Days 1, 2, and 3 roughly...with the center picture day 3. We eat them tonight!!
Thursday, February 28, 2008
My first bean sprouts
Days 1, 2, and 3 roughly...with the center picture day 3. We eat them tonight!!
Rising Food Prices
Notice the rise in food prices yet? We have sure felt it. We starting noticing about a month ago with cheese, milk and flour. I was shocked. Now pretty much all food is up and our food bill has gone up 25% . (Although, for those of you in the city...you may have more of a buffer. We noticed the extremely high food prices in Portland and Jeff's family hadn't noticed yet any changes in price. Maybe someone is absorbing some of this with the already overpriced food. I'd say they can't do it for long though. Just speculation.) Needless to say..our eating habits are changing now as we try to get back onto budget. More beans and rice....thankfully we like asian so rice works well. But anyways, I couldn't resist taking a picture of this after we went to the store last week. Looks so yummy to have a full fridge. Just don't ask how much it cost. ;)
The Winter Long Spring
You know how weatherman always come up with names for weather events...well, Jeff and I came up with one for this winter...the Winter-long spring of 2007-2008. It dawned on me recently how much this winter has felt like April with the warm 50 degree days followed by a 15 degree day and back to a warm day again. Just a thought.
Bar Stool Economics
Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all
ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes,
it would go something like this:
The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay $1.
The sixth would pay $3.
The seventh would pay $7.
The eighth would pay $12.
The ninth would pay $18.
The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.
So, that’s what they decided to do. The ten men drank in the bar every
day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the
owner threw them a curve. ‘Since you are all such good customers, he
said, ‘I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20. Drinks
for the ten now cost just $80.
The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so
the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free.
But what about the other six men - the paying customers? How could they
divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his ‘fair share?’
They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted
that from everybody’s share, then the fifth man and the sixth man
would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner
suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man’s bill by roughly
the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should
pay.!
And so:
The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).
The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).
The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).
The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).
Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four
continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men
began to compare their savings.
‘I only got a dollar out of the $20,’declared the sixth man. He
pointed to the tenth man,’ but he got $10!’
‘Yeah, that’s right,’ exclaimed the fifth man. ‘I only saved a dollar,
too. It’s unfair that he got ten times more than I!’
‘That’s true!!’ shouted the seventh man. ‘Why should he get $10 back
when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!’
‘Wait a minute,’ yelled the first four men in unison. ‘We didn’t get
anything at all. The system exploits the poor!’
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.
The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks, so the nine
sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the
bill, they discovered something important. They didn’t have enough
money between all of them for even half of the bill!
And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how
our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the
most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for
being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they
might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat
friendlier.
David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics, University of Georgia
Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all
ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes,
it would go something like this:
The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay $1.
The sixth would pay $3.
The seventh would pay $7.
The eighth would pay $12.
The ninth would pay $18.
The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.
So, that’s what they decided to do. The ten men drank in the bar every
day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the
owner threw them a curve. ‘Since you are all such good customers, he
said, ‘I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20. Drinks
for the ten now cost just $80.
The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so
the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free.
But what about the other six men - the paying customers? How could they
divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his ‘fair share?’
They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted
that from everybody’s share, then the fifth man and the sixth man
would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner
suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man’s bill by roughly
the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should
pay.!
And so:
The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).
The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).
The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).
The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).
Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four
continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men
began to compare their savings.
‘I only got a dollar out of the $20,’declared the sixth man. He
pointed to the tenth man,’ but he got $10!’
‘Yeah, that’s right,’ exclaimed the fifth man. ‘I only saved a dollar,
too. It’s unfair that he got ten times more than I!’
‘That’s true!!’ shouted the seventh man. ‘Why should he get $10 back
when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!’
‘Wait a minute,’ yelled the first four men in unison. ‘We didn’t get
anything at all. The system exploits the poor!’
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.
The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks, so the nine
sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the
bill, they discovered something important. They didn’t have enough
money between all of them for even half of the bill!
And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how
our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the
most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for
being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they
might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat
friendlier.
David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics, University of Georgia
Seeds, seeds, seeds
Boy, I hate spending money. I just sent in another seed order..makes me sick to my stomach. I have to keep telling myself it is an investment..but ughhh.
I still have no idea how I am going to plant all these..I must be crazy.
I still have no idea how I am going to plant all these..I must be crazy.
Friday, February 22, 2008
I'm back on weather watching. I've been studying up a bit on this warm weather we have had the last few years. The heat wave of 2007 was historical with some of the data even enough to have me wondering if there is something to global warming. These extremely hot summers and mild winters seems to be related to the El Nino/La Nina cycle. And from what I can tell (although I admit to being no expert at this) they (the forecasters) are predicting this La Nina hot and dry weather to continue until next winter. So expect another hot summer...but hope that they are wrong. According to the NCDC, six of the ten warmest years on record have been since 1998. That is six of the last nine years(2007 report)have been record breakers!! The El Nino/La Nina cycle runs from 2-7 years so it seems that this heat trend couldn't last much longer than a few more years. If that is the only cause of the heat trend. Which as nature never runs on one variable, I well know it is not. But like the little ice age and the following warming trend, I rest assured that God will bring back the cool weather..even if not in my lifetime.
Even so, many are looking into long-term changes. for example, this article.. http://www.cnn.com/2007/LIVING/homestyle/08/08/climate.gardening.ap/index.html
2008 was the driest on record in the Tri-Cities area with about 24 inches of rain total!! And microclimate can vary so much in the mountains that who can tell what we really had on the south side of the Clinch Mountains. For more info see : (http://www.tricities.com/tristate/tri/news.apx.-content-articles-TRI-2008-02-21-0001.html)
Enough said for one night.
Even so, many are looking into long-term changes. for example, this article.. http://www.cnn.com/2007/LIVING/homestyle/08/08/climate.gardening.ap/index.html
2008 was the driest on record in the Tri-Cities area with about 24 inches of rain total!! And microclimate can vary so much in the mountains that who can tell what we really had on the south side of the Clinch Mountains. For more info see : (http://www.tricities.com/tristate/tri/news.apx.-content-articles-TRI-2008-02-21-0001.html)
Enough said for one night.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Sunday, February 17, 2008
High tunnel dream
I'm thinking about building a high tunnel. This is my example for myself to look at and decide how I want to build it.
A high tunnel seems to be a good way to be able to extend the growing season by a month or so on either end. This would be like a small 10' by 30' plot covered in plastic in which I could grow long season flowers like lisianthus. Of course, the chances of me building this are slim at this time. But I was thinking of this as a project for next winter. Whatcha think???.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Present project
This is my next project. Working on setting up my seedling room in the cellar. Seed sowing goes full speed in about 2 weeks. Gotta be ready! Hopefully I'll have space for 8 or 9 flats in this room. Right now the room stays steady at 55 degrees with the water heater keeping things warm. As long as we dont get many more real cold spells it should work out well. The humidity is a little high but i'll just have to wait and see how that goes. For now I'm just trying to keep the air circulated to prevent mold.
Coldframes are finished!!
I finally finished my cold frames. Well mostly. I have a few minor adjustments to make but I probably won't get to it until next winter. They are good to go for now though.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Well I figured it about time I let everyone know what I have been up to lately. Since it is in the middle of the winter when I have nothing to do. ;)
My cold frames are coming together bit by bit whenever it is warm enough outside that I don't need gloves on. Yes, even with another crazy warm winter, trying to do some work without gloves can be miserable. I AM soaking in whatever coldness I can get though, because I know with as warm winter as we have had we are likely to get another hot summer too. Maybe not though....one can be hopeful.
I planted some cool season veggies in the coldframes today even though the glass is not all put in. Hopefully tomorrow I can finish glazing the glass and attach hinges.
One of our warmer days I cleaned up the cellar for my seedling room. Although the room is only about 5' by 7', I had nowhere else to start flats of seedlings so this will have to do. I think I'll be able to get in about 7 or 8 flats in my seedling room under 3 fluorescent shop lights. Hopefully the hot water heater will help keep the room above 55 degrees. So after I get the flats germinated in the living room next to the woodstove I can take them down to the cellar to continue growing. But I still don't know how this is going to work since I well now I will have more than 8 flats.
As for the winter days, I keep myself busy with planning and researching. My largest seed order ever is about to be placed. And this is after I already ordered 12 varieties from Harris seed and 8 or so flowering shrubs and trees from the Arbor Day Foundation. I'd better make some money soon!
500 gladiolus bulbs will be coming the end of March. Trees and shrubs coming any day. And seeding has already begun(you should see my dirty living room!!).
Not much been done on the house lately except small improvements. We both have had other more pressing matters so the house has had to wait in disarray. The tub still makes funny noises, the roof is getting more rust, the floorboards are falling in, the ceiling is not finished, and the doors leak like sieves but we keep on planning to take care of it soon. Such a great old house.
My cold frames are coming together bit by bit whenever it is warm enough outside that I don't need gloves on. Yes, even with another crazy warm winter, trying to do some work without gloves can be miserable. I AM soaking in whatever coldness I can get though, because I know with as warm winter as we have had we are likely to get another hot summer too. Maybe not though....one can be hopeful.
I planted some cool season veggies in the coldframes today even though the glass is not all put in. Hopefully tomorrow I can finish glazing the glass and attach hinges.
One of our warmer days I cleaned up the cellar for my seedling room. Although the room is only about 5' by 7', I had nowhere else to start flats of seedlings so this will have to do. I think I'll be able to get in about 7 or 8 flats in my seedling room under 3 fluorescent shop lights. Hopefully the hot water heater will help keep the room above 55 degrees. So after I get the flats germinated in the living room next to the woodstove I can take them down to the cellar to continue growing. But I still don't know how this is going to work since I well now I will have more than 8 flats.
As for the winter days, I keep myself busy with planning and researching. My largest seed order ever is about to be placed. And this is after I already ordered 12 varieties from Harris seed and 8 or so flowering shrubs and trees from the Arbor Day Foundation. I'd better make some money soon!
500 gladiolus bulbs will be coming the end of March. Trees and shrubs coming any day. And seeding has already begun(you should see my dirty living room!!).
Not much been done on the house lately except small improvements. We both have had other more pressing matters so the house has had to wait in disarray. The tub still makes funny noises, the roof is getting more rust, the floorboards are falling in, the ceiling is not finished, and the doors leak like sieves but we keep on planning to take care of it soon. Such a great old house.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Monday, February 11, 2008
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Sunday, February 03, 2008
Still warm
Well I guess Appalachia is not the only place having a heating trend (although ours may be more long term..from the observations of the last 5 years or so). It is supposed to be 52 degrees here in Maine on Tuesday. No snow in the forecast. I suppose I need to embrace the warm climate and learn to sail or something. Oh wait maybe putting my kayak to use would be a good thing.
And while I am on the warming trend topic. I was thinking last night about air conditioning. I was recalling SW Virginia and NE Tennessee back 5-10 years ago and realized air conditioners where few and far between at that time. At the most people had a window unit in one room of the house. Now I would guess half the homes in the area have AC units. I'd say this is a pretty good indicator of how much warmer our summer months have been getting(of course this isn't a scientific study).
Well needless to say, Jeff and I are hoping the warming trend is over and the climate will be back to a hot summer day being 83 F(and a warm winter day being 43 F). One tropical summer is enough.
One other tidbit I was noticing while poring over seed catalogs. The planting zone we are in for SW Virginia(Zone 6) extends all the way up to northern New England. Interesting when we often think of ourselves of a southern area (can't say "state" because northern Virginia is definitely NOT southern culture). We actually have winters in the temperature range of New England(at least we did). Here in Maine is actually only a 10 degree average low temperature than SW Virginia.
And while I am on the warming trend topic. I was thinking last night about air conditioning. I was recalling SW Virginia and NE Tennessee back 5-10 years ago and realized air conditioners where few and far between at that time. At the most people had a window unit in one room of the house. Now I would guess half the homes in the area have AC units. I'd say this is a pretty good indicator of how much warmer our summer months have been getting(of course this isn't a scientific study).
Well needless to say, Jeff and I are hoping the warming trend is over and the climate will be back to a hot summer day being 83 F(and a warm winter day being 43 F). One tropical summer is enough.
One other tidbit I was noticing while poring over seed catalogs. The planting zone we are in for SW Virginia(Zone 6) extends all the way up to northern New England. Interesting when we often think of ourselves of a southern area (can't say "state" because northern Virginia is definitely NOT southern culture). We actually have winters in the temperature range of New England(at least we did). Here in Maine is actually only a 10 degree average low temperature than SW Virginia.
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