Xmas landscape card in 2 slightly different designs, with snowflakes, reindeer, pine trees,… and merry christmas lettered on christmass balls.  See download links further this post. Useful as greetings, announcement or invitation card. Have fun using!

Before I go any further, I would like to say that in all honesty, I had lined up another post to publish today, but frankly, it’s been a long day and I didn’t really want to upload something which was causing quite a bit of strife at the moment, possibly at the end of the week or next week then.

Now, because I decided not to post the thing which I was going to post, I can’t think of anything else to write about, so I guess I’ll have a ramble about the first thing which comes to mind… or that I see if I close my eyes and turn my head away from my computer.

A glass. Not just any glass though. An IKEA glass, from probably one of the most iconic global brands there is. People hate it, people love it. Whichever side of the fence you are on in regards to the Swedish furniture maker and general place of plywood awesomeness, they won’t go away very easily, and as it turns out, you probably use something of theirs almost every day.

Now you might be thinking that I have gone off my nut here, writing about a company which seems to infuriate many people, but take a minute to think, or try to think about what it really is that annoys you about them. Chances are that it is because whenever you go there, the the warehouse of steam bent meatballs, everyone else in the area has decided to go too, whether it because the weather is awful and people suddenly have an urge to update their homes, or just because it is a Thursday night and you want to get away from the dog who seems to have taken a liking to your sofa when you have been out for the day.

Either way, their general philosophy is one which changed the way in which people bought furniture. Great designs and low prices is something which other companies should try and do. But for some reason, design seems to mean that they can bump up the prices. Now I’m not saying that everything should be at rock bottom prices, there are certain designery things which deserve to be the price they are because you are clearly able to see the amount of work put in by the designer and the company as a whole to make the product the best that they can make it.

Count the number of things bought in IKEA in the room you are in just now (not really doable if you are at work, preferably done at home), and of those things, for which reasons did you buy them? Because they were cheap? or because they looked good?

And whilst you are pondering that, and I am aware that some people will manage to answer that quicker than others, I’ll leave you with an epic song which I came about whilst listening to The Bitterest Pill podcast a few years ago, a song created by Jonathan Coulton, a song all about IKEA.

Link to song on iTunes

Note: tiredness may have played a part in the randomness of this post.

HAIKU

Pine needle carpets

embrace the cold forest floor

before the first snow

3/18/90 Phyllis VanVleck

La autenticidad (también sirve un “falso real”) se está convirtiendo en la nueva sensibilidad del consumidor. Tres reglas básicas para los que nos dedicamos a la venta de experiencias:

Dicho por Josheph Pine:

• No digas que eres auténtico, a menos que seas auténtico.
• Es más facil ser auténtico si tú no dices que eres auténtico.
• Si dices que eres auténtico, más te vale ser auténtico.

La capital de las experiencias en el mundo de la conferencia: TED.COM

I can’t believe I actually thought we could do this ourselves. Reid got out the router and the table saw and built the trim around one of Sadies windows today and it looks GORG-eous. We are thrilled with the results and can’t wait for the whole house to be trimmed out.

A window without trim. Sad.

November 2009 Exercise – Domenic Battistella, Executive Chef, Red Rocks Café, Huntersville, NC

Autumn Venison Duet
Pumpkin infused tar tare, pine smoked olive oil foam, yoke
Cinnamon coffee roasted tenderloin, Chilhuacle roast pumpkin, pickled fennel

To participate in the next exercise, please send an e mail to: jeffrey@bauscherinc.com

See all your favorite chefs’ collections of past submissions at the Deep Plate page on Facebook.  Please become a “Fan”. 

http://deepplate.wordpress.com and “Deep Plate” on Facebook

As I stoked a dying fire,
A warmth set to soon expire,
I added more fuel: dried wood.
Gave coals space to breathe, good.

And as I watched pine
Smoldering there,
Wood slowly warming,
Yearning for air,

It gave me pause;
Made me wonder why
Women look for passions’ cause
And ask for “sparks to fly”.

Sparks flying mean only
The flame’s been disturbed, goaded,
Kicked, poked, prodded, turned,
Or that super-heated sap exploded.

Instead shouldn’t they look for
The smoky, slowly-warming feat
That finally gasps air, and with a roar
Throws off constant, strong, radiant heat?

No sparks there
Kicked, thrust, thrown at random
Into the night air
With sudden, reckless abandon!

But rather glowing, red,
Steady, comforting heat.
Passions’ flame which, carefully fed,
Gives warmth that will repeat.

A few years ago when I was making my entertainment unit using pine veneered onto MDF (at the time it was what I could afford, and meant I didn’t have to do massive amounts of joinery to get the large panels I needed).  At that stage, the company I used (Australian Wood Panels) had an impressive array of veneered panels you could choose from – jarrah, blackwood, walnut, pine etc etc – about 10-15 different timbers.

It seems in recent times they are now primarily limited to raw MDF and ply (and melamine), and you have to order in the veneered panels (I’m talking about 1200×2400 veneers, not something you can do in the shed with a vacuum bag, or an iron!)

If anyone knows where a decent range of veneered panels on different cores can still be sourced, I’m sure there will be people interested in knowing.

Entertainment Unit

An old photo of the entertainment unit from years ago – at least 6 years ago, if not more.  The unit wasn’t completed in this photo – still had the doors to go (all raised panel for the 4 lower ones, and glass for the 2 display cabinets) (and I don’t think I ever took a photo of the unit completed).  It is now scattered around the house – the two side modules are still there, but the TV when upgraded to a plasma no longer fitted, so the central module is now in a different room, and the TV itself is now in the shed!  (Even the digital camera used is ancient – 0.3MP)

In the (old) shed, during the build

Boy, some of these photos go back!  Back to the old shed days when I still had plenty of room in it! Triton Workcentre there in the foreground, GMC lathe in the background.

Assembly and finishing

Back in the days before I had grass – the back yard was sand, and that’s my dingo asleep beside the blue rubbish bin.  As you can see from this photo, I finished as I went, so areas that were going to be hard to get a decent finish on after assembly were pre-done.  All finished with a jarrah stain and Ubeaut traditional wax. The sides, and shelves are pine veneered MDF, the fronts are solid pine (so I could rout detail into them, and for added strength for hinges etc.  I mush have done a pretty good job of the build as the cabinets are still going strong.

THE CANADIAN PRESS

TORONTO — Jonas Gustavsson lost some of his rookie shine Saturday night.

The 25-year-old Toronto rookie goaltender made just two saves and allowed three goals before being pulled in favour of the embattled Vesa Toskala less than 10 minutes into the Leafs’ 5-2 loss to Calgary.

Gustavsson had been off to a fast start, sporting a 3-3-3 record with a 2.77 goals-against average and .917 save percentage. As far as Leafs fans were concerned, he had supplanted incumbent Toskala as the Maple Leafs No. 1 man between the pipes.

“It’s not the start you want,” Gustavsson said, “but that’s the way it goes sometimes.”

Gustavsson was the victim of some pinpoint accuracy on Jarome Iginla’s opening goal of the game, a tip-in on the second and a deflection on the third.

“The first goal, the shot came really quick,” said Gustavsson when asked if he should have had any the three goals. “Maybe I could have had it, maybe not. Sometimes you have those pucks that just go in.”

“You have to keep working hard and not think about it too much, just move on.”

That will be the key for the young netminder. He’s been the early-season darling of Toronto through his first nine appearances, and deservedly so. Each game he seemed to make one or two great stops and wasn’t letting in easy goals.

Veteran Toronto blue-liner Tomas Kaberle offered some perspective on how Gustavsson needs to respond to his first poor game of the season.

“Sometimes you have nights like that,” he said. “Tomorrow is a new day. It happens to everybody, (former Leafs goalies) Eddie Belfour, Cujo (Curtis Joseph), everybody.

“The thing is to recover from that. They always battled hard, and Jonas is the same way.”

Leafs coach Ron Wilson was sympathetic to Gustavsson’s plight, but felt he had to pull him early — he had already used his lone timeout and couldn’t talk to his goalie.

“The first (goal) I think surprised him,” Wilson said. “It was just inside the post, it was almost the perfect shot. The second one squeaked through his legs. And the third one was a backhand — it was a one-on-one where they shot and it hit our defenceman. That’s bang-bang and the guy just floated one off the post.

“It was nothing major, he just kind of had some unfortunate luck on a couple of those goals.”

La Liga round-upIf Stars align, Leafs may win second-straight

Rosemary

Yes, the flu season is here and probably around for a few months.  What you probably don’t know is that there ARE some other options that are organic in nature and available without a prescription to help fight the spread of the flu!

First, the flu, or influenza, is a viral infection.  It involves respiratory discomfort, muscle aches and pain, headache, fever and chills.  The flu can cause big time trouble for the very young, the elderly and for those individuals that already have compromised immune systems.  If you think you have the flu, you should see your doctor.  Don’t fool around with this especially if you fit one of the predisposed types I just mentioned.

But if you don’t have the flu and are looking for ways to arm your family and yourself from exposure – there are some great options that are aromatic, organic and a few you may already know about like one of the main ingredients in Vicks VapoRub, eucalyptus!

Aromatherapy is the art of using essential oils from plants and tress to protect and enhance your health, beauty and can contribute to overall wellness.  Modern medicine has many benefits and we would not enjoy the health we have today without many of the medicines that have been developed.  Having said that, there are alternatives and natural approaches to medicine that have been put aside for a quick fix with a pill.  I had a client I met the other day.  We got to talking about the medical community and how easy it is to get a pill to eliminate the symptoms and process you out of the office.  I think she said her Doc was seeing 100 patients a day. Next!  I remember saying to her did you ever think that when you are feeling something – that’s a sign you need to fix it not necessarily medicate the feeling away?  Too many of us today want a quick fix instead of taking the time to explore, investigate and make lifestyle changes that can contribute to our health.  Essential oils can help plus they smell delicious!

You can use essential oils in a variety of methods to help support a healthy immune system from hot compresses, to massage and in a diffuser.  Essential oils are rapidly absorbed into the skin just like with Vicks VapoRub. You can feel the menthol action from the eucalyptus start to provide relief almost instantly.

Some of the best essential oils for the flu season include: Eucalyptus Globulus, Thyme, Laurel, Peppermint, Pine & Rosemary.  If you are recovering from the flu some great essential oils that really provide great support and aromatic benefits are Bay, Cinnamon and Clove. They work great in a diffuser.

A word of caution, never use any essential oil direct on your skin. Essential oils are for external use only unless you are working with a certified medical expert.  Essential oils are powerful and certain oils should not be used at all.  Use extra caution if you are pregnant, suffer from high blood pressure or epilepsy as many essential oils are 100% contraindications for these conditions.   Take the use of essential oils seriously.  Just because they are natural and organic in nature doesn’t mean they can’t be dangerous when used improperly.  Mushrooms are natural and organic but I sure wouldn’t want to make the mistake of eating the wrong one!  There are a lot of great sources for essential oils that are as close as your local health food store.  If you want more information about aromatherapy and the use of essential oils, there are many great books that are available through your city library or bookstores.

I am happy to say I have not gotten the flu this year and I’m doing everything in my power to keep it that way.  Did I get the flu shot – I’ll let you decide…So please excuse me, while I go inhale some eucalyptus and start my diffuser. Now where did I put that clove?

To your health!

 Pam Tirado-Luminoso Salon & Spa

Encouraged by my host Suzuki Makoto sensei at Tokyo University of Agriculture, I recently visited the Edo Gardening Flowers exhibit being held at the Ukiyo-e Ota Memorial Museum of Art until November 26,2009. The exhibit has spectacular colorful wood block prints showing flowers and plants in a variety of urban settings including kimonos, at festivals, commercials nurseries, educational materials, Kabuki actors, and Noh dramas.

The exhibit theme is that the Edo period experienced a “gardening culture” in which a passion for gardens and flowers permeated all social classes, including court nobles, shoguns, feudal lords and the common people. According to the catalogue, “the Japanese people’s passion to flowers surprised the American botanist Robert Fortune as seen in his diary upon his visit to Japan in the late Edo period.”

An interesting comparison is also made between between the widespread practice of Edo gardening and also the interest of common people in wood block prints. It is wonderful to see the use of flowers and plants in both high culture realms and in depictions of everyday life during the Edo period.

Two of my favorite prints are collections of plants used by children to learn the names of flowers. The one below, from the back cover of the exhibit catalog, has the names in hiragana. The exhibit also includes Edo era ceramic plant pots.

Some more images after the jump, and also a list of plants seen in the wood block prints.

Plants and flowers I noted from the November exhibit included “Adonis flower” (fukujuso), potted plum tree, narcissus, Chinese lantern, cherry blossoms, pine bonsai, morning glory, chrysanthemum, clematis, hydrangea, iris, peony, azalea, and rose.

The other day I blogged about the sticky pinecones you see above.

Well, I followed the directions I found online and baked my pinecones on parchment paper at 200 degrees for half an hour, but after 30 minutes they were still sticky, so I let them go half an hour more. Firstly, this process made the house smell divine and well, piney. After an hour of baking, the resin on the pinecones had melted, some of it glazed the cone itself, and some dripped onto the parchment paper. The cones seemed quite a bit browner and if I had left them in much longer I’m quite sure they would have started to burn, but at one hour they were just fine. I was especially happy with the glazed effect achieved, and, mission accomplished, no stickiness.

They look beautiful as they are and I love the way the pods opened up and you can see where the seed lay, but I think I’m going to let the boys paint some of them them to make ornaments for grandparent/teacher gifts.

Recently I visited construction company Kajima’s headquarters in Akasaka to learn more about their extraordinary biodiversity program, and was charmed by the miniature Japanese garden in front of the modernist building. One could criticize the excess of hardscape, but it does make the small traditional garden pop in a dramatic way.

The perfectly pruned pines and arrangement around a “river” of pebbles and rock “mountains” makes a wonderful composition. Even the tallest trees are under 1 meter in this miniature dream landscape. While the environmental benefit is minimal, such stylized and well cared for nature creates a beauty that is unquantifiable and a momentary escape from urban life.

The contrast not only with the building but the surrounding neighborhood is extreme.

Gender: Feminine
Origin: Icelandic
Meaning: “pine tree.”
(FEU-rah) the u is somewhat akin to the French eu sound.

The name comes from the Icelandic word for pine tree, according to the Icelandic Registry, only 3 women bore the name as of 2007.

A single tree standing in the entrance to a modern Tokyo house provides a marvelous contrast between the traditional and the new. The beauty of the single tree and the clean lines of the boxy concrete home create a uniquely Japanese feeling, or what I introduced recently as wafu modern (和風モダン) in relation to Kuma Kenga’s new Nezu Museum and tea house.

The intricately pruned pine tree evokes hundreds of years of Japanese garden design almost single-handedly. The pairing suggests a forward-looking aesthetic that remembers and revitalizes traditional culture elements.

From an ecological perspective, the single tree and minimal shrubs provides very little habitat. This quiet cul-de-sac suffers a typical Tokyo over-abundance of pavement, which is a certain pathway to Tokyo Bay pollution from storm runoff and an obstacle to insect and plant life that could feed and shelter bees, birds and other urban wildlife.

Still, the effect of the tree is all the more dramatic against the excess of hardscape. I also would regret if urban ecology became a quantitative calculation of efficiencies and benefits. There must be a place for not only traditional culture but also the type of human care and aesthetic appreciation manifest in this stylized pine tree.

Gender: Masculine
Origin: Slovenian
Meaning: “pine tree.”
(BOR) rolled R

The name currently ranks in as the 45th most popular male name in Slovenia, it comes from the Slovenian word for pine tree but may have been popularized by Slovene national author, poet, playwright, translator and partisan, Matej Bor, (borne Vladimir Pavšič), the former being a pen name (1913-1993).

It is also the name of several places names throughout Eastern Europe, there are a few villages in Poland that bear the name, as well as in the Czech Republic, Russia and it is the name of a city in Serbia.

There is a feminine form Borjana, also the name of a place in Slovenia.

Fog rises from the subway grill, rolls across the face of the icebound midnight moon. Smells of old socks, mildew and burnt chestnuts from the lone vendor a few blocks away on the corner singe his nose hairs as he traverses the lonely streets of the old financial district near Gold and Liberty streets. Spotty lights shoot forth from the silhouettes of the sordid emblems of capitalistic endeavor where the legal crimes take place: the Nordic pillaging of villages unseen, the trades of people’s livelihoods, the desire for more continually unsated. He tips his fedora back, lifts his head upwards towards that chilled night sky and watches through the windows of the first few floors as the immigrant workers clean the cubicles and conference rooms, hallways and offices of those that have much. He shakes his head, looks down at the soiled concrete sidewalks below, the gum and trash, the homeless people bundled up and sleeping in the recesses of the wealthy’s playground, the layer after layer of dirt and grime in the shadows of the pristine corporate headquarters, lifts his head back up to see the workers still toiling away and walks away slowly, subdued by the numbing indifference of it all.

A dusty yellow cab pulls up, “On Duty” shines golden through the mossy air. “You need a lift, mister?” The cabbie looks at him with a sideways grin, pulls his hat back towards his neck to open us his face. He shakes his head, tells the cabbie there’s no time for joy rides. “There’s too much work to be done,” he adds and continues traversing the bowels of New York City.

Right on Liberty and up to William street, he turns left, heads towards Pine and Wall Street, Exchange Place, the belly of the beast. All is quiet. He can hear the scuffle of rats in the black bags of garbage left out for collection in the morning, smells the always-pervasive smell of shit that seeps through the darkened cracks of the city and settles down for a good, long stay. Sees the security guards sleeping at the New York Stock Exchange, the ghostly figure of Washington lit up like a Christmas tree watching over the center of capital trading. The wind rips through the cobblestone streets, lifts the giant American flag on the face of the Exchange and yanks at its ropes, bends it to its will, threatens to snap it off and send it flying into the dirtied Hudson. He pauses for a second, takes in the filtered light of the lampposts, the recognizable hums of vacuum cleaners, the violent whispers of the icy wind. Looks down and sees that here at the junction of Wall street and William street that the sidewalks are spotless, knows that the filth here has moved fully inwards to the weaknesses of man encased in stony structures. A couple approaches, the man in a navy blue suit, slicked back hair, a silk pink tie and a clean, pressed white shirt. His loafers click in step with his companion’s six-inch stilettos, shiny ebony lost in the shadows of the capital-rich calluses. Her flowing watermelon dress, her white sash, her soft blond hair and thick, catty carvings of makeup on her baby blue eyes. They move in sync, robotic marching at a midnight hour, pay no attention to him and walks right past, pauses at the door of the latest luxury apartments around the corner. With a twist of the key, the woman enters. The man pauses, looks back at him and scowls. “You are trash,” he transmits and enters. And they are gone.

The light from the nearest lamppost begins to flicker. He turns to face it, looks upwards. Smoke curls upwards from the subways in droves. The light expands, blinding rays shoot outwards to the murky intricacies of that baleful junction. A high-pitched emission and the light explodes. Shadowed curtains fall, he hears the menacing whispers of those all around him, sits on the soiled corner and pulls his coat in tight around his shoulders, flips up the collar to protect his neck from the increasing winds.

The dimly-lit carcass of the American flag on the Exchange looks on, bemused.

With cooler nights, fall is definitely upon us. I took these photos in the first week of November to document the passing of the seasons on our balcony garden. Above a dramatic sunset over Mt Fuji illuminates the very end of the morning glory green curtain. As you can see in the photo below, there are still many flowers, including cosmos, murasaki shikibu, cyclamen, geranium, fujibakama, a creamy daisy, and a few other annuals.

One of the satoyama unit’s plant is flowering now, while some of the deciduous plants are dropping their leaves.

The black pine bonsai I assembled at Kobayashi Kenji Sensei’s class at Sinajina is doing well.

And we put the ojizō-sama made at the ceramic studio into one of the satoyama units.

More photos of fall plants, including lemon tree, ceramics, and more images of the satoyama units after the jump.

Above is the smaller satoyama unit, which sits on a low shelf. In the bottom right you can see the small flower that is highlighted in this post’s second photo.

The larger satoyama unit rests on the balcony floor, and some of the leaves are dropping for winter. Below is the Saipan lemon tree, which still has two lemons. The fruit remains green even when ripe. I made the large ceramic pot last year at this time.

Phone: 954 603 8772.
Please leave a message and you will be contacted ASAP.

A/C not fixed = $20 (diagnosis/service)
If your air conditioning (A/C) is not fixed, the charge $20 to diagnose the problem.

A/C fixed + No parts = $50
(If your A/C is fixed and no parts are needed, the charge is $50 total.You will not pay more than $50 unless parts need to be purchased.)

A/C fixed + Parts = $50 + Cost of parts.
If your A/C is fixed and parts are needed, the charge is $50 + the cost of the parts.

Please note: Freon/refrigerant is a part and is not included in the service fee.

This is not an hourly fee – the labor fee is $50 no matter how long the repair takes. The charge is $20 if the A/C is not fixed.

Please note that the following services are not currently being offered: 1) coil change-outs, 2) compressor change-outs and 3) installations.

Here is a list of cities currently being serviced:

Boca Raton
Coconut Creek
Coral Springs
Deerfield Beach
Fort Lauderdale
Hillsboro Beach
Lauderdale Lakes
Lauderdale-by-the-Sea
Lauderhill
Lighthouse Point
Margate
North Lauderdale
Oakland Park
Parkland
Pompano Beach
Tamarac
Wilton Manors

South Broward, West Broward and Miami-Dade County are not currently serviced.

Here is a list of some of the units that may be repaired…
- Commercial A/C units
- Residential A/C units
- Split A/C units
- Package A/C units
- Wall A/C units
- Window A/C units

Please note: Personal Checks and Business Checks are not accepted as payment at this time.

If you can’t call, feel free to email your phone number to the email address at the top of this listing and you will be contacted ASAP.

Any and all air conditioners have a possibility of repair.

Here are some (but not all) brands that repairs are possible for..
Goodman, Trane, Carrier, York, Rheem, Ruud, Fujistsu, American Standard, Lennox, Mitsubishi, Bryant, Payne, Duchane, Fedders, Heil, Janitrol, Armstrong, GE, General Electric, Honeywell, Amana, Comfortmaker, Tempstar, Briggs & Stratton, Kohler, Guardian, Generac.

License # CAC014666

The Weirdest Summer in the World

warm laughter but distant, dreaded
like memory
the next-door neighbor
gossiping with stolen wife and children
in a yard corner
sun lighting up the forbidden things
thistle pollen casting shadows
on our retinas

the sun flowing in
and out
of me
I wipe streaks of it up into my hairline
if you were a tree, what tree would you be?
he asks
I say
one of those bristlecone pines
that live for thousands of years in the Rockies

my sister and I put on our bathing suits one night
chilly allies
we tiptoed onto the deck and into our green turtle wading pool
damp mosquito air
the turtle pool an ocean beneath our child bodies
our world created on its back
as usual my sister can explain everything:

this is the weirdest summer in the world.

A Bristlecone Pine