Rapture thoughts, naked in Seattle, Pink beer bellies, biomass, camouflage, Illegal weed in Texas

Never one to let a hot topic go by without  interjecting my own thoughts...... The Rapture? Today?  Uhhmmmm.... Its been a long time since  the bible was shoved down my throat by well meaning folk but I do remember a few things.... I think......  Wasn't there only supposed to be seats on the rapture train for 144,000?  ( not 200,000,000).  Seems to me that  IF it does happen today.... nobody is even going to notice, seeing as how the world is sitting at about pop 8 billion or so.  And about the world ending today?...... Arent we supposed to have a thousand years of peace after they are gone and before the Armageddon?   That's what I remember. But it has been a few years  since I read revelations  with fear and trepidation.  The one thing  I  know is that....... well..... I'm gonna be here tomorrow. Cuz somebody has to feed and water the chickens,cat,turtle, goldfish AND the talking palm tree in the computer room.   I have a rug to finish, a painting on the easal which promises to be a masterpiece and 3 more weeks of  a printmaking class which I paid (a lot)  for.    I have responsibilities ..... I cant just run off to heaven and party.  'sides.... yahweh has expressed a distaste for  mouthy women.  That 's outta the way.
Fairy Moss. (I LOVE the name) Got some for the pond yesterday.   Why?  There has been a heron sighting in the hood.  I would like to give the new fish  a  fighting chance.  So, I got this great water cover at Sky Nursery.   I'm hoping it will provide  some camouflage for them.  Turns out  this stuff is the bomb.   Its not only camouflage, its also fish food, high biomass for the compost, excellent livestock feed for the chickens, an anti-larval  for mosquitoes AND  it grows fast.  By all internet accounts its a miracle water weed. Oh and its illegal in Texas.  Got to appreciate  the merits of ANY weed that is illegal in texas.
We here in Seattle were treated to our first day of the year to crack 70.   So, naturally, the whole neighborhood was instantly naked!  And within 1 hour.... sunburned.  There were  bright pink beer bellies strutting and swaggering all up and down the block.  I myself put on the rarely used bikini and   read on a blanket in the backyard surrounded by a VERY high fence ( Cuz I'm not nearly as proud of my glowing pale ,aging, flab as the guy across the street.).  I too am a bit sunburned this rainy dark morning. I don't normally lay out in the sun, but I knew it would be gone today and I wanted a souvenir.  I got one..... all over the back of my legs. Yay! Ouch! YaY!
The garden loved the sun too. I swear my onions and carrots grew an inch yesterday. And Yes.... every time the sun comes out I blog about it. Cuz its such a rare thing  in these here parts!  

Artisan Lifestyle, Strawberry Jam, 100 year old recipes, electric fences, bad cats

Artisan  Lifestyle has moved. Maybe not such a good choice since readership has dropped to......5.So, I may need a little help with marketing.  Please,Please please....tell  anyone and everyone about this site so I will have a reason to keep it going.  Thank you!  Panic begging  over now.
  Spring weather is finally here. The lilac bush is finally in full bloom (the enormous lilac bush is my canaryinacoalmine) Our garden at last looks like a garden. And.... we have bean sign. Still don't know what happened to the first batch we planted but the second planting is popping through the soil right on time.  The cat is at the top of Jimmy's s-list right now.   She kept breaking into the cold framed cucumber bed to do her business.  Resulting in the death of most of the cucumbers.  I understand why she did it.  Its the only warm dry spot in the yard in the last two weeks. But Jimmy has no understanding. He is MAD.  So mad, he dug out the 14 volt electric fencing and put it around the bed. today we will be going to Sky Nursery and  buying new plants. Which makes Jimmy even more mad because the ones she killed were HIS lovingly tended  starts.  Glad I'm not the cat right now! She's mostly at the top of the list because we are down to one last jar of last years crispy, delicious, spicy pickles.
Today we are headed to the produce stand in Lynnwood on Aurora.  We went through all 24 jars of strawberry jam I put up last year.  (many as gifts).  So, jam making will commence  as soon  as I get 2 flats of berries.  Speaking of jam making...... Here is THE best site ever on canning and preserving and local U-pick farms.   Not everyone has  a stack of government issue how-to books from the 1930's  like I do (Thank you granny!)
http://www.pickyourown.org/index.htm
There is  a world of info and links so I suggest bookmarking this one. 

Along with a new URL for Artisan Lifestyle I also have a new recipe blog
http://100yearoldrecipes.blogspot.com/
If you  have a 100 year old recipe you would like to share AND get credit  for; pop it into the comment section and I will post it for you with accompanying credit. If you have a story to go with it....even better!
 

Changed Blog URL to Artisanlifestyle.blogspot.com

I changed my blog URL 3 days ago.  If you will note... it now says Artisanlifestyle.blogspot.com  There were many reasons for this!  Blogspot said I could keep my readers..... but I'm not sure that is true.  I seem to have lost quite a few in the changeover.  Also the recipes have now been moved to  a blog of their very own.... 100yearoldrecipes.blogspot.com.  We will see how this works. I may have  tangled this whole thing  up beyond my ability to straighten it out . Bear with me please while I  manage  the 'new order'.    This stuff aint easy for us technotards

Record Seattle rainfall. garden bags, gardening in Seattle, backyard chickens in Seattle, $40 water lillies, post apocalypse survival

GYAH!  We here in the  sublime PNW have had our entire quota of rain for the month of May in  24 hours. Wet, gray and dark. Not so great for the humans but the garden has loved it especially the snow peas and potatoes.  We have had at least 2 inches of growth in the last 24 hours.  Prior to the skies opening up, we mounded our potatoes and added more soil.  My  home made  garden bags are performing beautifully ( see photos below).  Also before the storm ...it was beautiful and sunny. So beautiful I took my  swillish  romance paperback into  the yard to  read and promptly fell asleep in the sun.  A mild thumping on the blanket  awoke me and I looked up into Jimmy's grinning face.   "Sorry Honey.... I didn't mean to wake you but I want to go to sky  and get a water lilly for the pond."  He glanced at the beer in his hand and I said.... "and you need me to drive you?"  So, much for  napping in the sun. Now I know what the cat feels like.  So, we go to Sky, find the water flora section and Jimmy looks at a price tag on  a pretty yellow water lilly. $14  is reasonable but he doesn't want the yellow one. He wants the pink one.  We get to the register and the cashier   rings it up to the tune of $36.  Yep, the pink ones are the expensive ones.  Jimmy gives me the 'dont say a word" look  and swipes the debit card. We now have a lovely, expensive pink water lilly  for the new goldfish  to swim around.  Yes, we have purchased friends for the lone survivor of the Heron apocalypse.  For you new readers you can catch up on our autumn ELE  here. http://intheshadowofwalkingliberty.blogspot.com/2010/11/extinction-level-event-torturing-baby.html
In the below  photo  I tried to capture the new  residents, but when they saw me coming they went into hiding. But the new Lilly  looks very pretty in the picture. I've also included a photo of the girls summer resort ( For the readers who are concerned with their quality of life since their  'free-ranging' has been limited.)  As you can see,  they have plenty of quality space. Even if THEY don't think they do.

                       Happy snow peas

Happy Potatoes

New PINK water lilly

Resentful, ungrateful chickens