  how many “sheds” are you allowed to build?

Because if you can build two, one could be the “wet” one, with toilet, bath, wet part of kitchenette, and, I dunno, central command center for whatever irrigation you do.  (Plus sauna/outdoor-kitchen, etc.)

Then your crafting/sleeping space could gain a lot of room.  

Put a sun shade between them when weather requires it and you’re golden.

I love how much thought you have put into this, and hope you can build something that makes you happy.

Perhaps Burra will have favorite suggestions.  It’s beloved in Portugal - searching for “bacalao” should get you started.

In Germany, there are several recycling options.

For (most) glass and aluminum drink containers, one pays a deposit on purchase.  The container can then be returned to get the deposit back.  (Most supermarkets have automatic machines to make this painless.)

People do go through garbage cans to pick out containers for the deposit; I think of it as a mitzvah to leave those containers on the ground by the can for easier finding.

Paper, colored glass, clear glass, compost and green waste are all supposed to go into specific outdoor containers and not in the garbage.  Plastic (some kinds) are supposed to go into yellow bags left outside and picked up every other week.

I must admit that I slack on compost (my dehydrator-thing died and regular countertop composters go poorly for me) and have no green waste in my apartment (I have a compost pile in the garden, of course).

Glass containers are usually returned to the brewery, power washed, and re-used directly.

Aluminum and glass are, of course, melted for re-use.

I would not be shocked if almost everything else, including garbage, is burned for electricity.  Not great, but in Europe there’s no space for landfills, so…

(Oh, and electronics are supposed to go to their own recycling; again, because so many things are burned for power and electronics are nasty for that.  There are several specialized bins for small electronics and recycling facilities for larger ones.)

I have never had a kitten, but have heard very good things online about a YouTuber named The Kitten Lady.  Her advice is supposed to be especially good if your kitten is too young to be away from its mother.

Marieke De Jong wrote:
Hi everyone,

Interesting question Nancy, and I never seem to manage enough or fully functional pea sticks no matter how I vow to do it!
Anyway, I just happened to come across a Dutch website on rare seeds and they listed a pea that's been saved by one if their farmer - seed growers and they described their technique of growing the peas together with wheat (or some grain, but I think they said wheat). I'll try this one of these years once I get grain going in my garden. I can see it work even if you wanted some fresh peas, as long as you leave space you can just walk along the rows and pick some.

Hi Marieke, which website was that?  Thanks!

This week the apple roller, to pick up fallen apples, got a good workout.  The apple picker is a close second.  Then a leaf rake and big “claws” to get leaves from the pile into the barrel, to be dragged to the compost pile.

A trowel to plant fall bulbs, and soon clippers and saws to prune everything.  I can’t believe how enthusiastic I am about pollarding some of the hazelnuts.  (I could do a full coppice but have aggressive rabbits, so leave 1-3 big trunks about hip-high just in case.) There will be sunlight again!  Briefly.

That's great feedback.  I don't know how to paint, but it's very clear for next steps (or next try) for you!

I do think it's lovely as is, but I understand that it's not where you want to be.

Night Watch is one of my favorite Discworld novels.  I sometimes re-read Guards! Guards! and then Night Watch immediately after.  G!G! is the funny pastiche I think you might be looking for.  It's very early in the series, introducing a lot of characters for the first time, in very broad strokes.  NW is fascinating after everyone having grown and matured.

Should you ever decide to sell a copy, please let me know - this is a very sweet piece.

(edited: grammar)