A Green Fire

I just read this article at NPR.org.  The point is that if we cannot repair what we own, do we truly own it?

I have been thinking for a while about our throw-away society.  I try to make what I have last as long as possible, but there are many items I have, that I know I cannot repair.  For example, if my DVD/VCR player croaks, I do not know how to fix that.  Also, it has gotten to the point that it is cheaper to buy a new one than for me to pay someone to fix it.  How crazy is that?

I remember a pair of socks I had in high school.  I LOVED those socks.  I took them with me to college where I finally wore out the heels.  Instead of buying new ones, I used thread and repaired the holes. Everyone I showed them too was not impressed.  “Why don’t you just buy new socks?” was the question I was asked again and again.  New socks were not the point.  The point was I fixed an item that I loved, and wanted to keep.  This is the same point Mr. Jalopy makes in the NPR article.  We as a nation need to get back to learning how to fix what we own.

What do you know how to repair, or wish you knew how to repair?

Yesterday, I found a site with plans for all kinds of solar ovens. Actually, the site has all kinds of information about solar cooking. Solar cooking is something I first encountered years ago on 3-2-1 contact, a PBS science show.  I am interested in it now, because I really like camping, and another way to cook food without having to find wood and build a fire, or to bring charcoal sounds wonderful to me.

Also, memories of hurricane Katrina are still fresh with me, and seeing all the flooding going on in Iowa reinforces that disaster can happen at any time, anywhere. I was lucky after Katrina, my power came on pretty soon. What if it happens again, and what if the disaster is more widespread? Having another way to cook will be pretty darn handy.

So, a solar oven is basically concentrating the sun’s rays onto a pot or cooking vessel by using several reflective panels. These can be incredibly simple or fancy. I was so excited to find that you can make a solar oven using the silver sun shade that usually sits on your car’s dashboard. Another example was made from a large umbrella. Basically, almost anything can be made to work.

Looking at videos on youtube, a man showed how he turned an old satellite dish and some mylar into the reflector for an oven.  I also have an old satellite dish and some Mylar, and glue.  I sense a weekend project coming up.   Once it’s finished, what should I cook first?

I planted my dill in one of my water bottle planters, because the toilet paper tubes were not doing the trick.  I had one seedling come up, so I put it in, and I used dirt from the other tubes to fill the planter.  Well, now I have eight seedling!  I think the problem was the tubes just did not hold water long enough, so the dirt was too dry. 

When I got up this morning, that seedling was up, and so were several others.   All my inside plants are doing well.  My climbing ivy is climbing beautifully.

I also have some small ivy in another water bottle planter, and it is doing well too. In this photo, you can see the whole planter.  There is a bit of cloth in the neck of the bottle to act as a wick.  It looks kind of ugly right now, but I am thinking of painting the bottle with some non-toxic paint, now that I know plants will actually thrive in this type planter.

Next will be to see if the rest of my dill and rosemary seeds come up.  I planted them in regular pots this weekend.  In seven to twenty one days, maybe I will have some more little seedling babies.

I read a post last week about recycling plastic water bottles, 2 liter bottles, and milk jugs into planters.  This seemed like such an easy project, I just had to try it.

I cut the top third of a plastic water bottle off, then put a little bit of cloth in the mouth of it to act as a wick, and a holder for the dirt.  I put my dirt on top of that, stuck my plant in and I was done with that part.

I put water in the bottom half, sat the top half into it, and I was finished.  It was that easy.  The great thing about a water bottle repurposed this way, it fits on my extremely narrow window sill.

I’ll take pics of the next ones I make.  I think this will be a great way to reuse these bottles, start herbs, and put pretty growing flowers all over the house.  Another great thing about this is, I will KNOW when the plant needs water, I will be able to see the water level at all times.

I woke up early Sunday and took full advantage of the pretty sunshine and cool temps.  I found an electric weed-eater in my shed and it still worked.  I also found two long extension cords and weed-eater string, so I was all set.  I “ate” the grass all around my trailer, the parking area, and the shed.

After that, I planned to mow, but the battery on the mower died. Oh well.

Instead, I framed out a raised bed.  I have these old concrete blocks that are left over from when my grandparents built their barn decades ago. They are not  what you normally think of when you think of a concrete block.  They are pale in color and smooth and shaped somewhat differently.  I had plenty of black plastic left over from when I had a decorative fish pond.  So, I put that down as a weed blocker. This week, or weekend, I will get dirt and plants!

I scouted out a new site in the side yard where I will be getting pine straw to mulch my plants after I plant them.

I made a compost bin too.  That was super easy.  I had dog wire left over from when I (with much help) built a dog pen.  So, I just made a big circle, wired it together and set it where I want the compost to be.

I know I will plant one tomato plant, and some herbs, but not sure what else.  If it was your personal garden, what veggie would you plant?