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Roundup
sun 1 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120701.html |
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My Mom has been visiting for the past week. She left this morning and since then I've been playing catchup with all my normal chores and the emails that have piled up and the crazy projects that I am always doing. I've taken care of all the absolutely necessary things. But now I'm so scattered and overwhelmed by the rest of my many projects, I can't figure out where to start! ha. So, I'm going to start here with a list of the awesome things I did with my Mom. And then I'll follow up with the photos in the coming week, as I get the chance to go through them! ∞ Monday I had to work, and plus it was raining. In the afternoon, we visited Significant Other's pinball arcade, which was actually fun. And we went to see a 3D movie, Men in Black 3. ∞ Tuesday A half day of work for me, then we went for a long, pleasant walk at the Delta Ponds. ∞ Wednesday A long, mostly easy hike at Mount Pisgah. ∞ Thursday A day trip up past Portland, Mom and I hiked up Multnomah Falls. Then we wandered over to Wahkeena Falls, and then the Vista House. An amazing trip! ∞ Friday A quiet day, but we visited Sweet Cheeks winery for some wine tasting in the afternoon. ∞ Saturday Saturday Market in the morning where I bought some plants for the garden. More wine tasting in the afternoon at King Estate, which included a tour. And, in between rain showers in the evening, Mom and I went out to our community garden plot to plant the new basils and "cherry bomb" pepper. My Mom is pretty cool, so it's good to hang out with her. I have many stories and pictures... Just need to find the time! |
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pic, Delta Pond
mon 2 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120702.html |
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This is a wood duck with her two children. And the turtle might be a Western Painted Turtle (or a red eared slider, an invasive species). |
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pic, Delta Ponds
tues 3 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120703.html |
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quiet day
wed 4 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120704.html |
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ha. Anyway, I got good stuff done today. Wrote some protest letters for Amnesty International's Urgent Action Network. Watched all the videos to one of the free Strathmore Online Workshops. And did some reading. Here are some more Delta Ponds photos...
The Cinnabar moth was imported from Europe/Asia in order to control ragwort.
Turtles battle for turf with non-native species A local news article about the Western Pond Turtle and the invasive red-eared slider in the Delta Ponds. The cords and cables you see on the logs in the pond are there because the tree didn't just fall into the water! The logs are part of the habitat restoration which began in 2005. |
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♥ Urban Wildlife ♥
thurs 5 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120705.html |
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A pair of turkeys have been roaming the streets of Eugene for several months. This is the second time I've seen them on my street. And yeah. They like to walk down the middle of the road. All the cars and buses stop for them and honk. ha. |
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last of the Delta Ponds pics
fri 6 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120706.html |
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We were surprised to walk directly under a nest of ... ? I couldn't find any info about this nest for some strange reason, but I am emailing someone who should know. :) Oh! Cascades Raptor Center, is an awesome wildlife hospital and education/nature center here in town. They told me the nest belongs to an osprey family! Thank you CRC!! Further down the path, I looked back and took more pictures of the nest...
I was using the most zoom I could on my camera... and then I realized... "You know? I think that lump on top just moved!"
How cool is that! |
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garden
sat 7 july 2012 | |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120707.html | |
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Last weekend, I had bought some blue daisies when I went to Saturday Market with my Mom. We went to the garden that afternoon, and planted the pepper plant and basils that I also got. But we had to leave before we got to the flowers because of a rain shower. Unfortunately, the sun has been shining ever since, and the pepper plant died of lack of water. The basils might not live either. eh. I told Significant Other that we need to start watering daily. I really hope my flowers live, because I just love them...
The weeds have sprung up in our cleared areas, and the grass is starting to grow again. SO and I worked on that for a little while. The four different tomato plants are well established with deep roots, and they are going to give us lots of good fruit! I can't wait!
The slugs got one of my cucumber plants, but the other two are healthy and growing. I've planted zucchinis twice now, and the slugs got both of them. So much for soup and zucchini bread. Significant Other mentioned how pretty the red and orange flowers were. I said, "Nasturtium. You can eat them." He didn't believe me, but he plucked a flower. I added, "It has a peppery taste." He ate it. They are a bit too spicy for my taste, but I agree, they are pretty! :) The strawberries are pretty much done. Two sweet potatoes are still alive. A few carrots. and the creeping thyme seems to be holding it's own... the lemon thyme got lost under the nasturtiums. Don't know what to think of the mustard greens: they went to flower as soon as I planted them, and now they have short green sticks coming off their stems along with the flowers. The snow peas got planted pretty late, but they are growing and one has a flower. Not sure if they'll do anything other than that... Wish the first ones I planted had lived: I love peas! And the one sunflower that lived is a good 3½ feet tall! The other plants keep dying, but as long as I get some pretty flowers, I'll be happy. Happy enough to do it again next year? hmm... |
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lazy sunday
sun 8 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120708.html |
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I installed the newest edition of my desktop publishing software. This is the program I use to make my postcards and it is one of the most important programs I own, and I use it every time I turn on my computer. PagePlus by Serif I went from the old X5 edition to the newest X6, and some of the features that I use extensively got moved around in the new program. I couldn't find them and had to get the book out, and then they had renamed one of them so I couldn't even find it in the index! ack! I cursed Serif loudly and for all time while I paged through that user manual like a mad person! And then I found it, figured out how to use the new process... and decided it's much better in the new place! haha. I might take back my curses. |
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Mount Pisgah
mon 9 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120709.html |
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The view from one of the trails at Mount Pisgah arboretum. |
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Mount Pisgah
tue 10 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120710.html |
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This was the second time my Mom and I had been to Mount Pisgah. Our first trip was a few years ago. It included my Dad, and we wandered around the base of the hills down near the river. This time I wanted to go to the top of Mount Pisgah. Supposedly the view is great. Yeah. Supposedly. The maps of the trails are somewhat lacking: Lacking in a little star that says "You are Here". And also lacking in a little arrow that says "Here is the summit of Mount Pisgah". So we mis-read the map (which, incidently has "north" pointing to the side), and headed for the wrong hill. When we finally found the correct trail, we were too tired to hike up it! Plus, we wanted to save some of our strength for the next day's trip up to Multnomah Falls. |
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1. Multnomah
wed 11 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120711.html |
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This was our first view of Multnomah Falls. Literally, I parked my car, started getting things out of the trunk, and then I looked up. And when I say "I looked up"... I mean, seriously, up! The camera does not portray the angle at all, and none of my photos do justice to the waterfall! The building has a restaurant, a gift shop and a little nature center. My Mom and I visited on a thursday afternoon. It was a 2½ hour drive to get up there and we arrived about 1:15ish. I had hoped to avoid the crowds by going on a week day. haha! It was so crowded! I can't even imagine how it could get _more_ crowded on a saturday afternoon! |
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2. Multnomah
thurs 12 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120712.html |
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The Upper Falls are 542 ft (165m), and the lower one is 69 ft (21m). There is also a 9 ft drop between the upper and lower falls, thus the 620 ft (189m) total for the Multnomah Waterfalls. |
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announcement
fri 13 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120713.html |
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I am quitting my postcard hobby. Yes. Quitting. Maybe not forever. And definitely not instantaneously, since I have several swaps and exchanges and hosting duties that are due. But still, quitting. My mom's visit, and the cleaning and organizing I had to do for her visit, kind of shook things up around here. I have been trying to get back into the flow of my life, for the past two weeks... I have printed up dozens of postcards. Literally, I think there's over fifty postcards, in various stages. But I've not written any and I certainly haven't stamped any or put any in the mail box. And I don't really want to. so why force it? I quit. I'm moving on to something else. What, I don't know!
Marco Thunder at the day job. That's about how much work there is to do, too. |
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3. Multnomah
sat 14 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120714.html |
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The lower falls of Multnomah. Except for all those humans up there, it looks like a refreshing place to hang out, doesn't it? Well, I guess the humans do give you a sense of how big things are. Remember, the lower falls are only 69 ft (21m), while the falls above are almost eight times the height at 542 ft (165m)! |
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garden
sun 15 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120715.html |
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I noticed this right away:
Wow! It's the Indigo Rose Tomato plant, and that is one black tomato! The three other tomato plants (all different types!) seem to be doing well and have some blossoms. I can't wait for the deluge of tomatoes!! Plus, I just love taking pictures of tomatoes. The leaves are beautiful in their randomness, and the round green-ness of the growing tomatoes, and then the contrasting colour of the ripe ones. The whole plant just delights me! My blue daisies are still alive... but today the borage and the nasturtiums stole the show!
I tried to capture the riot of colour, with the blue borage (starflower!) blossoms and the reds and oranges and yellows of the nasturtiums. And the beautiful green foliage of both. There was one sadness. Someone had cut down our sunflower. It was just forming blossoms, and I'm sad that I won't get to take pictures of the flowers. I've loved sunflowers ever since they popped up as volunteers in our first year (2009) of the community garden. I didn't even do anything, and I get these huge beautiful flowers?! ha! well. The sunflowers I planted are dead, but there are plenty of other garden plots with sunflowers in them. There will be ample opportunity to take pictures... |
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4. Multnomah
mon 16 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120716.html |
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The bridge is so close to the falls that I was constantly wiping water spray from my camera lens! ha. Okay, now turn around and see where we came from:
The bridge was a quarter mile, easy walk from the viewing area below. |
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5. Multnomah
tues 17 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120717.html |
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We're basically going up a cliff. So, the side of the hill goes straight up from the path... And straight down on the other side! Yikes! The hike is called "moderate", and we rested for a few minutes at each switchback!
Yep, that's me on the trail. The post says "switchback 7 of 11". At switchback 9, you're at the top of the trail, and then it starts going downhill into the creek valley where the waterfalls come off. |
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6. Multnomah
wed 18 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120718.html |
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A land slide had taken out part of the trail! That's okay. We followed the main trail which took us to the creek that becomes the waterfall.
Ha: fewer humans here, much nicer! |
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7. Multnomah
thurs 19 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120719.html |
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postcards (part 2)
fri 20 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120720.html |
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I used to design a postcard and send one to everyone in my address book, every month. This was a great project when I only had 30ish addresses to send to. Then it got to 50 addresses. I started cutting people off my list, because it was too big. But, with my other mailing projects, I couldn't keep up with 50 addresses, anyway, so I started skipping months. But I'm still making amazing postcards that I want to show everyone, and I lose track of what I've sent to whom. So now the whole project is this big mess that I don't want to deal with anymore. Thusly, "I am quitting my postcards." Which is not exactly what I meant. I still have many other postcard projects that I need and want to do! I'm just quitting my monthly postcard that goes out to everyone.
To give you an idea of what my postcard life is like...
since last friday... I'm not sure what my new normal is going to be: I do want to continue with my postcards, because they make me happy... but I don't want to get frustrated because I can't send out as many as I wish I could. Where is my happy medium?!
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weekend gardener
sat 21 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120721.html |
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Since I haven't been biking to the day job this summer, I also haven't been biking to the garden during the week (after work). The community garden is just over a mile from our home, and almost two miles from the day job, so it's not very easy to walk to. And I don't. But Significant Other waters the plants at our garden plot every day. And we get pretty good work done on the weekend... While I deal with the weeds around our veges, Significant Other forks out a grassy section. Today we didn't go to Saturday Market, where we usually get new plants. But I still wanted to plant stuff. So I put down some flower seeds in the new section SO forked. Marigolds and Snap Dragons. (Thanks AJ!) Seeds don't grow in our plot for whatever reason. But I keep trying! |
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odds and ends
sun 22 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120722.html |
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This is a subject that I care muchly about... A few years ago, I actually bought a web site to record my findings about the vegan-ness of all the art supplies. I never did anything with it, because it made me a bit sad finding all these dead animals in stuff that's supposed to bring beauty. Christine's links are about painting. I don't paint, but it's good stuff to know. I think it would be good to go back to this project. I still "own" the web site, after all. ;) ∞ When my grandma was alive she decorated her kitchen with African Violets. She's a bit like me, in that she'd forget to water her plants, and never re-potted, and kind of let everyone grow wild. ha. I've had one version of her African Violets for ages. They bloom a dark, deep magenta and are lovely. This past xmas, my mom gave me the other version of grandma's African Violets. And it has finally started to bloom!
Yay! Thanks Grandma!! ∞ I signed up for my first email swap at Swap-Bot. In general, I think email swaps are kind of lame. I signed up at Swap-Bot to exchange snail mail! But this swap caught my attention. I have typed answers for about half the questions, and it's pretty fun. I am trying to keep the focus of "my craft" to the postcards I make; which includes photography, computer work, printing and finally writing something interesting. But with all that, it gets distracting, and as I'm typing away, I realize I've been talking about something completely different and I should probably clarify exactly what I'm talking about! ha. Anyway, it's fun. The questions are public for anyone and all... great journal prompts in there. I'll be printing out my answers for my own paper journal, for sure! |
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8. Multnomah
mon 23 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120723.html |
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not a blog entry
tues 24 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120724.html |
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I was working on some other projects. And then I may have accidently fallen asleep, before I wrote the blog post for today. Which is why this is not a blog entry. |
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9. Multnomah
wed 25 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120725.html |
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10. Multnomah
thurs 26 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120726.html |
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You can almost see the upper part of Multnomah falls through the trees.
And then, if you look the other way... "Hey, Mom! I can see the car from here!"
haha. At the top of the pic is the Columbia River, which separates the state of Oregon from Washington state. The interstate runs just south of the river. In the bottom half of the pic, parking runs all up and down the scenic highway. And in the lower left corner of the pic (above/to right of rock in foreground) is the roof of Multnomah Falls Lodge. |
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state of the projects
fri 27 july 2012 | |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120727.html | |
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And by quitting my 50+ monthly pc send out... the frustration and anxiety and overwhelm I was experiencing at the beginning of the month is melting away! Phew! I hope to get some other stuff done this weekend too.
Remember the cool class I was taking from Joanne Sharpe? Yeah, I think I got all the way to lesson 5, out of 29? ha. And then I signed up for her journal keeping class, Color Love, as well. And I got to the third lesson in that class. *rolls eyes* So yep. I hope to get those organized... I think I want to return to the Color Love class first. Re-watch the first few videos and maybe do some experimenting with my art supplies. Probably should do some relaxing this weekend as well. I haven't even had time to read my books at all this summer... I'm reading the same books I started a couple months ago, and that is just not acceptable! A book a week is my usual rate of reading! Much to do... gonna go get started on it... |
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yay cucumbers
sat 28 july 2012 | ||
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120728.html | ||
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I was so happy that I ate an entire cucumber in one sitting. Sliced and with Yumm! sauce (a local form of Goddess Dressing). Significant Other goes to water the plants every day. And every day he brings home a handful of sweet snap peas! We planted them pretty late, so I'm thrilled to be eating them!
The black tomatoes are still small and green, but there are dozens! We didn't pick any, but after we left, I had the idea... Fried Green Black Tomatoes! haha! Other fruits that I am eagerly awaiting... Lemon Cucs, Sweet 100 Cherry Toms, Oregon Spring Toms, and Early Cascade Tom. There are a couple of carrots, too, but it kind of makes me sad to kill a whole plant just for a couple munches. Which is why I should probably just grow fruits and flowers in the garden!! There is a wild flower growing that I'm interested in learning more about...
This was in with the weed that was the bane of my existance... It was similar, but it was much easier than the bane to pull up. Of course, it has come back, which worries me a bit. (A little bit of the bane has come back too... and I am aggressive about digging up any that get close to our planted areas!) The fact that I was never able to put a name to my bane, really annoys me. I have searched and searched and looked at hundreds of pics of yellow flowers (which the bane has), and never got a match with it's leaves. Which makes me not-so-excited to do a search for this thing. The community garden used to have a Ning site... which I really miss. That's how I found the name of Borage and Comfrey, by posting pics at the forum. Borage is wild flower which grows in our garden plot. It likes to take over, but it's so helpful that I mostly let it do it's thing! The bees love it... and making bees happy is important to me. |
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11. Multnomah
sun 29 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120729.html |
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This is the misty bottom of the upper falls. |
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12. Multnomah
mon 30 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120730.html |
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And a different view of the lower falls...
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13. Multnomah
tues 31 july 2012 |
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Permalink: http://www.static8.com/journal/2012/20120731.html |
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You Are Here: |
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