ADN Outsources to Philippines

I forgot to mention this.  When we canceled our Anchorage Daily News  home delivery before we left.  It took a while to get the operator who turned out to be in the Philippines.  Last time we canceled was in October last year and I didn't notice then that the person wasn't in Anchorage.  Maybe it was already outsourced.  I understand that businesses do this to save money by centralizing their phone answering services nationally and I understand that the ADN is owned by McClatchy.  But still, calling to tell your local newspaper should temporarily stop delivery being answered by someone in the Philippines seems a bit much.  I wonder how much they save by doing that?  And what happened to the person who used to do that in Anchorage? 

Staff Orientation Day 1

This morning was orientation for new legislative staff from 8:30am in the gym in the Terry Miller Legislative Office Building.  It's really close to our apartment - maybe a 5 minute walk, even in the breakup like slush on the streets.  It was packed for the opening with a lot of different categories of folks there - pages, interns, other staff, etc.  The picture was during a break later in the day after most of the others had left and just new legislative staffers stayed.

Rep. Nancy Dalhlstrom, the Chairman of the House Rules Committee welcomed everyone and emphasized the important role that the staff play and the need to respect the office and serve with honor.   


The presentations covered the normal topics for new employee orientation such as employment policies, how to get your paycheck, the benefits package, avoiding discriminatory practices, information services and the do's and don'ts on State computers.





One section, not in the normal employee orientation, was on Citations.  This was about Legislative citations in memoriam or to honor people for outstanding achievements. 




During the lunch break I joined the other two staffers in Rep. G's office and they got keys for the office and key cards to get into other areas.  I'm still in volunteer limbo, so nothing for me.  We then checked out the office which is full of boxes that were shipped down from Anchorage last week.  We've agreed to meet Saturday morning to empty the boxes and set up the office.

The Capitol building is really quite nice with lots of interesting art and historical photos.  I'll surely share some of that as time goes by.  I'm still figuring out where I can get to wifi hotspots and how to get wifi into the apartment.  (There's one in the gym so I stayed here after the others left.  There are several in the Capitol building too I was told.)  I'm starting to meet staff from different offices and trying to keep names and faces straight. 

In the afternoon there was a particularly good video on dealing with people who stereotype people in offensive ways called "Ouch! That Stereotype Hurts."   The Ouch! website offers these objectives for the film:

• Understand the impact of stereotpes and biased statements, even when casually said.
• Identify the most common reasons people sit silent in the face of bias and stereotypes.
• Enhance skills for speaking up against stereotypes without blame or guilt.
  

It gave examples of situations where people say things that could be offensive and ways to respectfully make the point that someone has just generalized about a whole category of people.  It also recognized that people in these situations are often emotional and liable to not articulate their concern well.


Time to get going. I've stuck around in the gym after the training because there's wifi access in here.  Tomorrow we start with mandatory ethics training.

Anchorage to Juneau

Last time we flew was the end of October and the airport's remodeling is done. The old terminal B was fancied up, but basically looks like terminal B. The floor is fancier, the bathrooms at the end are on the other side, and there's this flock of geese.

Here's the Chugach Range from the airport.

And as we waited to take off the sun came out bright.

And we're now above 10,000 feet over the Chugach just past Eagle River.

And soon we're slipping into the clouds.

It was raining when we landed in Cordova. Yes, I know, I should have paid attention and not gotten us on the milk run, but the time was better, the price was better, and we weren't in a great hurry.

There weren't a lot of people on the plane. Never more than twenty I don't think. Here we're waiting at Cordova for a few passengers to come on.

You can see the rain drops on the window as we're about to take off at Cordova.

And a few passengers got off at Yakutat.

And this book Catherine lent me kept my attention all the way to Juneau. We arrived early. The apartment is fine. They had a snow storm yesterday, but the streets have sort of been cleared and the walkway to our basement apartment was cleared. We're on a hill and face south onto a garden.

On this day as Bill Allen adjusts to prison, we had dinner at the Baranof Hotel.

I have training for new legislative staff tomorrow morning at 8:30.  So I need to get some sleep.

Seven Point O

First, I must offer my sympathy to the people suffering in Haiti and their relatives around the world trying to find out what has happened.  This is a tragedy that all of us have to be touched by.  Second, there are organizations prepared to assist the people of Haiti, but be careful of the scammers who are sure to be soliciting money to help in the earthquake.  Give to organizations you know are good.  Charity Navigator is an online site that evaluates charitbable organizations.


The Richter Scale is not understood by many people, especially those who don't live in earthquake country.   One reporter I heard this morning was reporting aftershocks "almost as powerful as the original."  The original is being reported as 7.0.  The big aftershocks she mentioned were "as high as 5.0."

These are not even close.  Every point on the Richter Scale is TEN times higher than the previous point.  So, 6.0 is TEN times more powerful than a 5.0.  And 7.0 is then ten times ten, or, 100 times more powerful than a 5.0.  So, as I say, a 5.0 aftershock is not even close to a 7.0

I grew up in Los Angeles, and have spent most of my life in Anchorage, both in earthquake country.  The largest earthquake I've experienced was a 6.6 in LA in 1971.   In LA, there was some damage at 6.6, and in the epicenter a new hospital collapsed.  But overall things paused for a few days as schools and other buildings were inspected and then life went on.

San Francisco's 1989 Loma Prieta  earthquake "measured 6.9 on the moment magnitude scale^[5] (surface-wave magnitude 7.1) or 7.0 on the open ended Richter Scale.^[1]"(from Wikipedia.)  The death tool was 63.  While there was significant damage (estimated at $6 billion), it appears that the damage and death toll were significantly less than what is being reported in Haiti.  In Port Au Prince, according to the NY Times:

The earthquake, the worst in the region in more than 200 years, left the country in a shambles. As night fell in Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital, fires burned near the shoreline downtown, but otherwise the city fell into darkness. The electricity was out, telephones were not working and relief workers struggled to make their way through streets blocked by rubble.
In the chaos, it was not possible for officials to determine how many people had been killed and injured, but they warned that the casualties could be substantial.

A more recent story online reports "a death toll tentatively estimated by Haitian Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive at more than 100,000."

Wrath of God or lack of adequate building standards?

God is one of the stories people use to explain how the earth works.  "Government is evil" is another story that people use to explain things.  Another story we can use is that much of what government does is invisible and we don't notice it until it isn't working.  Zoning rules, including building standards, are often seen as one of the evils of government.  People resent government rules that say they can't build a house the way they want or that they have to use a method that will increase the costs considerably. And sometimes general rules sometimes don't make sense in specific situations and there are cases of corrupt building inspectors.

But Port-au-Prince's apparent devastation compared to San Francisco's relatively minor damage shows how science and government can set standards for construction, which, if enforced, save lives.  As individuals we are always tempted to cut corners when our dollars don't match our desires, but the law encourages us to use methods that were developed with potential disasters (fires, hurricanes, as well as earthquakes) in mind.  Again, I realize these rules are not perfect and as the science improves old methods get changed.  And humans who enforce the rules aren't necessarily consistent or honest.  But looking at the difference between the damage in Haiti in 2010 and in San Francisco shows the value good, well enforced, building codes make.   The low death toll in San Francisco is, in part, a result of one of the invisible roles government plays in our lives when it is working right. 



Here's a little more context for the Ricther Scale from the United States Geological Survey.

Richter Approximate Magnitude	Approximate TNT for Seismic Energy Yield	Joule equivalent	Example
0.0	1 kg (2.2 lb)	4.2 MJ
0.5	5.6 kg (12.4 lb)	23.5 MJ	Large hand grenade
1.0	32 kg (70 lb)	134.4 MJ	Construction site blast
1.5	178 kg (392 lb)	747.6 MJ	WWII conventional bombs
2.0	1 metric ton	4.2 GJ	Late WWII conventional bombs
2.5	5.6 metric tons	23.5 GJ	WWII blockbuster bomb
3.0	32 metric tons	134.4 GJ	Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb
3.5	178 metric tons	747.6 GJ	Chernobyl nuclear disaster, 1986
4.0	1 kiloton	4.2 TJ	Small atomic bomb
4.5	5.6 kilotons	23.5 TJ
5.0	32 kilotons	134.4 TJ	Nagasaki atomic bomb (actual seismic yield was negligible since it detonated in the atmosphere) Lincolnshire earthquake (UK), 2008
5.4	150 kilotons	625 TJ	2008 Chino Hills earthquake (Los Angeles, United States)
5.5	178 kilotons	747.6 TJ	Little Skull Mtn. earthquake (NV, USA), 1992 Alum Rock earthquake (CA, USA), 2007
6.0	1 megaton	4.2 PJ	Double Spring Flat earthquake (NV, USA), 1994
6.5	5.6 megatons	23.5 PJ	Rhodes (Greece), 2008
6.7	16.2 megatons	67.9 PJ	Northridge earthquake (CA, USA), 1994
6.9	26.8 megatons	112.2 PJ	San Francisco Bay Area earthquake (CA, USA), 1989
7.0	32 megatons	134.4 PJ	Java earthquake (Indonesia), 2009 12 January 2010 earthquake (Haiti)
7.1	50 megatons	210 PJ	Energy released is equivalent to that of Tsar Bomba, the largest thermonuclear weapon ever tested.
7.5	178 megatons	747.6 PJ	Kashmir earthquake (Pakistan), 2005 Antofagasta earthquake (Chile), 2007
7.8	600 megatons	2.4 EJ	Tangshan earthquake (China), 1976
8.0	1 gigaton	4.2 EJ	Toba eruption[citation needed] 75,000 years ago; the largest known volcanic event San Francisco earthquake (CA, USA), 1906 Queen Charlotte earthquake (BC, Canada), 1949 México City earthquake (Mexico), 1985 Gujarat earthquake (India), 2001 Chincha Alta earthquake (Peru), 2007 Sichuan earthquake (China), 2008 (initial estimate: 7.8)
8.5	5.6 gigatons	23.5 EJ	Sumatra earthquake (Indonesia), 2007
9.0	32 gigatons	134.4 EJ	Lisbon Earthquake (Lisbon, Portugal), All Saints Day, 1755
9.1	67 gigatons	477 EJ	Indian Ocean earthquake, 2004 (40 ZJ in this case)
9.2	90.7 gigatons	379.7 EJ	Anchorage earthquake (AK, USA), 1964
9.5	178 gigatons	747.6 EJ	Valdivia earthquake (Chile), 1960 (251 ZJ in this case)
10.0	1 teraton	4.2 ZJ	Never recorded by humans.
13.0	108 megatons = 100 teratons	5x1030 ergs = 500 ZJ	Yucatán Peninsula impact (causing Chicxulub crater) 65 Ma ago.[8][9][10][11][12]

Prop8TrialTracker Day 2 Summary of Perry v. Schwartzenegger

[UPDATE August 4, 2010:  Here's a post on the decision of Judge Walker today]

Here's Day 2 coverage of the Perry v. Schwartzenegger at Prop8TrialTracker.  This is a pro gay marriage site.  If you know of an anti-gay marriage site that is live blogging the trial, let me know.  It would be interesting to hear that take too.

Here's part of the summary.  I've taken a pretty big chunk, but they've been asking people to pass it on, so I don't think they'll mind.  The details as the trial was going can be found on this Day 2 page. (Well, this gets to the website.  If you do it tonight you'll get Day 2.  I suspect if you do it tomorrow, you'll get tomorrow's coverage. 

Wrapping Up Day 2

By Rick Jacobs
Well, that’s it for day two. The pattern looks pretty clear. Our side is saying that gays and lesbians have been harmed for a really long time, that there has been institutional discrimination, that they are a suspect class (meaning they should be covered by the equal protection clause). Our side is also showing that marriage will be strengthened by permitting loving same-sex couples access it, that society will be more stable with same-sex marriage and that there is no harm done at all by opening marriage to same-sex couples.
The Prop. 8 side wants to show that marriage has always (in the US) been a Christian institution between a man and a woman, that heterosexual marriage is really good for kids and that in fact homosexual marriage will “hurt” kids and will degrade the institution. Ultimately, they are trying to show that it will lead to less stability as people abandon the institution of marriage.
They are having a hard time with that because so far the evidence shows that by seeking access to marriage, groups previously excluded, such as slaves, interracial couples, certain classes of “foreigners” and in some cases women, have actually strengthened the institution by obtaining access.
There’s another theme here which is about tradition. Remember the Fiddler on the Roof song? The Prop. 8 side appeals to their concept of tradition. The only problem is that their idea of tradition either never existed or only existed when women and people of color had fewer rights than white men.
There’s so much more, but you all can probably see more patterns than can I because I have been so close to it. What do you see? What do you think? Share it, will you? One big purpose of this trial is to have a national conversation based on a huge body of evidence. Homosexuality and America are on trial here. The Prop. 8 folks do not want you to see what’s going on and they don’t want a conversation outside of the carefully controlled media buys they that are all based on fear. So start talking, start writing.
Courage Campaign Institute started our Courageous Conversations (check it out here). Sooner than later, we need to stories of the plaintiffs out there. That will start to change hearts even as this trial changes minds.
The hard part is living through this. That Anita Bryant segment, the ads, the analysis of the ads by Prof. Chauncey, it is all upsetting. Last night, Cleve Jones and Lance Black showed me Harvey Milk’s Castro Street. Cleve’s mind is a bit scary: he remembers every name and face and place that he has ever been. He’s a walking history book who can translate and apply that history today’s politics even while he designs the strategy for the future. We all know that Lance is a wildly talented writer, but he’s way smart. He lived MILK for ten years before the movie became MILK.
I had never spent any time in the Castro. The truth is that I was afraid to as I was maturing because in my twenties, when I was not out and hated being gay, I was afraid to come to San Francisco because I did not want people to think I was gay. So there I was yesterday listening to how those two couples had gotten mauled by prejudice and how all they want to do is marry and then that night I was walking through gay history with two of the people I most respect. Cleve knew lots and lots of people still even last night. .  .

There's a lot more here.

Interesting Baggage Rules and Exceptions

Some of the legislative staff is driving to Juneau and one of the staffers in my office took a suitcase for us.  Yesterday I went to the Alaska Airlines website to see how much our check-ins would cost.  We pretty much just go carry on these days, but this could be three months, so a little bit more would be helpful.  So here are the basic charges under the new regime:

But, there's another link called Baggage charges and waivers:

Jackpot!! Travel wholly within State of Alaska - THREE FREE BAGS!  Hey Ted, sorry I had you take that suitcase.  I could have taken yours.  The temptation to take six check-ins with us is great.  But, no, we're going to stick to one, maybe two, possibly three check-ins between the two of us.

There's also three free check-ins for military "on orders."  And people going to Guadalajara or Mexico City can take two free bags from Dec. 1 to January 15.  What's that about?

But there's more:

OK, strollers and car seats, wheel chairs.  That certainly makes sense.  And international connections where you can take two free check-ins, that makes sense too.  But there's a special for Santa Rosa in Napa Valley:  one box of wine!

No free boxes of frozen salmon from Alaska, what did Santa Rosa do to get their exception?   But the rules do recognize hunters though.  Here are the rules on raw meat and antlers:

 Here's the link to the Alaska Airlines baggage page with 14 different sections.

Alaska Permanent Fund Application Time

Between January and March, Alaskans fill out the forms so that come October, the State sends us our Alaska Permanent Fund Dividends (PFD's).   This fund was set up when the State was embarking on our giant oil bonanza.  Gov. Jay Hammond was perhaps the key backer of this idea of establishing a fund by setting aside a percentage of income from our oil revenues.  Here's what the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation website says:

WHAT IS THE ALASKA PERMANENT FUND?

A dedicated fund owned by the State of Alaska

In 1976, as the Alaska pipeline construction neared completion, Alaska voters approved a constitutional amendment to establish a dedicated fund: the Alaska Permanent Fund.

Created by a constitutional amendment

"At least 25 percent of all mineral lease rentals, royalties, royalty sales proceeds, federal mineral revenue-sharing payments and bonuses received by the state be placed in a permanent fund, the principal of which may only be used for income-producing investments."

Comprised of income-producing investments

The Fund is invested in a diversified portfolio of public and private asset classes. All investments, whether in Alaska or around the world, must be expected to produce income with an acceptable level of risk. The Fund is not invested in projects that are primarily focused on economic or social development.

Used for both savings and spending

The Legislature may spend realized Fund investment earnings. Realized earnings consist of stock dividends, bond interest, real estate rent and the income made or lost by the sale of any of these investment assets. Unrealized earnings - those resulting from the change in market value of assets that are held - cannot be spent. Most of the spending from the Fund has been for dividends to qualified Alaska residents. The Permanent Fund Dividend Division (a separate entity from the APFC) operates the PFD program, which the Legislature established in 1980.

Managed by a state-owned corporation

In 1980, the Legislature established the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation to manage Fund investments.

The idea was that the oil in the ground belonged to all Alaskans now and in the future and so the revenue generated by the fund shouldn't simply be used by the generation of Alaskans alive when the resouce was 'cashed in.'  A significant portion should be put into a fund that would continue to grow, like an endowment, for future generations.  So, at some point in the future when oil revenues dried up, the fund would be large enough that the income from investments would be able to pay for a significant part of the State's annual budget.

It was also decided that Alaskans should get dividends.  Some people, I suspect, just wanted to get their hands on some money.  Some politicians figured getting money out of the hands of the government and into the hands of the people was just good politics.  And others thought that if the people got a dividend, they would have a stake in the size of the State royalties for the oil, and would have a vested interest in making sure the State didn't get too cozy with the oil companies.  So the Alaska Permanent Fund dividend was born.

It did get held up for a couple of years because the formula for figuring out how much of a dividend each person got was challenged in court (successfully).  Originally it was based on how long someone lived in the state, but the US Supreme Court said that was unconstitutional.  

Now, 33 years after the fund was established, we have about $34 billion dollars in the fund (down from a high of $40 billion before the market crash) and Alaskans - every man, woman, and child who is a resident and files an application - gets a dividend from this fund.  The October 2009 checks were $1305 per recipient.

So, Sunday, my wife and I got onto the computer and went to the Permanent Fund Dividend Site and filled out the online application.   At the end of the process we got the following:

2010 Adult PFD Online Signature Page

[ _ ]

 

Print, sign and mail this form to: Alaska Department of Revenue Permanent Fund Dividend Division PO BOX 110462 Juneau, Alaska 99811-0462

Applicant Information
Name:	XXXXXXXX
SSN:	XXXXXXX
DOB:	XXXXXXXX
Confirmation Number:	XXXXXXXX
Filing Date/Time:	XXXXXXXXX

Read the Following Statements and Sign Below

I certify that:

I am now and intend to remain an Alaska resident indefinitely. I was an Alaska resident for all of 2009 . I have not claimed residency in another state. I was in the state of Alaska for at least 72 consecutive hours in 2008 or 2009 .

I understand that if what I say is not true, it is a criminal offense and if I am convicted, in addition to any criminal penalties:

I will lose this and all future dividends. I will be required to pay back all dividends I have been paid.

I understand that if I deliberately misrepresent or recklessly disregard a fact, I am liable for civil penalties:

I could lose this dividend and my next five dividends. I may have to pay a fine of up to $3,000.

Release of Information: I authorize the Alaska Department of Revenue to obtain confidential information necessary to verify my eligibility. I authorize the release of confidential records necessary to verify my eligibility from any public agency including Social Security Administration; Internal Revenue Service; Alaska Department of Health and Social Services, Division of Public Assistance, and Office of Children's Services. I agree that a copy of this authorization is as valid as the original.

I certify that the information I am supplying on and with this form is true and correct.

Your Signature		Date:
By submitting this application with or without signature I am consenting to registration with the U.S. Selective Service System, if so required by law.

04XXX



We could have chosen to do it all online with an electronic signature, but we still like paper and we need to send in some more information as well, so we did the one where the information is now filed online, but we have to sign these forms and mail them in.

Although the original intent was to eventually be able to use the earnings on the fund to pay for state government, people have gotten so used to getting their checks in October that they now think of them as an entitlement.  We're still getting enough money from oil revenues (it was shaky when oil went down below $10 a barrel, but Alaskans are smiling with $70 and $80 per barrel prices) that we don't need to use the earnings yet to run government.  But when we get to that point, I suspect there's going to be a big, nasty fight. 

Two  state legislators have already begun to address this (from the Anchorage Daily News Jan 5, 2009):

Sen. Hollis French and Rep. Harry Crawford want to guarantee Permanent Fund dividend checks in the state Constitution, saying if the dividend isn’t protected the Legislature will eventually use the money to pay for state government spending.

“There are some who would spend the dividend on government, and I think those voices are going to rise in the next few years as budget pressures come on the state of Alaska. Keep in mind that the dividend has sponsored college educations - just ask my son - it’s built homes, paid for medical bills, it’s an enormous part of the Alaskan economy,” said French, who is running for governor in the fall election.

French and Crawford, both Democrats from Anchorage, said today they’ll introduce a resolution to enshrine the dividend. Such a constitutional amendment needs a two-thirds vote in the House and Senate and then a statewide public vote to pass. That is a huge hurdle.

Both these men are running for Statewide office (Governor and US House) next November, so one has to assume this has to do with that election.   

Teddy Partridge Live Blogging Prop. 8 Court Challenge Now

[UPDATE August 4, 2010:  Here's a post on the decision of Judge Walker today] 

Here's  a link if you want to follow the trial in San Francisco which is challenging the constitutionality of the November 2008 California proposition that banned same sex marriage.

[UPDATE 6:39pm Alaska Time:  Here's Day 1 from a different live blogger.
It too is a gay-marriage friendly site.  I've tried to find conservative bloggers who are blogging the trial.  I'm sure they're out there, but I went through several pages of Google without success.  There are conservative posts, but not bloggers providing details from the court.]

This trial, which has the opposing attorneys from Bush v. Gore working together, is controversial on various levels.  People who supported Prop. 8 believe that the voters have spoken and the courts overturning that vote would be anti-democratic.  People challenging that vote believe the right to marry whom you choose is a constitutionally protected civil rights issue that would take a Constitutional amendment, not a simple majority vote to prevent.

Gay groups disagree about the strategy of direct Federal court challenge when the majority of the US Supreme Court is so conservative, fearing a negative Supreme Court will set their cause back.  On the other hand, should this Supreme Court affirm the right to same sex marriage, it would be a far more powerful decision than if a liberal court did.

And then there is the debate over televising this trial.  The judge originally agreed to allow parts of the trial to be shown on YouTube.  This morning the US Supreme Court, as you can read below, has stayed that plan.

Having attended the Alaska political corruption trials here in Anchorage, I have to say actually being there and hearing what is actually said, means one can judge for oneself and not be dependent on the news folks who interpret six to eight hours a day into a 30 second sound bite.

Here's the beginning of the second blog post at FiredogLake.  Click here or on the title for the rest of the post and the next posts as the appear. 

Prop 8: Liveblogging Perry v. Schwarzenegger (Pt. 2)

By: Teddy Partridge Monday January 11, 2010 9:17 am

Phillip Burton Federal Building and Courthouse in San Francisco

[Ed. note: Teddy is live on scene in San Francisco. Part one of his liveblog can be found here.]
Lawyers are settling into their places; it’s 8:38 here. Perhaps the SCOTUS stay has delayed our start here? Twitterers casting the SCOTUS stay as “the first loss for the Olson/Boies team.”
Counsel table camera is now having a little earthquake of its own.
Court personnel setting papers up for Judge Walker.
We still don’t have sound; I sure hope that the AV team remembers to turn it up when they start.
We are reminded not to use any cameras or recording equipment in the overflow courtroom. There is a judge standing by ready to issue contempt orders! A couple of people put away cameras.
This room we’re in is very 1960s ceremonial, lots of wood paneling and not-very-impressive portraits on the wall, perhaps of retired judges? There is a huge plate at the center of the front wall with a large eagle done in gold leaf, the entire wall is grey marble. The room where the trial is actually going to be held looks very similar, except there’s room on the dais for only one judge, while in this room there are fifteen judges’ chairs.
The court recorder just sat down at her seat. . . [for the rest click here.]

A Month of Vegetarian Meals

I'm not the cook these days.  There have been times in our marriage where I did a lot more cooking, but I just don't have the interest in doing all the planning and shopping etc. and J seems to be much more into it and creative and talented these days. 

But trying to be vegetarian does mean constantly looking for different things that are tasty.  So one day I googled something like "one month vegetarian meals" and got to Eat Close to Home., which had a link to a pdf with "Vegetarian Meals for a Month."

Emily Springfield's 12 pages, which I stapled into a booklet, have a

1. Recipe for one main dish for five nights a week for a month (two adults, plus 2 kids)
   
   
2. Weekly shopping list and pantry list

The beauty of this is that you can simply check the pantry list (make sure you have onions, soy sauce, salt, etc.) and then take the shopping list without having to take the time to go through all the recipes to make your own list. 

As excited as I was, before I posted, I wanted to make sure that a) J would go along with this and b) the meals were any good.

Well, I'm here to report, Joan thought it looked great and we had a lot of new (to us) dishes that were fairly easy to make and almost all the meals were winners.  We are two adults though, and I suspect some nights the mythical two kids might have been a bit hungry.  The intro says

• Each week has one or two "dead easy" meals that require little prep and are ready in under 30 minutes (unless you cook brown rice;  then you'll be done in 45 minutes) [it's suggested the brown rice be all cooked at once at the beginning of the week]
  
• Each week has two "average" meals that will take 45 minutes - 1 hour for all prep and cooking
• Each week has one or more "involved" meal that might be best done on a weekend
  

So, go to Eat Close to Home and you can find the recipes at the pdf link.  Rather than put the links to the pdf here, I think you should stop by the original blog to get them.  The link at the top goes to the post with the month of meals she dated March 29, 2008 (the month we ate.)  This link here at the bottom goes to the post that links to a month of meals dated Sept. 12, 2008 (I'm just printing this one out.)

Bon Appetit! 

Winter Green

As I was spraying (nothing evil, just water) some plants this morning, I realized while I put up flower pictures in the summer, I haven't done much here with the indoor plants.  Most of what we have, through  evolution, is very hardy for our dry, neglectful indoor climate.  Given we are gone for periods of time, these are the ones that have proved hardy during periods of drought.  They also survive short winter daylight hours, though we do have some good south facing windows.  We once fussed with lighting, but no longer.

We brought this bromeliad back from my mom's backyard, maybe 15 years ago. It did bloom a few times in the beginning, but not recently. It has nasty thorns and I stick it in the corner and trim the thorns off the tips of the leaves. I think this is less invasive than declawing a cat. I'm not sure what the evolutionary advantage of the thorns is. Perhaps to keep away animals that would eat or otherwise hurt the plant. There aren't any of those in our house, so it shouldn't be a problem.  From the Bromeliad Society International:

Bromeliads are members of a plant family known as Bromeliaceae (bro-meh-lee-AH-say-eye). The family contains over 3000 described species in approximately 56 genera. The most well known bromeliad is the pineapple. The family contains a wide range of plants including some very un-pineapple like members such as Spanish Moss (which is neither Spanish nor a moss). Other members resemble aloes or yuccas while still others look like green, leafy grasses.

In general they are inexpensive, easy to grow, require very little care, and reward the grower with brilliant, long lasting blooms and ornamental foliage. They come in a wide range of sizes from tiny miniatures to giants. They can be grown indoors in cooler climates and can also be used outdoors where temperatures stay above freezing.
Bromeliad History

Bromeliads entered recorded history some 500 years ago when Columbus introduced the pineapple (Ananas comosus) to Spain upon return from his second voyage to the New World in 1493. On that voyage he found it being cultivated by the Carib Indians in the West Indies. Within 50 years this tropical fruit was being cultivated in India and other Old World countries.

[Note:  while they do say "recorded" history, I'm wondering if they checked whether the Incas or other American societies ever wrote anything about bromeliads.]
The one on the left is a much smaller one I brought back this fall from my mom's yard.  It was a victim of the fence building, but it's doing fine now.  







This plant underleaf looks pretty dangerous, and when our kids were little, they stayed clear of it, but really those are soft and fuzzy.  It's a begonia that my mother-in-law had and there are now a lot of folks who have plants that were originally cuttings from that plant. 

It too is extremely hardy, easy to propagate, and it has flowers every year. There just beginning now. When they really open, they'll be pink. And we'll be in Juneau. They last a month or more.



Here's a bit of the stem that kept our kids far from this plant.



In checking out begonias, I think this is a rhizomatous begonia as described on Brad's Begonia World:

Rhizomatous begonias comprise one of the largest if not the largest group of begonias. They are differentiated from the other types of begonias in that they grow from stems (rhizomes) that grow along the surface of the soil. As they grow, the stems put out new roots. There are some semi-upright rhizomatous but even these will fall over and root back to the soil like the other rhizomatous if allowed. There is also a group of rhizomatous that put up upright stems from the creeping rhizome.


Begonia 'Bushmaster'Most rhizomatous begonias are grown for their interesting foliage that comes in various colors and patterns. The majority being shades of green, black, silver and brown. Many also have interesting spirals in the sinus of the leaf or ruffled edges. Nearly all are seasonal bloomers that require a short day period to set blooms, so are late winter to spring blooming. Even though not grown for their flowers, they do put on a spectacular display of blooms during their short bloom season. Except for the few upright types, most rhizomatous begonias make attractive mound shaped plants. Rhizomatous begonias can live in less light than most of the other types so are the best choices for really shady areas. Many also do quite well as ground covers for shady or semi shady areas.

Horticulturally the rhizomatous types are broken up into a couple dozen types based on leaf size and growth. For the purpose of this article, culturally there are four basic types, common type, upright type, upright jointed, and distinctive foliage. Most of the cultural items of this page apply to areas where begonias can be grown outdoors all year. Begonias can be grown outdoors in cold climates but must be brought indoors before frost in the fall.

The philodendron is another hard to kill plant.

While looking up philodendron, I came across this story. It's from the astral world, and since there's not further evidence of more rigorous testing, I think he's reading too much in. But that doesn't negate the possibility that there's more to plants than we think. Maybe the bromeliad appreciates having it's nails clipped.

    The story starts with Cleve Backster of the Cleve Backster School of Lie Detection. It was in 1966 that the curious Backster decided to hook up a polygraph machine to one of his philodendron plants to measure the time it took for water to reach the large leaves. Backster noticed that the plant was measuring what would be excitement in a human subject. He then tried different things with the leaf that had the polygraph electrode attached - even sticking the leaf in a cup of hot coffee. The plant showed no other reactions and even seemed to be getting bored after 15 minutes of testing. [Follow the link for the rest of the experiments.]

The bamboo we drove back from Portland five years ago. It involved getting them inspected and certified to take through Canada and back into the US at the Alaska border. We'd found someone at this rural bamboo nursery outside of Portland from Minnesota and picked varieties that he said grew outside in Minneapolis. But I haven't had the heart to plant them outside. I would say they are surviving, but not thriving. Perhaps this summer I'll plant one outside against the house.

And this is the surviving tamarind. It grew to this point from seed in about three weeks and has stayed like this ever since. The other two plants succumbed to lack of water, even though I was watching pretty closely.



And here's the world outside this cocoon of temperance.