Round the corner...

Sierra Hot Springs Soak

2012-01-25T11:55:00.020-07:00

Meditation Pool

We haven't had much snow in Tahoe so rather than go skiing we went for a soak at Sierra Hot Springs. It was a heck of a drive up over Donner Summit, blustery and grey, but a beautiful day in the tiny town of Sierraville. It was really nice to get away and we had a wonderful relaxing soak.

the road to relaxation

Temple Dome Pool

Special day at a very special place!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T18:44:00.023-07:00

New Year's Eve Fireworks
Sacramento Tower Bridge 12/31/2011

14 months later and miles away from Idaho.

New year, new home, new job, new school and most importantly new best friend, lover and partner in life.

What a long strange trip it's been.

Went back to school last fall to pursue nursing, reconnected with an old boyfriend from San Francisco, relocated to join him in Sacramento while we both continue pursuing our educations and now working as an educational aide for children with autism.

Keeping busy and loving life but missing photography and writing. Jumping back in and hoping to keep up with it now that school has become a habit and I've somewhat settled into life here in CaliforniA!

Couple more photos from the other night. Capitol Park at dusk.

Very thankful for all of my family and friends and everything that I experience daily. Life has been extremely interesting over the past year. Some of it not so easy as I know it has been for many. Wishing the best for all in 2012!

A bit more fall, less color

2010-10-17T14:25:00.018-06:00

Betty Lake with Standhope Peak and Peak 11887 in the background

Managed to get in another really good hike last weekend. Headed up to Betty Lake in the Pioneers with a good friend and dog. The day was a typical fall day, temp in the 50s, a few clouds floating around and a looming storm that hit right as we were getting back to the truck. We even got to see a couple of moose on the hike up.

On the way up the trail

Moose in Broad Canyon

Top of the world

Shore of Betty

Total mileage hiked round trip, 10 miles, highest elevation reached at Betty Lake, 10,384 feet.

Copper Basin color

2010-09-30T19:15:00.016-06:00

The weather has been fabulous lately, albeit a little too warm for me, but the heat is good reason to head into the mountains and hike, hike, hike. Made it up into Copper Basin last weekend and hiked to Bellas with a couple friends. Foliage was fabulous and girl time was fun.

How did it get so late so soon?

2010-09-02T12:55:00.026-06:00

How did it get so late so soon?
It’s night before it’s afternoon.
December is here before it’s June.
My goodness how the time has flewn.
How did it get so late so soon?
~Dr. Seuss

Really.
I can't believe it's already September.
Summer flew by but what a great time it was.
August was a month full of hikes,
my parents came for a visit
and I managed to squeeze in a quick backpack to the Big Horn Crags
(a place that should not be visited quick)
and now,
I'm already into the second week of school.

I can't believe it.

A few photos from August.

Mom and Dad on the way to Boulder Basin

Rafting the Salmon with Mom and Dad

Boulder Basin

A little place I like to call home.
Sun Valley and Ketchum viewed from Ruud Mountain.
Hiked the Proctor and Ruud Mountain loop with Mom and Dad.

Backpacking the Big Horn Crags

And I guess I'll say it again... I can't believe it's already September. Fall is in the air though and thoughts of snow have already come up. More than once. I love the change of seasons.

Idaho summer sweetness!

2010-07-25T13:37:00.037-06:00

Bits and pieces of summer so far.

Flowers, flowers, flowers

Copper Basin lupine in full bloom.

Surprise Valley pastels including paintbrush, prairie smoke and cinquefoil.

shooting star

scarlet gilia

edelweiss

Line leaf daisy with buckwheat

High mountain lakes

Moose Lake

Norton Lake

Big Lost Lake

Hell Roaring Lake

hiking, hiking, hiking

Heidelberg

Kane Lake

Big Lost Lake

Trail Creek Summit

PK Pass

and one happy pika!

Summer's here!

2010-06-22T18:58:00.006-06:00

Summer's Here

Summer's here and we can hike the peaks again,
have lunch and tea on mountaintops, look down

on the backs of circling hawks and laze away
the afternoon watching blue-hazy, distant hills.

Come on! Give up those winter blues. Let's go!
Grease up those boots, find that walking stick.

Get your lungs and legs in shape. And don't forget
what Yuan Mei, said, two hundred years ago:

If you begrudge your feet some pain
you'll miss ten thousand peaks.

~ David Budbill

This post is credited to my friend Laura who sent me the photo yesterday (gotta love those phone photos) when she was hiking Heidelberg, a local favorite, and today she sent me the poem.

Happy Summer!

Happy Baby!

2010-06-18T12:53:00.007-06:00

Nephew Sam!
Fun and love!

The camas are abloom!

2010-06-13T17:10:00.009-06:00

Yellow-headed blackbird at rest in a field full

of Indian camas (Camassia quamash)

It's that time of year again and I made it down to the Camas Prairie Centennial Marsh on Thursday to catch them in all their glory. Posting a few photos along with a link to an article I did for a local website all about happenings in and around Sun Valley including information about things to see and do, local history and politics, sustainability, the music scene, photography, restaurants, merchants, and local artists and athletes.

Soldier Mountains reach to the sky

Lone death camas
(Zigadenus venenosus)

Local marsh inhabitants

Article written for Sunlisted.com

Season of Change

2010-06-09T15:00:00.008-06:00

Is it possible that I haven't posted in three months? My how time flies. Not a single Spring post. As mentioned though it has been a season of change. For myself, I moved back north, started a new job and, and, and...saving that for later though. For now, I just returned from visiting w my family in Vermont and my Mother's garden was just abloom...

All photos were taken in the garden over the course of a week except the last one of the pansies. The pansies came from the garden but they were inside in a vase.

Helping in a different way. Passing on the positive.

2010-03-02T11:05:00.012-07:00

An update received from my brother and sister-in-law who are currently living in Santiago.

"Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. We would like to thank all the persons who have written to express their support to us and the Chilean people in this time of tragedy. We share in the tremendous grief felt by the people of Chile for their country and those who lost loved ones.

The Santiago area, while impacted by the quake, experienced relatively minor damage compared to the areas near the epicenter. Things are quickly returning to normal in Santiago. Power was restored within 5 hours of the earthquake in the main business and tourist district, telecommunications were restored soon after. Supermarkets, gas stations, restaurants and shopping malls began opening on Monday. All Metro lines are running and the airport has begun operating on a 24 hour basis and is predicted to return to normal schedule by next Monday.

The response of the government has been efficient and well coordinated and they have dedicated unlimited resources to their efforts. Aid from foreign countries also began arriving today. Given its strong economy and fiscal discipline Chile has a tremendous revenue surplus to provide needed assistance. Chile is a strong, well developed country and outside of the Concepcion and Maule regions the damage was much less severe. The situation here is much different than what happened in Haiti. Chile, with a history of many strong earthquakes, has very strict building codes and Santiago, a city of 6 million, withstood any catastrophic damage. Sadly, many older homes and those which did not comply with the building codes, in the poorer parts of the city, were damaged. Chile will hopefully recover quickly from this tragedy but will mourn the loss of their loved ones always.

We hope for better reporting in the presentation of Chile’s current situation. As expected, the international media has focused only on the most severely damaged areas. They have done this without clear indications of the geography of a country that is 2,800 miles long. This has led to confusion and much unnecessary worry regarding the 6 million people in Santiago where very few people were injured. The major damages are 3 to 5 hours south of Santiago where, sadly, there were many deaths and there are many people still missing or trapped in buildings.

It is also unfortunate that the US government has recommended not traveling to Chile for tourism. Approximately 5% of the Chilean economy is based on tourism. The best way to help the people of Chile is to make sure that the world is correctly informed that Chile is open for business despite the country’s current effort to restore the areas affected by the earthquake. The main tourist destinations San Pedro de Atacama in the north, Patagonia in the south and Easter Island were unaffected by the earthquake. People should consider Chile very safe to visit once the Santiago airport is fully operational in the coming week.

If you would like to offer your assistance to Chile earthquake relief, please donate to the Red Cross which has committed to assisting Chile with their relief efforts www.redcross.org."

Following are photos taken by my brother a day after the quake.

La Moneda
The Presidential Palace

Patio Bellavista
Local open air plaza featuring art, culture and cuisine

Empresas Copec
Local petrol station receiving delivery

Emporio La Rosa
Gourmet ice cream eatery

Santiago Stock Exchange

Santiago Municipal Theatre

One sweet snowshoe!

2010-02-06T19:37:00.016-07:00

a girl,
a dog,
some snowshoes,
a camera
and as an added bonus
a talented snowkiter
who showed up out of nowhere.

The photos of the snowkiter just don't do him or the sport justice. You really need to catch a video or just watch them in person.

For myself I have to say after watching this guy for about an hour I want to go fly my own kite! Up the mountain, down the mountain, loop-de-loo! Some of the sweetest stuff I've ever seen on snow or off as the case may be! Check the video it's kind of long but right good stuff set to sweet tunes.

The Snow-Storm

2010-01-31T18:31:00.010-07:00

The Snow-Storm

Announced by all the trumpets of the sky,
Arrives the snow, and, driving o'er the fields,
Seems nowhere to alight: the whited air
Hides hill and woods, the river, and the heaven,
And veils the farmhouse at the garden's end.
The sled and traveller stopped, the courier's feet
Delated, all friends shut out, the housemates sit
Around the radiant fireplace, enclosed
In a tumultuous privacy of storm.
Come see the north wind's masonry.
Out of an unseen quarry evermore
Furnished with tile, the fierce artificer
Curves his white bastions with projected roof
Round every windward stake, or tree, or door.
Speeding, the myriad-handed, his wild work
So fanciful, so savage, nought cares he
For number or proportion. Mockingly,
On coop or kennel he hangs Parian wreaths;
A swan-like form invests the hiddden thorn;
Fills up the famer's lane from wall to wall,
Maugre the farmer's sighs; and at the gate
A tapering turret overtops the work.
And when his hours are numbered, and the world
Is all his own, retiring, as he were not,
Leaves, when the sun appears, astonished Art
To mimic in slow structures, stone by stone,
Built in an age, the mad wind's night-work,
The frolic architecture of the snow.

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

With the last three posts having been posts of the past I thought I would post from the present. We had some pretty good dumps last week and snow is at the top of my lists of fave. The photos are from a hike I took with friends out Lake Creek.

The other side of the Pacific

2010-01-27T15:07:00.034-07:00

While in Australia we were never far from the ocean and we spent quite a bit of time on numerous beaches both on the east coast of the mainland and Tasmania. Here are a few of my favorite photos.

East Coast Mainland Australia

Sunshine Coast

Gold Coast

More Gold Coast

View of the skyline of Sydney from the ferry to Manly

Beach at Manly, a suburb of northern Sydney

East Coast Tasmania

The Beach at Bicheno

Tidal pool at Bicheno

Wineglass Bay, Freycinet National Park

For now I'll let the photos do all the talking. I'll be posting more about individual places later. I do have to say though that Wineglass Bay is the best place I've ever pitched a tent.

My first taste of Australia

2010-01-25T10:53:00.018-07:00

Brisbane, AU

Story Bridge with city of Brisbane in the background

Around New Farm

Brisbane is located on the east coast of Australia. It is the state capital of Queensland and has a population of approximately 2 million. I flew in and out of Brisbane when I visited AU and I stayed in New Farm, an inner suburb, where my friends Dave and Mel were living while I was there. (They recently just moved to Queenstown, NZ.) My visit to the city was brief as we headed north to the Sunshine Coast for their wedding and then on to Tasmania but I wanted to post some photos of New Farm as I found it quite delightful and so very green and lush.

Walking around town there were creatures everywhere.

Lizards

and ibis too.

I also have to mention the kookaburras. I don't have any photos of them but when I first arrived in the city and we were just getting home to Dave and Mel's I was unpacking and I heard this noise...I thought somebody had a jungle track CD that they were playing but no it was the kookaburras just outside the window. Sweeeet.

Smile!

2010-01-20T12:09:00.028-07:00

01.20.2010 or 20.01.2010

Anyway... we are 20 days into 2010 and I have yet to post. Although I recently just returned from a three week vacation in Australia so it is with good reason that it has been this long. Now though, I have so many different things that I want to post I don't even know where to begin. I guess the best place to begin is at the beginning.

How I spent my Christmas.

Christmas for me was a travel day. Day one of my vacation. Off to see two of my best friends get married on the beach of the Sunshine Coast of Australia on New Year's Eve under a full moon, a blue moon to boot. A trip I'd been waiting for a very long time.

I had allowed myself a 5 hour layover in LAX in case I didn't get out of our little valley due to snow. I made it out on time. The day was a good day to fly but we did lose power in the valley on Christmas eve at 10 p.m. and it was only partially back on by 2 p.m. when I left. Thanks go out to all of the Idaho Power employees who were working on Christmas eve and Christmas day in negative double digit temperatures trying to restore power to approximately 20,000 people.

Back to LAX. 5 hours people watching waiting for a plane.

A day I will never forget.

In the process of people watching I noticed a man in a wheelchair. He was doing laps around the room. Every time I caught eye of him he had already passed and all I saw was the back of his chair. Then at one point he paused before he passed completely by and the first thing I noticed was his smile. His smile.

SMILE!

That smile,

totally and completely infectious filling the whole damn room.

And then I noticed,

he had no arms and no legs.

And then I noticed,

his t-shirt said "Hugging Machine".

And then I noticed,

everyone else was staring at him too.

And he just smiled on.

SMILE!

He was then approached by a young guy, early 20s, covered in tats and facial piercings and he just walked up to him and gave him the biggest hug you ever saw. People started lining up and a great big hug fest commenced. I watched from my seat. One of the people that had lined up then came and sat next to me. Asked me if I knew Nick, the guy in the wheelchair. I didn't. He explained to me that he was born that way without any limbs. Originally from Australia and now living in L.A. He is an inspirational speaker. All of it was very inspiring. I particularly loved that the first person who approached him was the guy covered in tats and piercings.

The hug fest concluded. Nick then parked his wheelchair in front of me approximately 10 feet away. In profile. (I was in the bank of seats closest to the gate.) I was reading but every time I looked up I couldn't help but look at him. He knew it. I knew it. I couldn't help it. He just smiled away. And then he turned his chair to face me. (I think he does this a lot.) I then got up and got my hug.

I did write that proper. I got up and got my hug. Know that even though I was the one who got up and went over to Nick and wrapped my arms around him, he is the one who hugged me. Yes, hugging requires two, we were hugging one another, but he hugged me first. Putting all of this into words doesn't even come close to what actually happened but I did have to put it down into words that it did happen. (If you watch some video of him you can begin to understand.)

I took a journal with me on my trip (I am the worst at writing things down) and it turned out to be more of a calendar log with dates, times, places, people, plants, animals, food, stuff, I'm good at lists. None of the above made it into the journal nor did all sorts of other important happenings. I believe here will be where the bulk of the last three weeks will end up. I type faster than I write. It's neater too. And... I can post my photos.

Here are my Christmas lights

LAX, International Terminal, Gate 38

and an even brighter light

Nick Vujicic

More of Nick here and here

or just find him on YouTube

Give Peace a Chance

2009-12-30T17:36:00.004-07:00

Ev'rybody's talkin' 'bout
Bagism, Shagism, Dragism, Madism, Ragism, Tagism
This-ism, that-ism, ism ism ism
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance
(C'mon)
Ev'rybody's talkin' 'bout
Minister, Sinister, Banisters and Canisters,
Bishops, Fishops, Rabbis, and Pop Eyes, Bye bye, Bye byes
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance
(Let me tell you now)
Ev'rybody's talkin' 'bout
Revolution, Evolution, Masturbation, Flagellation, Regulation,
Integrations, mediations, United Nations, congratulations
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance
Ev'rybody's talkin' 'bout
John and Yoko, Timmy Leary, Rosemary,
Tommy Smothers, Bobby Dylan, Tommy Cooper,
Derek Taylor, Norman Mailer, Alan Ginsberg, Hare Krishna
Hare Hare Krishna
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance

( Posting from the Sunshine Coast of Australia where we are celebrating the Bowles wedding and NYE 2009! So many other things to post and I really wanted to do a full post Christmas day before my travels but our power was out from 10 p.m. Christmas Eve until 2 p.m. the following day and I've been on the road ever since. Best times ever, more later, Good Bye 2009, Cheers! 2010! )

Imagine

2009-12-20T18:49:00.001-07:00

Imagine there's no Heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one

All You Need is Love

2009-12-12T20:39:00.007-07:00

Love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love.
There's nothing you can do that can't be done.
Nothing you can sing that can't be sung.
Nothing you can say but you can learn how to play the game
It's easy.
There's nothing you can make that can't be made.
No one you can save that can't be saved.
Nothing you can do but you can learn how to be you
in time - It's easy.

All you need is love, all you need is love,
All you need is love, love, love is all you need.
Love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love.
All you need is love, all you need is love,
All you need is love, love, love is all you need.
There's nothing you can know that isn't known.
Nothing you can see that isn't shown.
Nowhere you can be that isn't where you're meant to be.
It's easy.
All you need is love, all you need is love,
All you need is love, love, love is all you need.
All you need is love (all together now)
All you need is love (everybody)
All you need is love, love, love is all you need.

Vermont 'Cow Power'

2009-11-25T18:49:00.000-07:00

I am home for Thanksgiving in Vermont and yesterday we visited Westminster Farm a dairy farm which is now also a farm methane power plant. The methane plant project was recently completed and now that it is online it produces about 250 kW per hour which is enough energy to power 250 average homes per day.

The Cow Power Process

Manure is collected in a giant digester, as seen above, and heated to approximately 101 degrees F to maintain bacteria that breaks down the waste into various product including methane gas. The methane is then transferred from the digester through a pipe which separates out the moisture and sends the gas along to fuel a diesel engine which in turn is connected to a generator that produces electrical power. The power is then fed to the electrical grid.

In the case of Westminster Farm the power is fed to Green Mountain Power (GMP) and customers have the choice to now purchase their power through GMP's Greener GMP plan which includes the farm methane plant as well as a landfill methane producer.

Below you can see the digester next to the building that houses both the diesel engine and the generator and in the background are power poles that are connected into the GMP power grid.

Closeup of some of the goings on in the digester.

Ayup, turning poop into power in Vermont.

Women and The World

2009-11-11T05:15:00.005-07:00

Woman

Each one of you
are beautiful.
Each one of you
are strong.
Each one of you
are brave.

Each one of you
are kind.
Each one of you
are true.
Each one of you
are love.

Each one of you
are experience.
Each one of you
are knowledge.
Each one of you
are wise.

Each one of you
are real.
Each one of you
are special.
Each one of you
are unique.

You are Mother, daughter, sister, wife, lover, friend.
You are Woman.

Believe it!
Revel it!
Embrace it!

The preceding poem I wrote yesterday as part of an assignment for a women's wellness circle I've been attending with facilitators Midge Patzer and Melissa Boley. The assignment was to be completed for the last class of the course and we were asked to write about each of the women in our group. The poem was inspired by each woman individually but also by the group as a whole and by all of the other women who are a part of my life.

The image that I associated with the poem is a card, The World, from my Motherpeace tarot deck by Karen Vogel and Vicki Noble. I use tarot daily for inspiration and guidance. It's imagery works very well for me. As for the card, The World, I will try to explain it without getting into a huge explanation of tarot.

The tarot deck consists of seventy eight cards that are divided into two groups: the twenty two cards of the major arcana and the fifty six cards of the minor arcana. The fifty six cards of the minor are based on four series of suits containing fourteen cards; similar to a regular deck of playing cards and the twenty two cards of the major correspond to the connective paths of the Hebrew "Tree of Life" of which these paths are lines along which life develops. The World card, which also may be referred to as The Universe in other decks, is the final card of the major arcana and as such can be read as the final step or completion of a process.

As defined in the Motherpeace book of interpretation:

The Fool (the first card in the major arcana) has grown up into a woman of the world. Leading a spiral dance, she is followed by her circle of friends and family. She skips through a chain of peyote buttons and flowers. These sacred plants part to let her by. She's come a long way. It no longer matters to her how she looks or that her clothes are torn. She takes her place among the children of the earth.

The World is breaking free into a new cycle. The old is completed and many new things are now possible since she has done her work. She knows and loves herself and all her facets have come into harmony. She may feel expanded and omnipotent because a major cycle of her life is completed and a new doorway opens.

The Motherpeace tarot is the second deck that I am learning to read. The first deck I learned was the Thoth tarot, by Aleister Crowley and Lady Frieda Harris, which was given to me by one of my closest and dearest friends. It was the deck that she learned from and it was given to her by her mother. In the Thoth deck the last card of the major arcana is The Universe.

As defined in the Crowley book of interpretation:

The Universe is the expression of the wholeness, in which the divine in its three aspects harmoniously connects with the earthly as an eye, virgin, and snake, through which the four cherubims are manifested. The number seven, the sum of the above, is an expression of a time boundary that is contained three times in the numerical value of the card 21. The card then stands for the goal that has been attained, for the climax of a development, and therefore in some cases for the goal in life itself and our place in this world, where we belong.

From the psychological perspective, the Universe personifies the waking consciousness and the self-regulating power of the creative self. This allows us to act socially within the surrounding of our community, and process emotionally the creative contractions of eternal transformation:

To experience the Self means that we are always conscious of our own identity. We then know that we can never be anything other than our Self, that we will never lose our Self, and that we can never be estranged from our Self. This is so, because we realize that the Self is indestructible, that it is always one and the same, that it cannot be dissolved or exchanged for something else. The Self enables us to remain the same under all circumstances of our life. ~ C.G. Jung

I am very thankful for all of the women that I know and that have touched my life. They have inspired and encouraged me but most of all they have loved me for who I am. Included are the women that I have found here in the virtual world who, although I have never met any of them, spark my creativity and boost my confidence almost daily. I enjoy randomly perusing blogs and I truly appreciate all of the visitors to my blog who leave words of appreciation and encouragement. Thank you all!

Still hanging on

2009-11-05T16:00:00.006-07:00

Resisting the urge to rake leaves.
Camera play is much more fun.

Autumn Dreams

2009-10-28T09:02:00.007-06:00

Autumn Dreams

I know the year is dying,
Soon the summer will be dead.
I can trace it in the flying
Of the black crows overhead;
I can hear it in the rustle
Of the dead leaves as I pass,
And the south wind's plaintive sighing
Through the dry and withered grass.

Ah, 'tis then I love to wander.
Wander idly and alone,
Listening to the solemn music
Of sweet nature's undertone;
Wrapt in thoughts I cannot utter,
Dreams my tongue cannot express,
Dreams that match the autumn's sadness
In their longing tenderness.

~ Mortimer Crane Brown

All photos in this post were taken yesterday as I wandered Route 20 between Arco and Carey.

The old dilapidated house is west of Arco and it sits behind a fence marked 'No Trespassing'. The house looks like it is constructed of very thin pieces of stacked slate and I really would like to get a closer look. It is a piece of art.

The car is east of Carey just sitting in a swampy field. It too is a piece of art although it changes quite regularly as different people tag it.

Both the house and the car I believe to be Route 20 icons.

As for the faded flowers I don't know what they are. Dog and I took a walk east of Craters of the Moon (Dog can't walk Craters of the Moon the rocks hurt his feet) and that's where the flowers were found. Yesterday, although blustery cold and grey was a fantastic fall day just right for wandering, by car and on foot, and for dreaming.

A Fall fade

2009-10-12T22:20:00.004-06:00

Our Fall so far has been cold, hard, and lacking it's usual luster. The colors this year are very subtle with most of the aspen skipping any glorious display and instead just slowly fading to brown. So with photos of fabulous fall foliage lacking a few photos south of the valley in the middle of farm country on the way to Twin. It's still one of my favorite drives. You can see forever and when driving north you have a view of the mountains that never ceases to take my breath away. No mountains here though just some shots from the side of the road next to a now abandoned corn stand and some pretty busy looking power station equipment.

The power and the beauty of Mother Nature

2009-10-07T08:32:00.012-06:00

Over the weekend we received our first snow here in the Wood River Valley with the majority of it dumping on Sunday night and Monday morning. And what a dump it was. The following is a photo from my backyard early Monday. My little house is hiding in there.

Unfortunately the snow was so wet and heavy and all our trees still had their leaves that there was a lot of tree limb loss throughout the valley. One of the trees in my backyard split right in half. Luckily it was the back half of the tree and not the front. Had it been the front it would have landed right on top of the house. It didn't even take out any part of the fence. Phew!

Just missed the fence.

More in our local paper the Idaho Mountain Express.

The following two photos I took Sunday night as the snow was gently falling and I was excited to see it. (I was also trying to practice with the camera at night. Hence the weird photo of the chair.)

The first snow is always so special.

Little did I know...

The only thing I've ever seen that comes close to the destruction of the trees over the weekend is the same type of destruction to trees due to an ice storm in Vermont in the 90s. I've never lived on either coast here in the U.S. or on the plains so I've never experienced a tornado or a hurricane. I can't imagine.

And although the loss of trees and the damage done to property is sad this world never ceases to amaze as I still find so much beauty in the snow and ice.

Simple Super Yum!

2009-09-20T10:47:00.011-06:00

Millions of peaches, peaches for me,
Millions of peaches, peaches for me...

These peaches, however, did not come from a can...

Fresh, ripe Idaho peaches

I put together a fruit salad this weekend that turned out to be just fabulous and sooo simple I thought I would share. Typically, when I make a fruit salad it's pretty generic. I tend to use cantaloupe, melon, strawberries and grapes. This time though I thought I would try to be a little inventive with some help of course from Google.

I was going to a potluck where the main course was marinated grilled pork tenderloin so I let that be my starting point. And what doesn't go better with pork than peaches? Well, apples do too but since Idaho peaches are really just perfect right now that's what I went with.

And here it is:

5 peaches
1 pint strawberries
a couple handfuls of baby spinach
1 lime
a stem or two of cilantro

Cube the peaches, quarter the strawberries, toss together in a bowl (separate from the bowl the salad is to be served in). Squeeze the lime all over the peaches and strawberries, chop up the cilantro and sprinkle over fruit mixture and toss all over again. Line the bottom of the salad bowl with the spinach and dump the fruit on top.

Very simple and super yum! And...it presents great too!

I also created a lime cilantro vinaigrette which is where Google came in. I used the first recipe that popped up when I googled 'lime cilantro vinaigrette' which was courtesy of About.com in their home cooking section. I modified it slightly and it turned out to be the best dressing I've ever made. Following is the ingredient list that they provided with my modifications listed in parentheses.

Lime Cilantro Vinaigrette

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

1/8 cup white wine vinegar

1/2 cup cilantro leaves, no stems

1 Tablespoon honey

1 Tablespoon brown sugar (Nebraska Knoll Maple Snow, pure Vermont maple sugar, the only sugar I use)

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt (medium grain sea salt)

1 teaspoon fresh chopped garlic

2-1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard (Sun Valley Spicy Sweet Mustard)

3/4 cup light olive oil (organic, extra virgin, expeller pressed, a little more aromatic)

About.com directs all ingredients to be mixed in a blender but I always make my dressings in a pint jar and shake, shake, shake, shake that boooty, allows for the textures and various colors to still shine on their own.

I did not add the dressing to the salad (you can completely skip the dressing if you want, the lime and cilantro alone are enough) but provided it on the side, along with some chopped pecans. Everybody loved the salad and the dressing and not only did they use the dressing for the salad but they also put it on the pork and used it for dipping their bread into. (All ingredients used were organic and the maple sugar is shipped regularly from Mom in Vermont.)

Mountain Mushrooms

2009-09-16T12:42:00.036-06:00

Fall is fast upon us and the wild flowers are wilting.

It has been an amazingly wet summer though and the fungi are out in abundance; pink, purple, red, brown, black, striped, big and small, flat and fat, wrinkly and crinkly. They are all out there.

Makes me wish I knew my mycology. I never knew there were so many different varieties. My knowledge of any type of exotic mushroom is limited to picking morels for saute in the spring and purchasing portobellos for grilling in the summer.

A little garlic, a little butter...aahhhh for now, just a thought.

More mushrooms here.

B is for baby

2009-09-14T22:45:00.014-06:00

This weekend I attended a party which was in honor of two of my best friends' first child (party photos). He is due any moment and the following is in celebration of baby Theobald a.k.a. 'the bump' (great maternity photos taken by another friend of theirs, Kristin Cheatwood, Cheatwood Photography, Ketchum, Idaho).

B
is
for
baby

and bike and bat and ball

and boarding on Baldy (be it one board or two)

and the big, big, fish in the Big Wood

and bananas and bongos
and bubbles and butterflies

and burritos and beer

and Buddha

and books,
lots and lots of books

and lets not forget frisbee

big, brother 'Boose (the best mountain basset ever)

and

being
best of friends.

most this amazing

2009-09-09T14:48:00.003-06:00

i thank You God for most this amazing
~ e e cummings

i thank You God for most this amazing
day: for the leaping greenly spirits of trees
and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything
which is natural which is infinite which is yes

(i who have died am alive again today,
and this is the sun's birthday; this is the birth
day of life and of love and wings: and of the gay
great happening illimitably earth)

how should tasting touching hearing seeing
breathing any - lifted from the no
of all nothing - human merely being
doubt unimaginable You?

(now the ears of my ears awake and
now the eyes of my eyes are opened)

Boulder Mountains from Baker Lake access road

All creatures great and small

2009-08-31T12:51:00.030-06:00

As the great wolf debate rages on in court today I am saddened by the thought that by tomorrow hundreds of thousands of hunters may converge on the packs that have now made Idaho their home.

I myself have yet to encounter a wolf in the 'wild' here although I spend almost every day out there; whether it be for work, pleasure or just obligation to dog I walk hundreds of miles and spend thousands of hours throughout south central Idaho many places of which the wolves call home. Someday I hope to encounter one or more here however I fear that if the wolf harvest does come to fruition I may never have the chance.

I don't know what the answer is in regards to humans and wolves coexisting in the same place. Our management of the wolves and their reintroduction into Idaho has gotten us where we are today and today there are many very angry people on both sides of the debate with I believe humans and wolves both suffering.

I wish I had a photograph or two of a wolf to share but since I don't I will substitute other various photos of numerous creatures that I have come across here in Idaho all of which have caused me to pause and be thankful. (The photograph of the moose was taken in Maine though but I couldn't leave it out as it is the most magnificent creature I myself have come across in the 'wild'.)

Saving the best for last. A coyote that dog and I ran into two weeks ago. A very fat and happy one. We ran into it as we were hiking into a stream bed for work and it took pause before it continued down the slope ahead of us. We saw it again a few hours later tracking us from above.

In closing an excerpt from A Sand County Almanac,

“Thinking Like a Mountain”, by Aldo Leopold

"We were eating lunch on a high rimrock, at the foot of which a turbulent river elbowed its way. We saw what we thought was a doe fording the torrent, her breast awash in white-water. When she climbed the bank toward us and shook out her tail, we realized our error: it was a wolf. A half-dozen others, evidently grown pups, sprang from the willows and all joined in a welcoming melee of wagging tails and playful maulings...

In those days, we had never heard of passing up a chance to kill a wolf...When our rifles were empty, the old wolf was down, and a pup was dragging a leg into impassable slide-rocks.

We reached the old wolf in time to watch a fierce green fire dying in her eyes. I realized then, and have known ever since, that there was something new to me in those eyes–something known only to her and the mountain. I was young then, and full of trigger-itch; I thought that because fewer wolves meant more deer, that no wolves would mean hunter's paradise. But after seeing the green fire die, I sensed that neither the wolf nor the mountain agreed with such a view."

Sunflowers

2009-08-26T21:03:00.005-06:00

As Summer is slowing fading into Fall

2009-08-10T15:00:00.057-06:00

This weekend not only did I have the need to wear my down jacket in the evening to take the chill off I also noticed a lot of trucks coming home from up north full of firewood.

By no means am I ready to even think about the recent rain turning to snow, and I LOVE the snow, so I am posting lots and lots of wildflowers I've found throughout the summer to warm me up a bit.

Subaplpine spiraea, Spiraea splendens or wild rose
Found in the backyard.

Ciliate bluebell, Mertensia ciliata
Found in Slaughterhouse Canyon where we take our daily dog walk. Just behind the house.

Sitka columbine, Aquilegia formosa
Scarlet paintbrush, Castilleja miniata
Elephant-head, Pedicularis groenlandica or pink elephants
Elegant camas, Anticlea elegans
Slender cinquefoil, Potentilla gracilis

All found at Washington Lake in the White Cloud Mountains while hiking with Mom and Dad. What a treat.

Closeup of pink elephants.

Closeup of elegant camas.

A lone Silver lupine, Lupinus argenteus
found in a field of Twin arnica, Arnica sororia.

Following are a couple of my favorite
wildflower photos from this summer.
Both were taken while on a hike
to Betty, Baptie and Goat Lakes.
The same hike I found the white bog orchid on
mentioned in my previous post.

Lewis's monkey-flower, Mimulus lewisii
Oregon bluebell, Mertensia bella
Spear leafed arnica, Arnica longifolia

California false hellebore, Veratrum californicum

While working in early July I was lucky enough to be up in Copper Basin during some of the height of the wildflower season.

Prairie smoke, Geum triflorum

Taper-leaf penstemon, Penstemon attenuatus
Spear leafed arnica, Arnica longifolia
with the Pioneer Mountains in the background.

Pioneer Mountains in the background again. Only this time from the other side. The field of wildflowers consists mostly of American bistort (white), Bistorta bistortoides, Mountain sheep sorrel (red), Rumex paucifolius, and Upland larkspur (blue), Delphinium nuttallianum.

Another view of the Pioneers with
Longspur lupine, Lupinus arbustus in the foreground.

And last but not least some cactus flowers.
They are some of my favorites
as they grow in extreme heat and dryness,
they are very delicate, their color is amazing
and they last for only but a day or two.

Spiny prickly pear, Opuntia polyacantha

Brittle cactus, Opuntia fragilis

And...
an Aztec poem

From within the Heavens
by Ayocuan Cuetzpaltzin

From within the heavens they come,
the beautiful flowers, the beautiful songs,
but our yearning spoils them,
our inventiveness makes them lose their fragrance,
although not those of the Chichimec prince Tecayehuatzin.
With his, rejoice!

Friendship is a shower of precious flowers
White tufts of heron feathers
are woven with precious red flowers,
among the branches of the trees
under which stroll and sip
the lords and nobles

Your beautiful song
is a golden wood thrush
most beautiful, you raise it up.
You are in a field of flowers.
Among the flowery bushes you sing.
Are you perchance a precious bird of the Giver of Life?
Perchance you have spoken with God?
As soon as you saw the dawn,
you began to sing.
Would that I exert myself, that my heart desire,
the flowers of the shield,
the flowers of the Giver of Life.

What can my heart do?
In vain we have come,
we have blossomed forth on earth.
Will I have to go alone
like the flowers that perish?
Will nothing remain of my name?
Nothing of my fame here on earth?
At least my flowers, at least my songs!
What can my heart do?
In vain we have come,
we have blossomed forth on earth.

Let us enjoy, O friends,
here we can embrace.
We stroll over the flowery earth.
No one here can do away
with the flowers and the songs,
they will endure in the house of the Giver of Life

Earth is the region of the fleeting moment.
Is it also thus in the Place
Where in Some Way One Lives?

Is one happy there?
Is there friendship?
Or is it only here on earth
we come to know our faces?

(as translated by Miguel Leon-Portilla)

With a little bit about Aztec poetry.

Some orchids and a poem

2009-07-28T18:12:00.020-06:00

White bog orchid, Platanthera dilatata

Found while hiking in the Pioneer Mountains
to Betty, Goat and Baptie Lakes.
Goat being the highest lake in Idaho.

An Encounter by Robert Frost

ONCE on the kind of day called “weather breeder,”
When the heat slowly hazes and the sun
By its own power seems to be undone,
I was half boring through, half climbing through
A swamp of cedar. Choked with oil of cedar
And scurf of plants, and weary and over-heated,
And sorry I ever left the road I knew,
I paused and rested on a sort of hook
That had me by the coat as good as seated,
And since there was no other way to look,
Looked up toward heaven, and there against the blue,
Stood over me a resurrected tree,
A tree that had been down and raised again—
A barkless spectre. He had halted too,
As if for fear of treading upon me.
I saw the strange position of his hands—
Up at his shoulders, dragging yellow strands
Of wire with something in it from men to men.
“You here?” I said. “Where aren’t you nowadays
And what’s the news you carry—if you know?
And tell me where you’re off for—Montreal?
Me? I’m not off for anywhere at all.
Sometimes I wander out of beaten ways
Half looking for the orchid Calypso.”

On the way to work the other day...

2009-07-09T18:32:00.029-06:00

I finally got to shoot a photograph of an antelope. Usually when I see them they are long gone before I get my camera out but not this one. He seemed very content to be resting in a pasture with horses. It was a treat to be able to see one so close up instead of watching one bounce away. I know, I know he looks like a colt all curled up...but he's not. Click on the picture so you can see it enlarged and it's an antelope. Really.

And today I took lunch in a field full of flowers. Some of my favorites, pussy-toes and prairie smoke, are in full bloom right now. According to my Mountain Wildflowers book and I quote "Pussy-toes are not particularly attractive, but they are so numerous that one cannot help but notice them"....

I'm quite partial to them.

Rosy pussy-toes Antennaria rosea

And in the same field lots and lots of prairie smoke.

Prairie smoke Geum triflorum (pink)

With lots of Slender and Early cinquefoil
Potentilla gracilis and concinna (yellow)
and a little bit of Upland larkspur
Delphinium nuttallianum (blue)

More cinquefoil

Wild Flowers

2009-06-24T10:04:00.010-06:00

Wild Flowers at the height of the Burma Road, Idaho

For myself I hold no preferences among flowers,
so long as they are wild, free, spontaneous.
Bricks to all greenhouses!
Black thumb and cutworm to the potted plant!
~ Edward Abbey

Happy Fathers and Mothers Day and Happy Summer Solstice

2009-06-21T10:24:00.040-06:00

Since I missed Mothers Day...

Happy, happy Fathers and Mothers Day!

Better together anyway!

Just like Mom and Dad who are off today pedaling somewhere, who knows where...

Some of my favorite photos from last fall in Vermont. My friend Brian and his son Noah in the apple orchard at Vermont Technical College. Very happy Fathers Dayish.

To happy Fathers and Mothers everywhere!

Today is also the Summer Solstice and as we haven't seen much of that big yellow ball in the sky lately, here in south central Idaho, I am posting a little yellow of my own in celebration!

So far just this morning it has rained and hailed, which is not a bad thing. I thoroughly enjoy seeing, smelling, hearing, and feeling all that flurry of activity going on outside with the sliders wide open into the backyard, while drinking the best cup of coffee all week.

And in absence of the sun, a little yellow...

Ooops, couldn't help myself.
It's yellow.

But it is not where the trees are at for now.
Here's where they are for now.

More of the Marsh and some other stuff

2009-06-13T14:34:00.029-06:00

We visited the marsh again and although the camas have gone to seed the birds are still there along with lots and lots and lots of mosquitoes. We took the new camera but we forgot the bug dope.

Wait, wait, wait....I know there's a hike coming, I just know it.
If I just wait.

After the marsh we went east to Fish Creek Reservoir. One of my favorites spots.

Along the way some roadside flowers.

And a dog in his truck. Still waiting.

And people wonder why I anthropomorphize dog on a daily basis.

Fish Creek Reservoir

Finally!

Fields of Blooms

2009-05-31T14:31:00.043-06:00

Camas lilies and lupines are in full bloom all over Camas County.

Camas lily (Camassia quamash)

Meriwether Lewis, of the Lewis & Clark Expedition, wrote of the camas lily in his journal in the spring of 1806: "The quawmash is now in blume and from the colour of its bloom at a short distance it resembles lakes of fine clear water, so complete in this deseption that on first sight I could have sworn it was water."

Yellow headed blackbird found in the Camas Prairie Centennial Marsh

Wild lupine (Lupinus perennis)

That Smell...

2009-05-19T16:36:00.030-06:00

Try as I might I don't think I can possibly convey the amazing scent that is being given off by the fruit tree which is just steps from my front door.

The first thing that comes to mind when the scent hits my olfactory glands is "Can't you smell that smell?" (I think it's an age thing) but using lyrics from a Lynyrd Skynyrd song who's origins lie in alcohol and drug abuse and the referenced "smell" is the smell of death is probably not the proper way to try to convey the amazing scent that is heralding Spring even more so than the color that is popping all over the place.

So instead an e e cummings poem.

spring omnipotent goddess Thou

Spring omnipotent goddess Thou
dost stuff parks
with overgrown pimply
chevaliers and gumchewing giggly

damosels Thou dost
persuade to serenade
his lady the musical tom-cat
Thou dost inveigle

into crossing sidewalks the
unwary june-bug and the frivolous
angleworm
thou dost hang canary birds in parlour windows

Spring slattern of seasons
you have soggy legs
and a muddy petticoat
drowsy

is your hair your
eyes are sticky with
dream and you have a sloppy body from

being brought to bed of crocuses
when you sing in your whisky voice
the grass rises on the head of the earth
and all the trees are put on edge

spring
of the excellent jostle of
thy hips
and the superior

slobber of your breasts i
am so very fond that my
soul inside of me hollers
for thou comest

and your hands are the snow and thy
fingers are the rain
and your
feet O your feet

freakish
feet feet incorrigible

ragging the world

e e cummings

So I think the fruit tree is a pear tree but I'm not certain. Maybe apple?
Any suggestions?

More tulips.

Finally some color!

2009-05-16T17:35:00.007-06:00

The tulips have finally bloomed.

And there are grape hyacinths randomly popping up all over the yard.

The beginner gardener grows some grass.

2009-04-23T14:40:00.002-06:00

Yes, it's true.

I am growing grass.

The sprouts that sprung from my blocks are not butter crunch lettuce.
They are not eggplant.
And...they are not lovage.

The little sprouts that I was so excited about are grass. The sprouts were getting pretty leggy and I was ready to transfer them into pots until the garden is ready, however, now...well, I won't be putting blades of grass into pots.

But...

if you look closely...

hiding in the grass is what I believe to be a legitimate sprout of some sort. I believe it is lovage. I will have to wait and see. I will also wait to see if the other blocks produce something other than the grass. And, I know I must help the blocks along and clear the grass but I am not so interested in removing them. These blades of grass. The first thing I ever grew

On another note, the weather is not quite ready to give it all up to Spring. Forecasted temperatures for the weekend are lows in the 20s. I don't mind so much. Plan for the weekend is to play with rocks. Rock work I am sure is better when it is cooler out.

Fun on the farm and some micro alpine flora, maybe it is Spring after all?

2009-04-18T20:04:00.003-06:00

Today I spent the better part of my day at the "Kelok Illahee" farm owned by Dick and Melinda Springs located in Gannett, Idaho just south of Bellevue. The farm, which means home of the sandhill crane in Chinook, is an amazing place and I am grateful that Dick and Melinda share what they have created with others.

I was there attending the third session of my Vegetable Gardening 102 class, offerend through CSI and led by Dick and Melinda. We were there to learn how to build a hoop house which is often used to extend the growing season. Little did I know how fun and interesting the whole day would turn out to be. Not only did we learn all about hoop houses but we also learned about raising chickens and pigs and we toured the whole farm. Animals to be found at "Kelok Illahee" include: emus, chickens, pigs, pygmy goats, geese, ducks, dogs and cats.

I need to sort through all of my photos and create a few different slide shows but for now here are a few photos from a very fun day on the farm!

And...

Since there is nothing that is going to bloom anytime soon in my own yard I am posting a few photos of micro alpine flora from my first spring hike up Heidelberg Hill in Ketchum.

The forecast calls for snow!

2009-04-14T19:57:00.001-06:00

Yup it's true. One to two inches of the stuff by morning.

But...

The forecast also calls for temperatures in the 60s by the weekend. Welcome to the high desert mountain region of central Idaho.

And...

As of today I have almost completed the new composting structure. So far I have only invested a half an hour of time and a couple of new self tapping screws into the structure itself. I did however spend about an hour regrading the area where I am to install it.

Here is an overall update photo of the backyard. The compost is to the right of the shed. The dog in the foreground of the photo is a new found friend who comes to visit daily, Jackson the Dog, and in the background is my ever faithful companion and friend, Tucker the Dog. They have both been contributing daily to the toils in the yard. And... all of my gardening planning will be affected to some degree by the Tuckster. i.e. additional fencing around the composting, fencing around the veggie beds, etc, etc... Wouldn't have it any other way though.

Oh and note the last little pile of debris near Jackson to be taken out with the trash on Wednesday. Then, all that will be left will be organic material in the yard. Well, except for the dang cigarette butts...

And here is a photo of the compost structure.

It doesn't look like much, in fact it kind of looks like it is being created to keep in some sort of animal, but hopefully it will someday contain some really nice decaying organic matter. With earthworms to boot.

First though, I need to learn a little about layering the green and the brown and adding moisture and turning properly and keeping the dog out and keeping other critters out and well...first I have to finish creating it. It's not that stable yet. If you look closely the branches to the right are hopefully to be used to create some sort of fencing. Perhaps...

As I am looking at the photos I really cannot wait until some color is to be found in the yard.

24, 48 and 72 hours later

2009-04-13T09:15:00.001-06:00

I must admit I'm extremely excited about my soil blocks. Posting photos from 24, 48 and 72 hours after they sprouted.

Whilst it snows outside...

2009-04-10T10:40:00.004-06:00

Yes, it's snowing and sleeting and raining and dripping and generally just not the type of day where you want to be outside. Unless of course you are a duck, a frog or perhaps an earthworm and earthworms are aplenty in the backyard.

The beginning of this week more time was spent in the backyard cleaning and removing debris and...under all the debris I found big fat earthworms. I wish I had a picture or two of the nice big fat earthworms but I only took a few more pictures of the debris in the yard. The following two pictures are some of what was found just outside the french doors to the back yard.

Wednesday is trash day though and all has now been carted away. I now have a blank, albeit leafy, twiggy, cigarette butt strewn canvas to work with.

And...

My soil blocks have sprouted! There are little green shoots poking out of a few of them and the ones that don't have green shoots poking out the top I checked the bottom and they have root growth. The root growth blocks are bib lettuce and the green shoot blocks are eggplant and lovage.

Lookee here!

Also, my composting expirement in the kitchen has almost reached a point where the scraps need to be posted to a pile out of doors. The compost structure needs to be built though. The plan for now is to create one from what once was a metal futon frame found in the backyard. It will be a three sided structure with some sort of removable door on the front. The door may be made from a discarded piece of plywood that I saw the other day on our daily canyon hike. As a bonus the piece of plywood has already been painted an attractive green. I do need to inspect it for rot and general usability though.

Bowl #1 - Coffee grounds to be used in homemade fertilizer

Bowl #2 - Kitchen scraps to be composted

Bowl #3 - Recyclables

Old futon frame soon to be a compost enclosure.

Looking forward to a less wet day tomorrow so I can get to work outside again!

And so the adventure continues...

2009-04-05T17:07:00.001-06:00

I have just moved from an apartment at the base of Bald Mountain in Ketchum, Idaho into a newly renovated tiny little house in Bellevue, Idaho and as a result I have decided to use blogging as a journaling medium to track all of my new experiences that will come with living in my new great space.

Blogging is completely new to me and I am fully expecting it to be as much of an adventure as the rest of my ideas that come with living in a house that has a great big fenced back yard and a beautiful front yard resplendent with numerous trees including some fruits as yet to be determined.

I should mention that although the house has just been completely renovated all of the out of doors was woefully neglected for the last four years (as was the in of doors hence the complete renovation) and will require much work and TLC to bring it round to it's full potential. Below is a picture of pick up load number two of things found under the snow to be taken to recycle. When I first looked at the house back at the beginning of March there was four feet of snow on the ground...

Pictures of the backyard including from the top of the dead end street (yes, I'm the last house on a dead end street and it is quiet, quiet, quiet, well...except for all the birds, including cooing doves) and a picture from inside the fence.

Picture of the front of the house.

Things to be learned, created, accomplished while living at the 'Casa on the Corner':

The Short List
composting
gardening: including vegetables, herbs and flowers
canning
dehydrating
bread making

In general just live a more sustainable lifestyle.

The Long List would include things like learning about raising chickens and goats and things but that's for later. Waaayyy later!

The next few posts will include lessons learned from this past week including information about composting and gardening. Did you know there is hot composting, cold composting, vermiposting? It all gets really confusing really quickly but I have started composting my kitchen scraps and I believe I will be creating a hot compost out in the backyard. We'll see.

And...I've started a gardening class and I came home with some soil blocks which have seeds started in them. I really hope I can nurture them to full bloom.