Catie George

I have no idea about what file size is permissible.  

If you do need to reduce it and created the slide show in power point, it is very easy to compress all the photos in a presentation and severely reduce file size. PowerPoint stores images really inefficiently and if you have a bunch of high res photos from a good camera, it can eat up space fast.
Here's the first how to link I found...

https://nutsandboltsspeedtraining.com/powerpoint-tutorials/powerpoint-compress-image

There may be a free pdf editor that can also do this if you have pdf'd every thing.

If someone uses the diamond piers in a cold climate, it looks like they will have to insulate or watch out for frost heave/adfreeze.  But I suppose that's the same for almost any foundation. They claim it works for gravels, having tried to hammer thin metal rods into gravel, I would be pretty skeptical. Likely wouldn't work well anywhere with glacial till, either.

I like the move somewhere nearby option.

My grandfather owned 2 100 acre properties within easy walking distance of each other.  One was all swamp and gravel hill, grazed by cattle, trees wont even grow on a lot of it despite not being grazed or cut for 40 years. The other was a productive and fertile farm good for growing corn, soy, hay, etc. There might be somewhere better nearby?

I would personally prefer to own 5 acres of decent soil than 40 acres of difficult soil.

Also - I hear you about everything dying. The house i grew up in had maybe an inch of topsoil over maybe 1 ft of orangey subsoil over hard granite bedrock, 100 acres of rock and scrubby pine trees. Everything died, things froze, late frosts, etc. Dad grows nice tomatos... in pots. The apple trees are 12 + and have never produced anything.  If I were you, I'd consider one or two nice raised bed for veggies, and stop stressing over growing anything outside of those beds.

I pity the original farmers, who left no sign of their presence other than a few incomplete rock fences.

I know someone who has one. She reportedly is followed around outside  by her husband, carrying a pail of water lest she light the house on fire (and she has come close).

That being said, her yard is pretty weed free and she has a lot of fun...

I can see the appeal as a fun way to get rid of driveway weeds, but would balk at the price. Plus, ergonomically they look not great to me.

If I were market gardening,  I would invest in a few loads of woodchips or other mulch instead, and well composted manure.  Keeps the weeds down and makes them easy to pull, reduces watering needs, keeps the soil more consistently moist, etc. Maybe a wheel hoe and some good standing weeding tools/hoes.

Welcome to Permies! That sounds like you have done a lot of work!!

I am personally a "leave it be" kind of person for forest management - a strong weedwacker a few times a year on the edges, a sharp set of long handled pruning shears and that's about all, unless there is dead fall or a tree that is a danger. Others are far more ambitious :)

What are you trying to accomplish on your property? Just control of the blackberry and poison oak, or do you have other goals? I have to admit, I think of Himalayan blackberry as  a very tasty problem to have, though I have seen the damage it can do.

Someone linked this company in another thread. I am considering trying to sew something of theirs - I love that they draft their patterns for 3 different bust sizes/size and pants to two different hip waist ratios. I love the look of their button up top, as I cant find any that fit me well in store, and some of the tanks would look nice under a work blazer. They are pricey patterns but look really classic to me - easy enough to look fresh with a different fabric, or keep timeless with plain or neutral fabric. Wish they had more pants and fewer dresses though!

Here are their woven tops:
https://www.cashmerette.com/collections/cashmerette-patterns/woven-tops

They have tutorials on adjustments, and claim you can email them with pattern fitting questions.

Most years, my cucumbers suck so i pickle zucchini. This year, my zucchini didnt germinate, and my cucumbers are trying to outrun me.

Was away for 3 days, came back to these monsters and a bunch of babies. Hmmm.... wonder how many cucumbers I can foist off on my neighbours??? And how many consecutive days can cucumber salad be eaten for breakfast, lunch, and dinner?

Have you looked at the traditional Chinese lunar calendar?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_calendar


Their holidays are still governed by it  so you may be able to find good resources online.

Its been a wild year here in the garden. Some things are stunted and slow, some are way ahead of schedule.

I planted maxima squash for the first time, plus moshata and pepo. In previous years my squash harvesting technique had been "Oh no, its gonna frost, harvest everything".
This year, its July, and several of my maxima squadh (Sunshine F1) are bright orange and hardening already even as the first of the pepo squash are just starting to form and I am eating my first cherry tomatoes.. the one moshata (butternut) is already full sized and slowly changing colour, as is my other maxima (Blue Magic F1).

How do I know when they can be picked?

I hyper manage my surroundings. No scented products at all - not even "natural" ones (except peppermint and lemon), unscented soaps, laundry detergents, deodorants, cleaning products, etc. No carpets, regular vacuuming, and regularly changing bedding. No smoke, no campfires. No cats and hypoallergenic dogs.

Doing this, I can keep myself down to just one mild asthma med as needed and sometimes an antihistamine - without this I am not sure I could handle my asthma at all. My asthma has always been the kind that is due to triggers though, not random.