

Best Internet Variety Show (and Good Luck Getting Anything Done, Ever) in 2005! 


So cute. Congratulations, y'all.
You know life is boring when I'm talking about my plant, yes?
So, I got one of those Aqua Globes AS SEEN ON TV. (Note: if you get this, go to Bed, Bath, and Beyond and get 'em for $10. I can't believe someone's charging $40 online. Also, do not click on any "as seen on TV" or "buyaquaglobes" links you find via Google, they smack you up the ass with sound.) Since the last time I went AWOL and needed someone to water my plant, they forgot about it, I figured this "hey, your plant waters itself for two weeks!" thing would be good.
So on Monday, instead of watering it as usual, I slowly filled up the bulb with the same amount of water as I normally water the plant with (around 3/4 of a water bottle), carefully stuck it in, and then had to prop the plant up against furniture so it didn't fall over from the weight. (My plant is not ginormous, but of average size.)
Well, what did I learn from this? Two weeks, MY ASS. That bulb was emptied out by the middle of Friday. EMPTY. Is the plant THAT thirsty?
Next week I think I'll water it and THEN put the bulb in and see if it slows down the chugging.
I never thought that somehow ye olde college would end up looking like the trash strike episode of Popular.
Okay, not quite yet, but I guess it'll get there by the end of the week. Fun times!
...here's what it looks like outside again. It looks like when you go to San Francisco- normally there's no sign of sun, and when you see this weather it generally indicates "very chilly." Except, not, plus smoke up the wazoo.
Arizona Burned to Stop California Wildfire. Thank you, Onion.
But that ethic didn't agree with her neighbors, or with the city.
Before
Hartridge could plan new landscaping, a neighbor complained to the city
about her brown lawn, and the Code Enforcement Department slapped the
family with a citation.
Their small brick home was declared a
"public nuisance" in violation of city code section 17.68.010, which
states that front yards "shall be irrigated, landscaped and maintained."
A $746 fine will be next unless they correct the violation.
Last Thursday, the day after the citation came in the mail, she
called Code Enforcement to find out how to correct the violation. She
was told an e-mail with landscaping solutions would be forthcoming. It
never arrived.
She also called her city councilman, Steve Cohn, who did not respond. Cohn also didn't return a call from The Bee on Tuesday.
Last
weekend she decided to cover what's left of her small lawn with redwood
mulch, which she spread around a few hydrangeas and azaleas that
survive with occasional water.
Hartridge awaits reinspection by Code Enforcement. She does not know when that will happen or whether her yard will comply.
Probably
not, Kubo said. Mulch is allowed only as one of the "design elements
... integrated as part of the landscape," according to code section
17.68.010(1)a(1)b.
"If it's just one tree out there, maybe a
couple of plants and then the whole front yard is loaded with bark," he
said, "then no, that's not going to meet the criteria."
Sarah Addison Allen: The Sugar Queen
Reviewed July 18. (****)
Julie Kenner: Deja Demon: The Days and Nights of a Demon-Hunting Soccer Mom
Reviewed July 14. (***)
Loretta Chase: Your Scandalous Ways (Avon Historical Romance)
Reviewed July 14. (****)
James A. Hetley: Dragon's Teeth (Ace Fantasy Book)
Reviewed July 14. (***)
Loretta Chase: Not Quite A Lady
Reviewed July 9. (***)
Diana Peterfreund: Rites of Spring (Break)
Reviewed July 7. (***)
John C. Wright: Orphans of Chaos
Reviewed July 5. (****)
Julia Quinn: The Lost Duke of Wyndham (Two Dukes of Wyndham, Book 1)
Reviewed June 28. (***)
David Sedaris: When You Are Engulfed in Flames
Reviewed July 5. (***)
Julia Quinn: It's In His Kiss
Reviewed June 25. (****)
Julia Quinn: When He Was Wicked (Bridgerton Family Series)
Reviewed June 24. (***)
Terry Pratchett: Making Money (Discworld)
Reviewed June 18. (****)
PC Cast: Chosen (House of Night, Book 3)
Reviewed July 14. (****)
PC Cast: Betrayed (House of Night, Book 2)
Reviewed July 9. (****)
PC Cast: Marked (House of Night, Book 1)
Reviewed July 7. (****)
Jacqueline Carey: Kushiel's Mercy (Kushiel's Legacy)
Reviewed June 23. (*****)
Joy Davidson: The Psychology of Joss Whedon: An Unauthorized Exploration of Buffy, Angel, and Firefly (Psychology of Popular Culture series)
Reviewed June 18. (***)
Rachel Caine: The Dead Girls' Dance (The Morganville Vampires, Book 2)
Reviewed June 17. (**)
Julia Quinn: To Sir Phillip, With Love (Bridgerton Series, Book 5)
Reviewed June 16. (***)
Liane Moriarty: Three Wishes
Reviewed June 16. (***)
Mindy Klasky: Sorcery And The Single Girl (Red Dress Ink)
Reviewed June 16. (**)
Mindy Klasky: Girl's Guide To Witchcraft (Red Dress Ink)
Reviewed June 16. (***)
Danielle Wood: Rosie Little's Cautionary Tales for Girls
Reviewed June 16. (***)
Mary Kay Andrews: Hissy Fit: A Novel
Reviewed June 16. (**)
Julia Quinn: Romancing Mister Bridgerton (Bridgerton Series, Book 4)
Reviewed June 5. (****)
Susan Elizabeth Phillips: Natural Born Charmer
Reviewed June 4. (****)
Toni McGee Causey: Bobbie Faye's (kinda, sorta, not exactly) Family Jewels
Reviewed June 4. (*****)
Ally Carter: Learning to Play Gin
Reviewed January 12. (***)