Need More PapayaWhip

This year, I only picked up 3 transplants for my scraggly excuse for a garden: a yellow bell pepper, a purple bell pepper, and a habenero of the orange variety. The rest I filled out from seed I saved from the transplants and possibly from some of the peppers I picked up from the grocery store. Amazingly some of the seed was still viable after sitting around for more than 2 yrs, especially the peppers which normally are labelled as being good for a year when kept under ideal conditions, which wasn't the case. I'm suspecting the red bell pepper seeds I saved are from a hybrid since the fruit are small and are not showing the bell pepper lobe shape. My Anaheims are not very consistent either, but I think those can be attributed to growing conditions. I had been underwatering for a bit, since I didn't realize how fast the plants were growing and hadn't adjust the drip irrigation to compensate. This was a scorching summer and since my approach to gardening is lacksadasical, a bunch of the crop got sunburnt and is no good. I finally got around to pruning those as well as harvesting some of the early season crop. The next batches of fruit look to be ripening well and of decent size now that I've got the watering adjusted. Unlike, one of my friends, pests have been on the low side. Then again I started much later than he did, so maybe that's why I avoided being wiped out by spider mites. Besides the peppers, I also decided to sow some of the green onion seeds I had been collecting from those I had planted from the saved root ends of store bought specimens. Green onions are particularily hardy. They'll grow from a 1" cutting with the roots cut all the way back to the base. Once established they seem to be drought resistant since I haven't really been paying attention to a batch which I know has been drying out completely. They seem to compensate by growing stouter and storing more water in the stalk when they can get it. Furthermore, they get a dusty silvery coating to cut down on the actual sunlight they absorb. The patch I started from seed is in a pot on the deck which is afforded some afternoon shade and is drip irrigated, is remaining slender and not developing the silvery coat. I also sowed more garlic chive seeds to make the patch that I have in a pot for a few years now denser. These are very easy to progate and maintain. They're pretty hard to kill since the roots are resilient to the point they can be an annoying weed if seed spread to areas you don't want them growing which I found out when I forgot to harvest some seed pods before they dispersed. Needless to say, I had chives sprouting in most of the neighbor containers. They've been nearly impossible to get rid of since by the time they surface the roots are well established and break too easily the surface, which would be fine if they died, but no, they don't. I have been able to remedy the situation by applying a thick layer of mulch that seriously curtails them from getting enough sunlight, so now I'm down to a few sporadic sproughts here and there. I'm thinking about using this years seeds to replace a border of variegated liriope that have been struggling. The border is between the house and the front walkway, so the chives should be easily contained and I think it will be easier to get the white chive blooms than these purple blooms on the liriope in this location. I'm going to transplant the liriope to containers until I decided where I want to replant them, which will probably be after I gut the current drip line and replace it with a drip emitters to conserve water. This summer I decided to removed the drip lines from the irrigation rotation. Furthermore, I've finally moved to a 14 day watering scheduled for the yard and it seems to be holding up. Only casualties so far have only been the root beer plants, but that's expected considering how much water those things need. I've actually tried to get rid of it but enough of the root system survives that it comes back. If you get plenty of rain fall it's an attractive plant. I might end up keeping it once I convert the drip line to a more specific emitter layout. I've come to the conclusion that I'm a lazy gardener at best, so I'm going to try to removed plants that require significant maintenance such as the current ornamental grasses in the backyard which look haggard if they aren't cut back every year, which is too much work for me. I have enough problems remembering to dead head stuff, so no thanks. I think, I'll save the rest of my thoughts for a later entry.

http://www.angryzenmaster.com/2008/08/04/i-pity-the-fool-who-calls-mr-t-homophobic/

I guess I still like Weezer, but the inclusion of all these YouTube celebs is awesome lol.

*Fixed the link. not sure what was up with that since I was linking to an official Weezer video on YouTube.

Decided to break out the old Intuos tablet to make some comparisons between the drawing capabilities of Photoshop CS3 (PS) vs. SketchBook Pro 2009 (SBP). This sketch I started is done in PS from scratch. Though PS is a capable drawing program it does lack the levels of sensitivity that SBP is capable of capturing thus line quality and variance is on the side of SBP.

Side by side, PS's brush should be compared more against SBP's brush as far as functionality. PS doesn't seem to simulate pencil marks easily out of the box, especially when it comes to varying line weight on a stroke.

Unlike drawing in PS, SBP is capable of simulating pencil marks making it totally different than PS who's pencil tool is an aliased brush essentially. As for the interface, SBP also wins in that regards making it easier to change brush size and colors with it's minimal yet highly usable UI.

PS is not a specialized drawing application like SBP which is why you'll rarely see these two applications compared. However, when I look at digital artist profiles, I rarely see SBP mentioned, but rather PS or it's direct competitors. Granted PS is basically a one stop shop in that you can also color and manipulate your art which is why it has it's appeal, but it's a shame that an application like SBP doesn't get more attention. Hopefully, that's changing now that SBP is improving it's interopability with PS with it's PSD support.

I can't remember how I came across SBP, maybe I did see it on someone's profile, but I'm glad I did. Though I haven't been prolific by a long stretch it's gotten me to want to draw more than usual these days, which I think says a lot.

http://www.notcot.com/archives/2008/05/fencing_food_bb.php

Now if you owned that and took a photo and used that on Facebook or any other on-line profile; you'd be my hero lol.

just simply flipping through samples of paper like washi or mulberry all afternoon day dreaming of all the things I could make...

Yes, I would be content.

I've been thinking a lot about why some people don't look before they leap. Are they afraid to leap if they see what's there? I tend to automatically think of the ramifications and jump anyway, accepting the consequences. I guess that makes me a calculating or manipulative SOB depending on the situation.

Regardless of whether or not you looked before leaping, we tend to ask for forgiveness if the actions warranted such. What irks me is the level of sincerity in the forgiveness asked. It's if by feigning ignorance there is less culpability for our actions, which I don't buy. When you hurt or do "wrong" to someone, your intentions do not matter in that it's not going to erase what's happened.

"Hell is paved with good intentions, not with bad ones. All men mean well."
  –  George Bernard Shaw

Furthermore, it's unlikely the person is going to simply forgive you if you don't own up to your actions. By claiming good intentions you are either denying responsibility or worse you are admitting there are times where your intentions are not honorable.

True sincerity lies within. Though by treating others in the way you would like treated (ethic of reciprocity) won't prevent offense, hopefully being the embodiment of those intentions warrants forgiveness. Unfortunately, the offended party must respect you, but in those situations the problem is with the offended party and your choices are nothing of consequence; however, that's really a separate topic.

So what do you gain through self imposed ignorance in the consequences of your actions? Based on my sampling of life, I probably only know of a handful that behave in the same way I do, so I'm wondering what part of the picture I'm missing. I have had people tell me that I'm very "Zen", but self-enlightenment is pretty useless if the rest of the world isn't on the same page. But really, is all of this simply fear and embarrassment of owning up? All I ever seem to hear are excuses and blame pushing and this isn't Corporate America we're talking about.

And when I wasn't careful they did explode, but I guess I was never a careless as this person was.

Now the YouTube video of the raw ostrich egg being microwaved was even more surprising. I guess I've never nuked an egg with a high enough wattage microwave to generate a big enough explosion.

Some days I wish I were simply more closed minded or simply obvious, which works until I start to think about a situation. If I wasn't somewhat allergic to alcohol, I might be a perpetual drunk in hopes of numbing myself to various vocal but questionable individuals that populate the information streams.

The Basics: Gift cards are not gifts

I came across this via Get Rich Slowly > Violent Acres:I'm not the only one who can't stand Liz Pulliam Weston. Though, this was my first trip to Violent Acres, I like what I found. I'll have to add her to my blog roll. I wish I knew more women like this in real life. This is the type of personality and outlook I find awesome in a prospective partner. She doesn't have to swear, but if she's as smart and seemingly forthright as this individual, I want to meet her.

But enough with my sudden puppy dog crush, what compelled me to write was her entry in regards to gift cards. Being an individual that is basically confused over his cultural identity, it refreshing to see a honest examination of the Western perhaps more American social construct of gift giving. Though, I'm well versed in etiquette, I sometimes think the environment that spawned worthless concepts such as Politically Correct corrupts the intention these social contracts were intended to dictate. However, I could just be simply naive to believe that manners were intended for good, rather than scholarly essays purport them to be.

For one, I always get the feeling that I feel less entitled that what the media suggests I should be. I've been chalking it up to the Eastern side of my upbringing and perhaps that's not far from the truth considering Liz Pulliam Weston's outlook on gift cards. Would it really be so horrible to exchange money during the holidays? But then again, with the growing sense of China-phobia, maybe it would be bad. I can't help thinking that every woman that takes her maiden name as a middle name suffers from entitlement issues. Even though I have friends that are the exception, it seems there are an overwhelming number that do fit the stereotype.

Gift cards are becoming more popular, but I say forget them. Just simply dole out the cash. Learn from the Asians. We've been doing it before sliced bread... a whole lot longer and history hasn't attributed any form a social collapse as a result.

In fact, unless you're feeling as entitled as Liz, gift giving the American way is not that great. If it were, people wouldn't have White Elephants or "recycle" gifts. And tell me who hasn't been disappointed by a gift they've received. Though I appreciate the thought, there have been many times where I wondered: "do they really think of me in that way?"; when it was obvious time and effort did go into procuring the gift. I would rather to have received a "remember me" token or better yet a gift card that came with a thoughtful note or that was packaged nicely. But really, why do we Americans feel compelled to give besides to fuel Consumerism.

We talk about the lack of importance material things, yet we have mainstream giving tips on what to "buy" to give. Shouldn't we be more focused on the time we spend with those we care about, perhaps over a meal shared or an event attended by. If it really is about "giving" should we put more stock into stuff that comes from the heart rather than a factory. I prefer to buy blank cards, but those seem harder to come by as the years go by.

Going back to the maiden name thing. Why does it seem we tend to be selective in what we choose to be progressive in. I'm mean if gift cards are so shameful due to custom and tradition, why not just take your husbands last name (I apologize if Pulliam was the middle name her parents gave her, but that typically leads down a similar path if they aren't embarrassed by it... come on how many Liz Westons are there that you really need to distinguish yourself from).

Finally, if you look at the URL Liz's article is filed under Saving and Debt > Find Online Deals. wtf??? Why is she even writing about the demerits of gift card giving. Consumer debt in America is a crisis and it doesn't help that it's not illegal to pilfer the financial well being of others. No apparently, our gift giving choices are a much more critical issue to say the denouncement of predatory lending or teaching good finances to the masses.

Some days, I really do feel like the Harlequin up against a Tick-tock Man.

Afternoon Delight trumps Cow Logo T-Shirt. After all, how could you top unicorns having sex?

Which reminds me, I've been meaning to read the Tropic of Cancer one of these days, though the cover to that 1994 paperback edition on Amazon may be a little too lewd to drag around town.

Anyway, I went ahead and decided to watch one of the videos on the Cow Logo site since I was there now anyway, though I hadn't expected to find myself here given where I was following the link from. I had obviously misconstrued what the individual meant by "fantastic". Not all was lost since the content on this site, while informative, does seem quite amusing.