My Garden

I took this photo at first light one winter day.  I was looking at a lot of gray and not much color.  My camera saw blue for some reason.  I was sure surprised when I got my photos back from the developer.  I love it.  It's in our backyard looking toward a big pecan tree before you get to our fields.  
When we bought our forty acres about twenty years ago, the place where we decided to put our house had been a farm many years before.  There was even an old barn and outhouse still there.  I really regret not being able to salvage either building, but the termites and time had done their work well.  
 We tore down old wire fencing from a hog pen in the area which was between the house and the field.  This left a football size area of bareness behind the house.  In what I now consider a major act of courage or stupidity, I laid out my gardens.  I collected old bricks from houses being torn down around town and laid several pathways.  I planted boxwood hedges and huge perennial beds.  I laid out an herb garden enclosed in a white picket fence.  There was only one single, tiny thing I didn't know about gardening:  YOU HAVE TO MAINTAIN IT!  I guess I thought that once it was put in and laid out, it would take care of itself.  Boy was I wrong; especially where we live.  The growing season is year round.
So, I've spent the last twenty years being frustrated and never enjoying my garden.  All I see is all the work that needs to be done and all the weeds and grass that need to be dealt with.  I now know that gardening is a daily job.  I don't like garden maintenance.  I'd much rather plan the garden, put it in, and then forget it.  In my next life, I'm going to be a landscape architect.
Anyway, as soon as it cools off a little (around October), I'm going to work outside a lot.  Child #3 has just moved back home, so I'm going to use his services in exchange for room and board. He's going to be my gardening slave.  A teenager from our church wants to earn some money for his Junior/Senior trip to Europe, so I'll hire him too for a few hours a week.  Between the three of us, we should be able to whip it back into shape.
But I'm changing some things.  Those large perennials beds far from the house are too much upkeep.  I can't keep the grass out of the beds which are edged in brick.  I'm going to let the grass retake the bed, take out the brick, dig up the perennials, and put in a hedge of roses or something similar.  I'd go with the Knockout Rose, but it's so common around here I'm tired of it.  I can keep up a bed of flowers if it's close to the house, so that's where I'm putting them.
I may redo the patio area right behind the house too.  We never use it as it is.  I can't figure out why.  I've got to do some hard thinking about that.  I'm reading a book called The Weekend Gardener which tells how to have a low-maintenance garden.  Ha!  That's funny in South Georgia.  But I'm sure I could make it more low-maintenance than it is now.
Ryan Gainey's garden was on the front of Cottage Living last month.  I've been an admirer of his gardening style for many years.  His garden is located in North Georgia; somewhere around Atlanta.  It's also open to the public, so I may pop in some day for a visit.  He inspires me.  I love everything he's ever done in his house and garden.  I also love the gardens of Williamsburg, but that's another post.  This one's getting too long!

Canoecopia : It's not a small world after all

We often talk about paddlesports being a small world. But when most of the major manufacturers of boats, paddles, clothing and gear, along with clubs and organizations, outfitters and publications, come together under one roof in March, it feels pretty big. Add more than a hundred presentations in meeting rooms and a swimming pool, and more than 20,000 visitors, and Canoecopia earns its claim of bring the largest paddlesportsconsumerevent in the world.

Dusting off a canoe before the crowd comes in.

We arrived early this year to help set up a table for The Gales Storm Gathering, the intermediate/advanced, bumpy water sea kayaking instructional event that will be held October 11 to 13 in the Apostle Islands.

Keith Wikle taping the new banners behind the booth.

We also got the update on the current line of spray skirts and pogies from Scott Lynch, who representsSnap Dragon Designat Canoecopia and spent more than a decade working in the paddlesports industry before launching his dream business: La Fortuna, a mobile wood-fired pizza business. (Like so many people in this business, he wears several hats.)

Scott Lynch explains the construction and features of the Glacier Trek spray skirt. Durable Snap Dragon skirts feature a one-piece spray deck and graduated levels of bungee tension depending on the model you buy.

We were double agents (at least--perhaps quadruple agents) at Canoecopia this year. We were vendors in the Snap Dragon booth, exhibitors at the Gales and CASKA tables, speakers at the swimming pool, and customers eager to soak it all in. And there was a lot to absorb. As usual, we prowled the aisles looking for new products and innovations.

Sharon tries on the new Kokatat Maximus Prime PFD, a whitewater rescue vest that really fits smaller paddlers (and larger ones, too). This vest has especially wide shoulder straps and webbing adjustments in the front, making it easier to get a snug fit, even on a short torso.

Level 6 offers a Creek Boot with a wide toe bed and a grippy, flexible and sturdy sole. Designed by Level 6 co-founder and Canadian Slalom Team racer Stig Larsson, it's slim enough to to bend and fit in a boat but sturdy enough to protect your soles during a portage.

North Water offers the tow systems preferred by most of the top paddlers and coaches in North America.

Alec checks out the P&H Delphin 150, which launched a new category of sea kayaks designed to excel in surf and play spots.

Canoecopia also offers a rare opportunity to talk with the designers, sales managers and often the founders of the companies that make the boats and gear we use. It's a chance to hear talks by and engage in conversation with all kinds of paddlers on all kinds of topics. And even though we always say there's nothing more we need, we end up buying something new and exciting. This year it was kneeling pads and painter rope for our canoe, and one new shirt apiece. We'll be back next year.

Early Spring

Early Spring, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

The johnny jump-ups are starting to bloom on the Central Coast of California. With abundant rainfall and mild temperatures, it's looking to be a great spring for wildflowers. Winter's not even over yet and we've had at least 17 inches of rain in San Luis Obispo.

Beaudesert Bash

I should have learned by now that no long distance event should be underestimated, but after a return to form in the 300k the previous weekend, and a solid effort in a rainy 100km "recovery ride" on the Monday, I went into Saturday's 200km ride thinking everything should be fairly straight forward. The weather forecast seemed to be on my side, too, despite the lack of rain. It promised (relatively) cool temperatures and a southerly wind to push me home, could I ask for any more?

Things started promisingly too, I made good time with a bunch of riders on the way out of suburban Brisbane, and felt strong against the southerly. I even pulled away on the hills near Tamborine Village (which, despite it's name, does not require a climb of Mt Tamborine) and was still feeling strong. The combination of rollers and headwind in the Albert river valley beyond Beaudesert was difficult, but every time I glanced down at my computer, I could see that I had plenty of time in reserve. The ride then headed out a little way on Duck Creek road, basically to the end of the bitumen, but only the start of the climb. Still, I was grateful for the turnaround, and the knowledge of a ride home with a tailwind.

It was not long after this that things suddenly went wrong. The Psssshhhhh of a punctured tube isn't such a frightening prospect for me these days (after 28 in 2007, I've had plenty of practice in fixing them). It was more the split that had developed in my back tyre that worried me. The immediate concern I had was fixing it to ensure I wasn't going to be stuck in the middle of nowhere. I took a patch from my tube repair kit and stuck it to the inside of the tyre (I didn't want to resort to the old $5 note trick just yet), then inserted the new tube and reinflated. It held the air. I set off and gingerly rode the 20-odd km back to Beaudesert and it still held the air. Now I was back in civilisation.

Now I started to believe I could finish the ride after all. At one stage I even believed I could make up the time I lost fixing the flat, but that was always optimistic. The rest of the ride was relatively uninteresting, apart from one moron in the southern suburbs of Brisbane who really doesn't deserve a mention anyway. I eased back and let the wind to all the work, until it dropped off later in the day, by which stage I had regular rest stops at Brisbane's notoriously slow traffic lights. 3km from the finish some rather vague route directions delayed me slightly, but those were sorted without too many problems, and I was able to coast to the finish.
Next week I'm planning something a little different, a return to the Burringbar tunnel on the new MTB should I receive Uncle Kevin's beer, or should I say "stimulus" money in time. I am considering whacking the new purchase on the credit card for the next couple of weeks until the money comes through. On the other hand, maybe he's realised that I don't intend spending it on beer or prostitutes (about the only things still owned by Australians these days), and decided not to send it to me. Oh well.

Have You Ever Seen the Rain?

I saw it this morning! But luckily, only after I pulled the key out of my bike lock and entered the building. Lucky me.
It felt like rain, and there was distant lightning all around, so I pedaled my happy little feet the entire way and just barely beat the deluge that was to come.
In a way, this saddens me. I've been bike commuting since July 16, and got fenders a week or so after. I've not yet had the opportunity to try out the fenders in the rain. I'm sure riding in the rain once will be good enough. :)
Am I ready for a rainy ride home? I don't know. Certainly I don't mind getting wet. However, I don't know for sure that my pannier is waterproof. I've got some plastic bags to wrap things up in, but I'd rather the inside of the pannier stay dry.
Please comment with your own rainy ride experiences.

Coq au Vin - Finished

Coq au Vin, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

Here's the completed coq au vin, with pearl onions, mushrooms, and little pieces of bacon. The chicken became unbelievably tender, and so did the pearl onions. Coq au vin is fairly easy to make, and a great dish for a cold winter night.

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park

We decide to visit our Niece Keri in Atlanta so we scoot over to the Smokies and find a campground just south of the Park and are able to scoot down in the Tracker for a quick visit.

The Town of Cherokee part of the Indian Reservation is at the South Entrance of the Park in North Carolina.





We decide to follow route 441 which travles north thru the Park.



We see Elk by the Smokemont Visitors Center

There is a replica of a small farm as well there.



We continue our Hike a Day and hike the Dark Creek Trail past 3 waterfalls.





The local entertainment center with sound surround"