Almost Christmas

Man I remember what it was like as a child before Christmas. Now I know what it is like as a parent before Christmas. It is slightly different. We almost finished our shopping this weekend. It wasn't all that bad, actually. Thank goodness for Wal-mart. I usually can't stand the place, but at times like Christmas it is great to be able to basically make one stop. It is good the girls are the age they are, as it is so easy to shop for them. In a couple of years they will be telling us what they want. I'm sure it will be expensive. I'm glad we were able to get as much as we did, as I have had such a hard time with work lately. There has definitely been a lack of money around our place lately. That's o.k. though, Christmas is not about money. To tell you the truth, I am sure the girls will be thrilled with whatever the get from Santa, and their excitement will be a great gift for Valerie and I. Ahh, Christmas as a parent........

Friday

My goodness man, is it Friday yet?

Back to work

What a week. I started a new job with White Oak Landscape co. on Tuesday. I like the job a lot, everyone I have meet or dealt with has been great so far. It is one of the bigger independent landscape companies around Atlanta. The pay stinks, but that will change soon enough. We start at 6:00 every morning, and it takes me 50+ minutes to get to work. That's pretty rough, but it is a great company and I'm sure I will get plenty of 'experience' from this job. I will be heading up a crew soon, most likely dealing with hardscapes. My teacher from my woody i.d. class is the owner. It is a very good opportunity, as he is one of the top designers in the area.......I have finished with one of my classes in school , woody i.d.. I don't know my exact grade, but it should be at least a 4.0 or 4.1. My final for my other class is on Thursday, and I am exempt, with perfect attendance and an A average. I am glad for that. The new quarter doesn't start back until January 7th. I'm looking forward to the break.......Everyone is good around here. The girls are doing good, they have started back at Mrs. Pat's, so no more 'daycare'. That is a good thing.........We went to the Thrashers game tonight with Donnie and Chante. It was a lot of fun. Hockey is definitely more interesting 'live' than on T.V.. Maybe we will be able to get our hands on some more free tickets, I would like to do that again...

A rainy Sunday

It was a pretty dreary day around here. It has been raining for two days. It was a pretty good day to hang out in the house, and that's what we did. We have been working on a puzzle that is driving us crazy. I wanted a difficult one, and this one is. It can be a lot of fun on lazy days. I just hope the girls listen, and don't loose any of the pieces........We scored some free tickets to a Thrashers game. I have never been to a hockey game, and I am looking forward to it. The tickets are good, right behind the glass. It should be interesting............You know I cant believe how much ticket prices are these days. It doesn't mater if it is a concert or a sports event, they are outrageous! Most concert tickets are around thirty dollars now, with the bigger bands going for up to 100 bucks. Sports tickets are even worse, the tics we have were being sold for 80 dollars. Who would actually pay that? It would be $320 for four tics. Maybe I am getting old or just cheaper, but I think these prices are ridiculous. Thank goodness there's always the nosebleed seats for only 50 bucks a piece;)......

Still bored

I don't really have much to say, but I will write something anyway. We went and got a Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. Cathrine and Anna got a kick out of it. We bought a Douglass fir. Good looking tree..........Next week is the last week of school for fall quarter. Oh boy, finals. I am glad this quarter will be over. It seems like its been 15 weeks instead of ten. Oh well. I have really enjoyed my woody id class. I have learned about 90 plants that I wasn't familiar with before. Sarcococca hookeriania humilis is probably my favorite. Or maybe Metasequoia glyptostroboides. I finished my notebook that describes all of the plants we covered in class. I'm glad to be done with it. It took about 5 hours a week to do.........I am trying to find a new job, and it is beginning to get frustrating! This is the worst time of the year to try to find a job. Something better happen or I'm going to go crazy.................

Bored

yup.

Turkey day

Happy Thanksgiving everybody. Hope everybody had a good day!! Here is another game to play. Ever make a mobile in art class? It can be done. It will take a long time, don't let the mobile pieces touch water! The game

fun game if your bored

Can you get sanjeev to give up his pringles? The game

#@!!%$!! Microsoft

I was forced to reload my website to the original template, loosing all the work I did on it. I was editing it on Mozilla and when I checked it out on Internet explorer the format was all screwed up. I swear Explorer is a decroded piece of crap, gosh:) I wish everyone would use firefox. Here is a link to It. Firefox is the best browser out there. It has tabs, does not use active x scripts, and is customizable. Just to name a few. Try it out, the learning curve is not bad, and you can import all your favorites over automatically. You can have both of them installed at once, and choose which one you want to use. Damn I should be getting paid for this. I will have my website back to normal, or even better in no time. I have plenty of time these days....

Sunday night

Man, it's Sunday again. It fells like the weeks are flying by. It was a weird week, as usual. Lots of little things made the week interesting..... The girls are good, Annas birthday is this Wednesday. She's going to be four.......School is good. I have a two week break on Thursday's class because of registration and Thanksgiving. I am really looking forward to the break! This quarter ends December 17th, then we have a two week break. I have signed up for three classes next quarter: Horticulture contracting, pest management, and computer fundamentals. The later of which is on Saturday, eight to one P.M. That's something to look forward to. Oh well, I guess I might as well get it over with...........Don't really have anything else to say, or that I feel like writing about............

Sunday night

Oh boy, what a relaxing day. We went for a drive to see some great fall color, and boy did we find it. The colors are amazing. I have posted a couple of pics of the color we found. If you look hard enough you just might see a rare picture of the 'Valerie' in her native habitat. Rare sight indeed.........I am in the process of changing my sight a little to make it more interesting for everyone(or anyone) who views my site. I found a neat little poll that tells you where you stand I the realm of politics, based on your opinions and convictions. I thought it was pretty interesting. It is pretty accurate though I would consider myself a little more towards capitalism(or fascism ;0). Try it out. I will add more things to do as I slowly learn how to write Html......... Last but not least I have posted a picture of Anna and Cathrine dressed up in their Halloween costumes. They were very cute, and had a great time. They are getting older and are enjoying the holidays more and more. I can't wait till all that candy is gone.......

Saturday 11-5

Another eventfully week. Work is going pretty good. I am starting to settle in, finally. Next week I will be assembling a crew. I have posted a picture of a job in progress, that I have been on since day one. It is turning out nicely, especially the sod circle(which is zoisia)..........School is getting frustrating, made a 66 on a test in hort. science. I am pretty pissed about it. The whole class bombed it. I want to appeal the grade, but I don't want to cause a stink. I think the teacher has realized that the test was unfair because we had not thoroughly reviewed the material. Oh well. Scored a 108 on my last woody i.d. test. I will just have to ace the next two tests.......Valerie has been complaining that I have not mentioned her in my blogs. So there I mentioned her. Boy is she great! I mean really great:)........I went to the bookstore today and bought Dirr's book "Manual of woody landscape plants". This is a great book. Anyone who is even mildly interested in woody ornamentals, or wants to learn more about trees and shrubs, this is the only book you need........The girls are gone, for the weekend. It sure is boring here without them. Tomorrow I think we will take a drive and see the fall color. It looks like the colors are going to be great this year. Even on the oaks, which is rare.........

Saturday night

Liquidambar styraciflua, Osmanthus heterophyllus 'goshiki', Cephalotaxus harringtonia 'prostrata', Liriodendron tulipifera. No wonder Latin is a dead language. Who named these plants, and why? To punish horticulturalists? I learned his name actually(and then I forgot it).All day, at the grocery store, in the shower, at work these crazy names float around my head. Oh boy. Even on Saturday nights. What happened to going out and partying? I'm getting old. My new job is weird, but good. It was a longer week than I am used to working (about 55 hours). I think I will like it though. Monday is Halloween and the girls are excited!.....Oh, by the way,(in order) sweet gum tree, Goshiki false holly, cow tails pine, and tulip poplar tree are the common names for the plants I listed earlier. I love binomial nomenclature. Maybe next time I'll list the other 112 plants I have to memorize.......;)

Wednesday night

Short and sweet....... I'm back to work, as a landscape installation forman. Looks like I'll be working fifty or more hours a week. I have a lot to learn, but thats a good thing. This will give me a chance to learn more spanish.The girls are doing good. School is good. 138 on my last i.d. test. Visited Smith-Gilbert gardens(Amazing). Big test in Hort. science tomorrow, better studdy.

Tuesday

Wild how things can change so quickly. Two weeks ago I was so busy that I couldn't see strait. This week I have plenty of time to catch up. Its amazing how much time a job takes up, or how much time I have without one. Last Wednesday I found myself "unemployed". It was pretty inevitable, but it came sooner than expected. Oh well. It was time for a job, or even a career change. The last two years have not been that great financially. This will definitely give me a chance to go after a job in horticulture, something I had planed on anyways. It's never a good feeling to loose a job, but I feel that this will be a fairly easy transition. I just hope the money will be there......Cathrine and Anna went on a field trip yesterday with the daycare. They went to the pumpkin patch, a local farm that has a petting zoo and activities for the kids. They had a lot of fun. Anna is going to Boston with her grandparents this weekend, and Cat is going to her mothers. It will be pretty quiet around here......Thank goodness I have school to keep me occupied. I wish I was taking more classes this Quarter, but who knew. I am taking woody plant i.d. and hort science this quarter. The i.d. class is really challenging, but that's a good thing. Having to learn the full Latin name and common names is pretty rough, thank goodness I have a week between classes. It is a lot of fun though. I am glad I am going.........

Sunday evening

What a wild couple of weeks. I started college this week. I will be attending Tuesday's and Thursday's this quarter. I am taking evening classes, from five to nine p.m.. It is definitely going to be a challenge making it through this quarter. The seventeen hour days make for a pretty tired John by Friday. Oh well hopefully it will pay off...........The weather is slowly starting to change. Overcast and wet for the last three days. It just looks like winter out. The temperature was in the mid fifties Saturday morning. It won't be long until the cold temperatures start to creep in. Then it's time to try and squeeze all these plants in this house........We are facing lay-offs at work. Oh boy. Oh well, que sera, sera. I am not looking forward to finding a new job, but it might be a good time to get some experience in landscaping, or some field closer to horticulture. Whatever happens it will surely make for an eventfully winter. My fingers are crossed........No new plants lately, but there is lots of blooming going on. The bleeding heart vine is in bloom with wonderful white flowers with blood red centers. It is no wonder how this plant got it's common name. One of the first sucullent arrangements that I made contained a Tiger's jaw. It has bloomed, and it is very interesting. The cycle that happens is as follows: When the sun shines the flower opens up into a brilliant yellow flower that slightly resembles a dandelion. When the sun sets the flower closes up partially and turns a light shade of purple. This is very interesting to me. I have never seen a flower change colors before. I saw it with my own eyes though, three nights in a row. Plants never fail to be interesting.......

tuesday night

Oh my, busy,busy!! I will have more posts soon.

Friday evening

I have made a few changes to my website. I am now allowing comments to my posts to anyone who has something to say. There are also two more links, both of which are online retailers of succulents and cactus. I have made purchases from both sites, and was pleased with their plants. I am sure there will be more links soon......Cat and Anna started going back to day care this week. They are in the same class. Cathrine has been struggling, but is pretty well potty-trained. Finally... No more pull-ups........I have been working on perfecting a recipe for 'homemade' succulent/cactus potting soil. I have settled upon a mix that has showed good results all summer. I use the cheapest 'potting soil' that I can find. Most off the home centers sell this. It is usually the cheapest stuff you can find(around two dollars for a thirty pound bag). If I can't find this I use the 'top soil' mix. It is important to have a highly organic base for the soil. It is also paramount that it drain really well. The soil(which is a soiless mix), consists of about six parts 'compost'(the potting mix), four parts perlite, two parts cow manure compost, one part charcoal, one quarter part(or a big handfull) bone meal, and an organic fertilizer. The fertilizer I use is relatively weak at 5-3-3. It is important that you do not use a high strength, or time released fertilizer, as most succulents and cactus go into dormancy through mid-winter. I mainly add the fertilizer for the trace elements it adds to the mix, as there is no actual 'soil' in it. I have also found good results with the charcoal. It absorbs the toxins from the soil. Most commercial mixes are sterilized, and since my mix is not, and for the fact that I add manure, the charcoal helps control fungus and disease. I have found this mix to be great for both succulents and cactus. There are also a couple of good commercial mixes on the shelves of the home centers/nurseries. The most important thing to remember is not to add peat moss to the mix. Peat retains moisture too well, and lowers the p/h of the soil. Most cactus and succulents will not do good in a standard potting mix for this reason......

Sunday night

This has been a busy week. Started off last weekend on a mission to go camping, but the campsites were all packed. We decided instead to just take the girls to the lake for a picnic and some swimming lessons. It was a lot of fun. Both of the girls love to swim...... The weather has been great here lately. The highs have been in the 90's with lows in the 60's. The best part is that the air has been dry(very low humidity)......I have been in the process of enrolling in college for the past couple of weeks. I took the entrance exam Saturday morning, and did well enough that I won't have to take any remedial classes. I am glad to have that test out of the way. The next big event is orientation, on September 29. Then classes start in early October. I have enrolled into the environmental horticulture program, and I am really looking forward to start the classes...... We have two more arrangements that we have assembled. One of them is a cactus only. The other one is an interesting succulent collection with a somewhat rare aloe(the small pinkish one), and some hawarthia. I also included a lithop, which I thought was interesting in the arrangement. It is hard to spot though, as it blends in with the aggregate that was placed on top....I have two cycas revoltas or 'king sago palms', one of which I have had for about three years now. Is has produced more new growth this year than any other. This is the third time this season(spring&summer) it has put of new 'shoots'. This plant is one of my favorites. Most people don't know but a 'sago palm' is not actually a palm at all. It belongs to the cycad family. They are ancient plants, of which many fossils have been found dating back to the 'dinosaur days'. The plant in the picture is about five feet around and three feet tall. The new growth will no doubt increase its size to about four feet tall. It will be a challenge to 'overwinter' them in the house....

Tuesday

Three new 'finds' today. We went to one of the bigger greenhouses in this area. They had a great selection of plants. I found the jade in the corner of one of the houses, tucked away. I have been growing jade for a couple of months, and have about three plants, but none of them as big as the plant I found today. This is far from the biggest jade I have seen around here, but for seven dollars I thought it was a great deal. I have seen plants this size going for over thirty-five dollars around here. This plant needs some T.L.C., but it is a healthy specimen. It is around 30" tall, and probably 24" or more wide. The second picture is a variegated American agave, or 'century plant'. This is a cool plant that I have wanted for a while now. I have ordered a non-variegated American agave also. They will make a neat addition to our collection. Maybe one day we will see them bloom! Contrary to popular belief, It can take as little as ten years for a well established agave to bloom. While repotting it was a nice surprise to find seven 'buds' growing below the soil. I planted four of them, in hope of future plants. The third picture is a variety of 'echeveria', surrounded by sedum 'copper pennies'. This was a neat find that Valerie picked out. Hopefully the sedum will fill out the base of the echeveria.

Sunday 8-28

Three new planters. The first two pots contain trailing jade(bottom), and 'elephant plant'(top). The second picture contains a type of Euphorbia trigona known as 'Royal Red'. The third pot is another addition to our aloe collection. It contains an aloe marlothii (bottom left), aloe variegata a.k.a 'partridge breast' (top left), and aloe 'California'. I think I have developed an addiction to aloes. There are over two hundred varieties of aloe (that I know of). I don't think that I will have room for all of them. ;).......It was my birthday yesterday. Yup. Twenty-seven. It was a good b-day. It was a good weekend. We took Cathrine to the lake today. She had a great time watching the boats and playing in the water...... There is a hurricane on the way. 'Katrina' looks like it will be a nasty storm. It's bearing down on New Orleans, With a path projected right through north Georgia on late Monday. We really don't need any more rain! This was one of the wettest July's on record. August wasn't much better. Oh well at least we don't live in Louisiana. Hopefully it will weaken before impact. It is currently at cat5 which will be devastating for that area of Louisiana.....

Adenium

Adenium multiflora Mombossa. Now this ia an interesting plant. Ordered it from www.highlandsucculents.com
The Adenium are known for there 'swollen' trunks. There are many different varieties of the species, ranging from full size plants to this variety that is prized for Bansai. The Mombossa is a cousin of the "dessert rose". The flowers are pink, or red in color. This is a very healthy plant that is approximatly four years old. I cant wait to see it flower.

New plants, new plants! I had to have an all cactus arrangement. I chose a pot I bought in San Diego. I have been looking for a good use for it for about 5 years. I think the cactus will look great in it. The cactus I chose are moderate sized cactus, growing to about 14". They should fill out this pot in about 3 years. Patience, patience. the varieties that I used were: pin cushion(top left), old man of the andes(top right), and yellow tower(bottom). Looking forward to seeing them mature. The second arrangement is for the girls day care provider. She is retireing this year, the begining of september to be exact. We thought this would be a good "going out" present for her, being as she is a gardener herself. We plan to have the girls put there handprints on the pot in paint, with there names on it. Or something like that. We are deffinitely going to miss her. Back to "regular" daycare. Oh boy. The third arrangement is an aloe collection. It consists of an aloe vera And two other types of aloe that I have not figured out the names of yet. Just thought it was cool. Fun stuff huh. Ordered bunches of sucs & cactus online this week. Hopefully They will be coming in this week... Not exactly a relaxing sunday. Had a few friends over for a cookout. Standard summertime fare, hamburgers and hot dogs, corn on the cob, and fries. Good though.

Saturday night.

Time to go get groceries. oh boy. good week. night off from the girls. round the house. not bad.

saturday morning.

what a morning. Birthday party today, the girls are excited. I have posted two of my latest succulent/cactus arrangements.

my second creation

my first creation

8-19-05

today is the first day of my blog. I have no idea what i'm doing. This should be fun.