Moonlit Shade Gardens

Pretty sunset last night.

Had a good day.  I put in a new flower bed by the deck yesterday.  A little corner that receives almost zero sunlight during the day and can not be reached witht the lawn mower.  Perfect spot for a shade garden.

I dug out the existing sod installed a piece of edging.  I was able to use the sod for the old dog kennel area that had some bare spots.  Worked out well.

The old corner of the kennel I patched.  I will over seed it today.

I picked up 3 different hostas and a flat of impatiens.  I want to find a couple ferns as well.

I'm thinking some ostrich ferns for in the corner.  They will get about 4 ft. tall and will be a nice back drop.

I will put some mulch in here and shake some preen on the surface to keep out the weeds.

I also seen a little garden ornament that was a cast of a snail made from concrete and he had a brass shell I believe.  Some kind of metal anyway.  I thought that would be neat in a shade garden.

Other than that the only thing I did was cut the lawn, cook dinner and basically chill out.

Had another new cigar last night.  I've been looking forward to this one it was a

"Black Pearl".  Top shelf in the cigar world.

I enjoyed it under a full moon last night.

Perspectives, Expectations and Humility

Good Morning my friends and followers.


I wanted to take a moment and write out a few things to keep the balancing act in my brain on an even keel.
I learned something the other day that has really stuck in my head and kept me thinking about the way I feel and how I behave.


I learned about anger.  It was very quick and to the point. 


Anger is a result of your expectations being compromised.
Think about it.
We all get mad.  Probably more than we would like to admit.  Everyday I get mad about something.
I can't help it.  I have been conditioned to think this way for 35 years now going on 36.
When something does not go my way I get mad.  Simple as that. 
Except now I know that.  I don't believe anymore that the cards are being stacked against me or someone is out to make my life miserable.  I realize my anger is just me being selfish.  
Who am I to think I am so important as to think someone or something is trying to keep me down.  
Take a moment and get to the root of it.  What was I expecting and why should I be angry that it didn't go that way?  More often than not it is just me being selfish.


It's time to put my life into perspective.  Where do I fit into the grand scheme of things.  Wherever I want.
That is the answer.  I'm so worried about trying to be someone else that I forgot to be myself.  
My little cousin Sara wrote the other day," Be yourself, everyone else is already taken".
The great American Dream was lost so very long ago.  That dream was to be free.  That dream was to be able to live and work and be happy without prejudice and persecution.  It was a simple dream.  
As with everything else the American Dream has become "Americanized".  "Jeff", you say, "Isn't that any oxymoron?  Isn't that a bit redundant?"   No not at all.   We have found a way to ruin such a simple thing.
The American dream has now become nothing more than a copycat charade.  Now everyone wants to be like everyone else.  Big house, fancy car, corporate job, credit cards or everyone thinks they deserve to be supported by everyone else because they are " American".   Guess what?  It's not working.
The American Dream lies dormant in our very own pocket and we just need to bring it out and hold it awhile.
Such a wonderful country has been infected by a disease worse than the dreaded communists and socialists.
The disease of you owe me.  I deserve it.  Why do we think we deserve so much for so little?
Just because I pay taxes that pay to send young men and women to die for freedoms here and abroad does not give me the right to deserve anything.  It gives me the right to be thankful.   
My perspectives on life are changing everyday.  I try to be thankful for what I have not for what I am about to get.  By keeping my life simple I can begin to reorganize and straighten the direction I am headed.


It truly is time to take a big piece of humble pie.  Humility is hard for me.  I have a big ego.  I admit it.  It gets smaller every day though and that is good.  
If I practice humility, keep my perspectives in line and re-adjust my expectations than I will begin to re-organize my life and  by doing that I start to become the person I should have been all along.


I leave you with one last thought.  When you pray to your higher power does it go something like this,
"God, please give me..."
I often do but am learning to change that.  I used to only pray when I needed something.  Enough said.

"God, Thank You...."

Surviving the Storm

Had a big storm roll through Friday evening. 
We had just returned from an emergency ice cream run when  I began to hear the wind coming.  It was an eerie sound beacuse you could hear it but you couldn't see the effects yet.  It was like a demonic runaway train headed your way and there was no escape.  You simply stood your ground and hoped his devouring jaws would leave something to rebuild from. 
The leading edge of the storm gathered and rolled overhead like a giant black wave, sucking everything in as it's undertow grabbed and reached for anything not anchored.  We scampered around the yard pulling down flower baskets and laying down scarecrows, weighting down hot tub covers and doing whatever we could to protect our small piece of this world.
The radio blared it's warning letting us know of the impending doom of 75 mph winds racing down the track and heading right at us.  The sky became dark and the goosebumps raced up my arms and settled into the pit of my stomache.  I thought of all the hard work and time I had put into my garden and my yard, only to be destroyed yet again by the temperment of mother nature.  I waited and hoped. 
The wind arrived all at once, no gentle swell to warn us but a monstrous gulch of air slamming into the side of the house and sending the privacy screen smashing into the barbeque grill.  The trees bent and reached for the ground and the wind howled in anger because they would not break.  Dust swirled and twisted into devilish mini tornados.  The clouds lowered and raced into the East.  Bullets of rain slammed into the deck propelled by the sheer power of the wind. 

As the heavens lit up and lightning streaked to the ground I watched, horrified in slow motion, as Remmi bolted past me and out into the yard to retrieve his beloved ball from the clutches of the devil himself.  I smelled the acrid air and as the lightning crashed into his small yellow body I jumped and was stirred from my momentary day dream and put both dogs in the house.  The power of the storm had me in it's grasp and just as I thought we would all fall victim to the wind, it began to let up.  We had not broken, only bent.  Her power was not great enough this time.  We stood tall yet we bowed to her greatness as she passed across our backs.  Then it was over but for the rain which now just watered the lawn and the garden.

North meets South Barbecue

Here is one to liven up your taste buds.  Do you love the tangy vinegar based barbecue of the South?
But also love the tomato based barbeque of the North?  Yep you guessed it Fusion Barbeque!  Most people think east meets west when it comes to fusion but hey who says we cant keep it in house right?
Sure I'm not the first one to try it but have you tried it?  Awesome flavors.  You will like it.

Ingredients 2 pork tenderloins
Balsamic Vinegar
Ketchup
Brown Sugar
Dijon Mustard
Worschtesire Sauce
Honey
Clove of Garlic
Salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, crushed rosemary.

First season your tenderloins.  Salt and pepper.  Onion and garlic powder.  Then sprinkle with the crushed rosemary.  Press into meat.  Rubbing will just smear it from one end to the other so press the seasoning into the meat like you were kneading dough.  Set aside.

Sauce:
1 cup balsamic vineger
3/4 cup ketchup
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 tbs dijon mustard
2 tbs worschtesire

1 tbs honey 

1 clove garlic chopped fine

Combine into sauce pan and bring to a light boil.  (As soon as it starts to "lurp")  Stir often as the sugars will collect on the bottom and burn.  Simmer or "lurp" for 20 minutes or sauce is thick and coats and sticks to a wooden spoon.  You are reducing the mixture so there is no set time.  ingredients, temp and other variables play a factor in your reduction so keep an eye on it.

While your sauce is lurping ( I like that word) get your grill ready.  I used the same technique as I do with my ribs except no smoke.  You could use smoke but I wanted the flavors of the sauce to sing and not the smoke.  Charcoal on one side and meat on the other.  By the time the charcoal is ready your sauce is too.

Brush the sauce onto both sides of the pork tenderloin and place on grill.
I flipped mine only once during the cooking process.  Internal temperature of 160 degrees is what I was looking for.  155 is ok but make sure you rest it under tinfoil for a bit to finish and let the juices redistribute.
Once I hit desired temp I brushed on more sauce and slid meat directly over heat.  I sauced and flipped twice both sides making sure I had a nice carmelized barbeque stickiness to the meat.
I removed from grill and foiled it for about ten minutes while prepping the rest of the meal.
Note:  If you don't have a digital heat proof thermometer for the grill.  Get one.  Simply place the probe in the meat, run the cord outside of the grill and plug it in to your digital read out.  No more opening the lid or poking your food full of holes so the juices run out.  They are only about $8.

I prepared a cucumber, tomato salad and a hybrid mix of caulilflower and brocooli to pair with the pork.

It was a great combo for a hot muggy day.

I halved some cherub tomatoes(cherry tomato with all the flavor of a full size) sliced some cukes and red onion.  Drizzled in olive oil, a splash of the balsamic vinegar(which tied the two dishes in nicely) salt and pepper and gave it a toss. I served it in a little lettuce bowl which you could fold up and eat when finished with the cukes and tomatoes.  Which I did because it had all the goodies from the salad in the bottom of the lettuce bowl.   The broccoflower I simply steamed and topped with a pat of butter, salt and pepper.

I must say for such a simple meal it is packed with flavor.

The tenderness of the charcoal grilled meat is cut with a fork.  The sauce is great because it has so many layers to it.  When it first hits your tastebuds they cry out, " hey,  wow",  and then it immediatley settles into the carmelized sugars and mellows right out and then the savory of the rosemary comes creeping through sort of the ying and the yang of sauce. 

The salad was so refreshing.  The zing of the vineger is kept in check by the olive oil and the salt but you still know it's there.  The onions are also balanced by the vinegar so you don't end up tasting them all night long.

The broccoflower well come on that's just plain neat because it tastes like broccoli and cauliflower at the same time.  Simple flavors combined to make a refreshing dinner.  One of my favorites.

(and it only cost about $15)  It also passed the Angel test so now I know it's kid friendly.  :)

Birdies on da feeder

I was out smoking a cigar on the back deck this evening. (see review) and the birds were eating out of the thistle sock feeder so I thought I would share them with you.  Click on pics to zoom it's worth it. 

BBQ Ribs

I beat up a couple slabs of ribs for dinner Sunday.

First I rubbed them down with the Bushman Rub.  Now available at your local grocery store.(you just have to blend it is all) 

My favorite rub consists of very simple ingredients.
Dark Brown Sugar
Onion Powder

Garlic Powder

White pepper

Black pepper

Paprika

Chili Powder

All Spice

Cumin

Tony's Cajun Mix

These are measured in a top secret facility(my mind) and you will not know the amounts unless you ask.


I rubbed the ribs down and put them in the fridge for 6 hours.  Overnight would be better.

Then I prepped my propane grill.  Remove grates and add charcoal to one side.

Light said charcoal

Re-install one side of grate and put ribs on.  You have to get a rib rack if you don't have one.  These are awesome.

Add a few handfuls of wet chips every 30 minutes for 2 hours.

I also turned my rack 180 degrees every 30 minutes.

This is nice for indirect cooking.  Low and slow.

Try to maintain around 200 degrees F.

I recomend lump charcoal as you can add charcoal without the fumes of regular charcoal.

I did not get a picture of the finished project as the neighbor needed immediate assistance with his missing sheep.  SORRY!!

They were delicious though.  I grilled some sweet corn to accompany them.

I was pluggin for the floss company:)

Anyways I cooked the ribs for about 3 -31/2 hours.  No sauce either.

Fantastic.  I love 'em.  Leftovers went to work today for lunch.

Try the grill thing it works great.  I can't use my regular charcoal grill for this because I can't get the ribs far enough away from the heat to slow cook. 

Garden update

I have been requested to post up some pics of the garden progress.  Well it wasn't exactly a request but more of, "I've been watching your blog, looking for more garden pics".  HINT HINT.  I got it Pops.

I kinda wanted it to grow a little more first but who cares right?  He wants to see it so by golly I'm gonna show it.  Sounds like a line from the tv show Cops.  LOL

                                   Here is the first row of peppers.  Green and yellow bells.

Here are two rows of tasty Tomatoes

Here are some hot peppers and tomatoes finished on the end with broccoli

Here is salad corner.  A variety of cabbage, lettuces, mesclun, arugula and spinach. 

Paired with a nice bed of table onions.(green onions)

Here is the start of a watermelon patch.  Archer is standing guard.

Yeah I know what your thinking. Don't worry I am not a racist.  I hate everybody the same:)

My corn patch.  Shin high right now.  Should be knee high by the fourth of July with no problem.

Barring any hail storms or tornadoes that seem to target my garden every year.

Next to my corn is my bush bean patch.  Some seeds did not germinate so I replanted them.

My beans will now last a little longer due to the late start by a few of them.  Lazy Beaners

This is my cucumber trellis.  5 plants that I train to grow up, instead of out.  works well

and saves space.

Next is my summer squash and zuchinni

This is what I call canners alley.

The neighbors 32 Roma tomato plants.

That I take care of and they reap the rewards.

I never even got 1 jar from them last year now that I think about it.

Oh well.  Expect nothing and you will never be dissapointed.  Right?

Here are a couple over all shots.

Last but never least.  My two best friends.  (who secretly think they are ducks)

Gunner and Remmi playing in the mud puddle after a thundershower.

The Baby's Birdfeeder

Awhile back I purchased an exotic piece of wood with the intention of constructing a memory box. The box was to hold the few memories we have of our two lost little souls.  Corwin and Isabella.
I decided that instead of building a box with that particular piece of wood I was going to build a bird feeder/planter combo.  Now everyday when I step outside I can see the wings of God's little angels perched upon that beautiful piece of purpleheart wood.  I can imagine them flying back up to heaven to tell my babies that Daddy still loves them and misses them.  Much better than a box.

I started the project with the sides of the feeder.  I cut one to the dimension I liked and them traced the pattern to the other.

After that I ripped some pieces for the front and back the same size as the thicker end of the sides.

These were nailed and glued.

Then I cut and glued the planter part of the feeder.  You can see it below in the clamps.  This part will sit on

top of the feeder.  I will fill it with potting soil and put some type of plants in it.

I simply glued a piece of plexiglass in the bottom of the planter part leaving a tiny slot towards the rear to allow water to drain but not wash out the soil.

I added the top semi circles as a decorative touch.  They were actually the part I removed from the sides.

Wiped it down with tack cloth and sprayed with laquer.

I just need to mount it and fill it with seed. 

Once planted and filled with plants I will post another picture.

New site!

I have another site set up for cigar reviews.  I only have one cigar listed as of now but I have more coming.
I love to smoke cigars and I thought I could keep track of them with this site.
I will be changing it some more but it's the basic stuff right now. 
I will include a rating system(according to my palate)
Better pictures
More info and history on each cigar.
Burn times and lots more.
I am in no way an expert I just thought it would be fun.
It's right over there on the right side.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

That was interesting!!!

Well all the girls have went home and the mess is 98% cleaned up.  11 girls for a sleep over and Birthday party was intense.  All went well and every one had fun. 

Friday morning started with a call from the neighbor.  His sheep had got out of the pen.  Not your ordinary sheep either.  These are Auodad sheep.  Native to the high hills of Africa.  Big curved horns and everything.  We were able to get 1 of the 3 back because she was tame the other two are not and are still MIA.
We found her back at the wastewater treatment plant the workers had tied her to a tree and locked the gates on the other female.  The big male was nowhere to be found.  I grabbed the rope and proceded to walk her (drag) back towards the house(1/2 mile).  Through the mosquito infested woods and flooded grass strips.  Across the battle creek river(in my blue jeans and tennis shoes) and into her pen.  She is really quite tame but was unwilling to walk with the rope around her horns so it was a battle the whole way.  The other one was supposed to follow but had other ideas.  Once done with that I had to get the lawn mowed and tents set up and dinner made and marshmallow sticks made dishes done and well you get the point.  5 pm and people started showing up.  Just in time I was still wet from my quick shower. 

I also had to finish my fire pit.  see look

The girls ate and had cake and ice cream.  But not before a water ballon fight.

( I gotta admit I was getting a little freaked out about all the ballons on my nice lawn)

Angel had some neat games all lined up for them.  The first was a balloon head bounce game.  Everyone lined up and bounced ballons back and forth with nothing but their heads.  Last ones left won a prize.

Then they played a lifesaver game.  Had to pick up lifesavers off of a styrofoam plate with a tooth pick.  Two teams twice around.  The tooth pick would get stuck in the plate if you did it too hard.  It was quite comical.

My favorite game was a balloon in a chair and you had to sit on it to pop it.  Hillarious!!

Then there was the ping pong ball and straw race

They also put on shower caps and covered their heads with shaving cream.  Standing a set distance apart their partner tossed cheetos into the shaving cream.  Unfortunatley I didn't get pics of this it was getting dark.

Had a nice sunset to go with the party

  A thunderstorm had just rolled through and if your from Michigan you know how pretty it can be after a storm.

And of course their was hot tubbing and smores over the campfire. 

I wish I wasn't surrounded by powerlines.

Here are some more various pics.

Of course the dogs had a great time as well.  Especially this morning eating cheetos covered in shaving cream that were all over the lawn.  Watermelon this afternoon and who knows what Grandma fed them while she was here.  Plent of hose water and action kept those two busy all day.  I also took them swimming in the pond earlier this afternoon.  It was Remmi's first "big" water experience.  He jumped right in.  Now he just needs to learn how to dog paddle instead of splash paddle.  Right now they are out cold snoring away and letting little cheeto farts :)  you can see below what they did most of the day.

Tomorrow I think I might build some new bird feeders.  I will try and get some pics of all the birds too.

Tonight I saw 3 different hummingbirds on my baskets. Click on the pics to blow them up 12 megapixels gives really good pics.  Just hit your back button (upper left corner of your screen)to return.

See ya tomorrow!!!!!