Lessons from Lemongrass

1. Fertilize enough, but do not over-fertilize (hence the semi-brown leaves).
2. Re-pot plants when you've noticed they've stopped growing.

More rando boot reviews worth a look...

If you ever wonder what I look at and pay attention to forreviews here are a couple that would have helped with my own decision making.



http://outerlocal.com/skiing/scarpa-alien-1-0-vsdynafit-dy-n-a-evo-review



http://outerlocal.com/skiing/scarpa-alien-review



http://tetonsandwasatch.com//dynafit-dyna-pdg-boot-review/



http://tetonsandwasatch.com//scarpa-alien-1-review/



http://l-caldwell.blogspot.com//11/dynafit-dyna-pdg-boot-review.html



http://outerlocal.com/skiing/scarpa-alien-1-0-review2-review

The ‘Painted Ladies’ of San Francisco

You know what makes me go WOW about San Francisco? The adorable Victorian and Edwardian houses. I have a weakness for period style architecture and these beautiful houses are everywhere in the city and I just can’t get enough of them. They are just simply WOW.



The 'Postcard Row' Painted Ladies on Steiner Street near Alamo Square. I was supposed to show off the beautiful houses but instead it looks like I am showing off the San Francisco skyline. Bummer.



These wow-factor gorgeous houses are nicknamed, the ‘Painted Ladies’ of San Francisco and the famous ones are on Steiner Street facing the Alamo Square with the San Francisco’s Financial District skyline in the background. The dainty houses are often referred to as the ‘Postcard Row’ and I guess they fit in well to the picture perfect feminine representation of San Francisco, while the Golden Gate Bridge I’d say is the masculine representation of the city.



There are about 48,000 -+ Victorian and Edwardian houses and mansions in the city and they are all over the place, however, many of the lovely ones that makes you go wow are located around the Alamo Square, in the Western Addition neighbourhood, Nobb Hill and in Haight-Ashbury and Lower Haight as well.



Dutchman complains that every time we go out for a walk he is waiting much longer for me in alleys and sidestreets. He often jokes about it that I tend to come along only after a few minutes as I am always 1 or 2 blocks behind. You’d probably ask what is keeping me? Well simple, taking fotos of the beauties and ogling at them as well. I cannot help it.



It is very interesting to learn that the trend of painting houses into different colours only started in 1963, revolutionized by artist, Butch Kardum who started painting his own house in bright primary colours. This lead to heavy criticism from neighbours and conservatives, but eventually, and perhaps due to the rise of the legendary hippie culture at that time (picture this: Janis Joplin in psychedelic coloured outfit), the idea unravelled into a scorching fashion item—painting houses in bright colours! Up to now, the house colouring movement is very much alive in San Francisco. Thanks to trendsetter Kardum.



Hope you enjoy the fotos of these exquisite wooden mansions. Hmm, I wonder how much they cost?







And my only regret: I wish I had taken more fotos of these gorgeous beauties.

Our dog the celebrity

Jasmine is rarely nippy... so when we tried to check her injured foot and she objected, we took her to the vet.

Despite planning to do so, we never got around to taking her on any "going someplace fun" rides. So now she sees them all (rightfully) as "going to the vet" rides, which she was quick to figure out that she dislikes.

The vets' office was overstuffed with people worried that they'd better get something looked at before the long holiday weekend. Other than the horse and a nervous German Shepherd, none of them looked like the two-person job that getting Jasmine to the vet has become.

In a room full of cats and lap dogs, a Great Pyrenees is a celebrity. I think she knew it, too.

When it was finally our turn to muscle her onto the scale, people oohed and ahhed at her 100 pounds. A young boy was properly impressed: "Wow! What kind of dog is that?!"

I was tempted to say, "The kind that likes to run through mud and tall grass and get things stuck in her foot."

It was a long grass seed that had gotten embedded and then a little infected. She got a "take a nap" shot (that she bore quite bravely thank you). The foot was clipped and prodded and balmed, and I was able to brush some mats out of her coat while she was in no position to object.

She woke up slowly, a little scared and unsure. Then she played me like a fiddle, lying on the cool floor pretending that her back legs still wouldn't function. My "poor baby" was apparently just enjoying the air conditioning. Hmmph.

Yellowstone and Mammoth Hot Springs

Since most of the roads in Yellowstone National Park are closed in the winter, you are pretty limited when it comes to what part of the park can be explored. The only road within Yellowstone that is open year-round is the road from Gardiner, Montana to Cooke City, Montana. Gardiner is known as the "North Entrance" to Yellowstone National Park.



Above: I saw this old SUV just outside the entrance to the park. I couldn't resist the shot, with the " No parking here to end of street" sign. Also notice the license plate... it says "FAST SUV". I don't know about you, but to me this SUV looks like it is anything but fast!

I arrived in Gardiner in the early afternoon, with enough time to make the drive from Gardiner to Cooke City. I was hoping to see some wildlife (mostly Elk), but all I saw were a few Bison that were way off in the distance in a field. Oh well, it was still an interesting and beautiful drive. The scenery in Yellowstone certainly is worth the drive. The Lamar Valley in particular is especially pretty.



Since most of the roads in Yellowstone are closed and open only to over-the-snow travel, some companies do operate shuttle vehicles that run on tracks instead of tires. Using tracks gives the vehicles greater flotation so they can drive on top of the snow.



Above: This picture of the moon off the top of a mountain peak was taken just outside of Cooke City.



I spent the night in Gardiner, and after my drive to Cooke City and back I got a bite to eat then went back out to try shooting some of the Mammoth Hot Springs in the moonlight. It certainly was pretty cool to see the bubbling and steaming hot springs at night. The steam takes on a whole different mood at night than it does during the day. I also found a nice viewpoint which gave me a wonderful view of the valley and the "town" of Mammoth (which is basically a town where all the park service employees live). It was a very chilly night (I think the low that night was around 15 degrees), so I kinda froze my rear off but it was worth it!



The next morning I woke well before sunrise so I could go back to the park and photograph the hot springs in the morning light. Right after I passed the park entrance I finally got my Elk wish... there were half a dozen Elk right in the middle of the road! As I inched my car closer and closer to them all of them walked off the road except for one. The one that stayed stood his ground right in the middle of the road, and as I got alongside him I rolled down my window and took this picture of him. He just stared at me as I inched past him. I think if I leaned out the window, he was close enough that I could have pet him! What a great start to the day :-)



After my encounter with the Elk I drove the few miles up to Mammoth Hot Springs, gathered my gear and went off down the boardwalk to shoot the hot springs again, this time in the morning light. Once the sunlight hit the steam from the hot springs, it just glowed. Since it was still only about 15 to 20 degrees outside, and the warm air escaping from the hot springs was now being hit directly by warm sunlight, there was a lot more steam than there was last night.





Below: I used my "little" camera to take this self-portrait of me with my "big" camera. Look at all that steam in the background! Even though most of Yellowstone is 'closed' this time of year, there is still plenty to see and do!

'Off Label' Use

In pharmacological jargon, there is a term, "off label use," that refers to a treatment being used successfully for something other than it was originally formulated for. That's kind of how I am starting to feel about my Royal H.mixte. When I asked Bryan to build me this bike in the Fall of , I envisioned it as predominantly for light touring. But in practice I mostly use it as a long-distance transportation bike. I think I've only done recreational rides on it a total of maybe three times, whereas I ride it for transportation whenever I need to travel over 7 miles or so one way - which is several times a week.



Using a bike for purposes other than intended can happen for any number of reasons. For instance, our cycling preferences can change, as mine did. For recreational riding, I now prefer to ride a diamond frame bike with drop bars. Also, life circumstances can change. Just a couple of months after I got the mixte, we ended up without a car, and I actually needed a light, easy long-distance transportation bike. When I was ordering the bike, I did not foresee either of these changes.





The good thing about using the mixte "off label," is that most of the things that made it good for light touring also make it work as a long distance transportation bike. The frame allows me to wear a skirt. It can handle hills and distances without me breaking a sweat. Its compact size and maneuverable handling make it good in the sort of suburban stripmall-roadish traffic that I usually encounter out of town. The springy ride quality means that long trips don't tire me out. The 35mm tires are sufficiently wide for bad roads and even off-road. The dynamo lighting system is fantastic and I never have to worry about getting stuck in the middle of nowhere in the dark. The front and rear racks enable me to carry several small loads at a time. Everything that I need for my trips is there. The few times I've tried to use a roadbike for long distance transportation, I arrive to my destination out of breath and with sweaty hair. On the upright mixte I am a bit slower, but am always presentable and fresh.



There are however a few things that are less than ideal about the mixte given how I use it. The short chainstays made it difficult to find panniers that did not give me heelstrike, though I did find several after having made a mission of it (see Philosophy, Cristobal, and the Po-Campo pictured here). But the more irksome issue is that I get a wee bit of toe overlap on this bike, which freaks me out when cycling in traffic. It is a small amount of toe overlap that might even disappear if I wore PowerGrips or removed the fenders - but neither of those is practical on an upright transportation bicycle. Converting the bike to 650B would solve the problem, but would be expensive, considering that I'd have to get new wheels built, and buy a new set of brakes, as well as new tires and fenders. So I am kind of stuck between thinking that the toe overlap is not a big deal and the bike is fine as is, and being irritated with it, since it is the one thing that undermines my enjoyment of an otherwise fantastically versatile bicycle.



Lots of bikes are used off-label round these parts, and the prevalence of this practice made me smile last night when a carbon fiber racing bike flew by with a sizable steel front basket attached to the fork, sort of like this. My re-purposing of the mixte is not nearly as dramatic, but the question of a possible 650B conversion keeps swirling around my mind every time I ride the bike. Would you do it, or leave it be? Any interesting off-label use stories of your own to share?

She's Got the Sweetest Little Baby Face

Little Miss Lana is growing up, and she is losing the kitten face some. She's still so cute though, that I think she still has a baby face.



Not only is she the cutest thing, she is so helpful. She is willing to join in and lend a paw wherever she can.





Don't tell the other pets, but she is my favorite by far. This week, at least.



Well, apparently the boy and the dog are jealous over this post, so I have to add a few shots of them too.





The dog is awesome too. She is by far the most affectionate of all our pets. She gives slobbery kisses all day long.





Now Mimi is so cool, she isn't even jealous that I said Lana is my current favorite. Mimi just sits in the corner and rolls her eyes at all of us. Which makes me extra fond of her the days I am trying to get something done and the other two are wanting attention. They are all pretty fabulous in their own ways. Just like people.



Living the life in Virginia!