I pondered today the phrase 'Great minds think alike.' and how many times I've heard it. I realized that if the sentence is reordered in reverse the statement becomes a much more valid representation of what occurs. So I pose this question regarding the time when two people think of the same thing, with the two phrases together forming a special type of chiasmus called antimetabole:
Do like minds think great or great minds think alike?
I think the former, 'like minds think great' to be most true and a less arrogant phrase since it implies that the thought not the mind is what is great, great being the center of the chiasmus and thus receiving more emphasis. Certainly greatness is the message of this chiasmus. Thinking greatly will I suppose eventually convert a mind into a great mind.
Here is the antimetabole, broken down in it's format a,b,c,c,b,a
a) Do like
b) minds think
c) great or
c) great
b) minds think
a) alike?
So, how is that for some ponder gardening?
The beans I planted are about three inches tall and the peas are all sprouting. I don't remember if I posted or not but I planted the rest of a two year old packet of patipan squash and they all seem to be growing. We'll see how they do in the fall weather. Last night I collected the cilantro seeds for next year's crop. I'm also saving some zucchini seeds.
This morning while making Mickey Mouse waffles, my two year old kept asking for the chocolate tomato. I had about a hundred tomatoes out and my four year old was helping me pull the tops of to freeze them all. For the longest time I just didn't understand and she became more and more insistent and would not eat her waffles without the alleged chocolate tomato. Finally, I asked her which 'chocolate tomato' she wanted to eat with her waffle breakfast. She pointed strait at the dark purple heirloom tomato I picked up at a friend's house last night and said, "That one."
I explained that jam would be better on her waffle and the tomato wasn't for breakfast. I just ate it in a sandwich for lunch. While it didn't taste like chocolate it was delicious and I've save some of the seeds for next year.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Friday, August 21, 2009
Ponder Summer Harvest
The production of the garden has been excellent. With summer activities, family visiting, birthdays, holidays and just plain enjoying the summer. I’ll try and give a run down of how things went the last six weeks.
The green beans did good until it got hot and then they kind of withered. I learned I can plant them again in our area in July. I planted some on Monday. Not July but I’ll pretend the seeds don’t know.
The broccoli also did good until it was too hot. It was very tasty. I left the ones in front for some green foliage and although they look a little weedy, I liked the yellow flowers. Next year I’m going to try planting it sooner and more of it. It just didn’t seem like when it came on that there was enough.
The potatoes were green and pretty at the beginning of the gardening season. They looked like I knew what I was doing. I didn’t. They started to wilt and I learned that after wilting is when you pick them. I kept watering hoping that whatever was under there kept growing. Well, they didn’t grow much more and I have a few potatoes for each plant. I had planted them in the richest, softest dirt that was soft at least 18 inches and potatoes only grew in the first 5 inches of soil. There were also some small ones, about the size of a small bouncy ball. They are really bitter to eat. The larger ones are fine. I don’t know if it is the variety, how I grew them, watering, or what but they did not meet my expectations. So, next year I’ll try again and hope for a better harvest.
The beets have been a delight. I love the color and flavor. They taste like sugar and the kids like them too. We’ve had them cooked and pickled and more than once I’ve had to stop myself before turning purple from the inside out. I’ve pickled them with vinegar in a pot in the fridge and they taste fine. Just cook the beets, slice them and put them in a pot with ½ vinegar ½ water and sugar to taste. I made them twice the first time I followed a recipe, the second time I didn’t and put in maybe a quarter of the sugar and they are nice and sour. Yum yum, my mouth is watering now thinking of them in the fridge.
The squash went into heavy production and the neighbors and friends benefited. My wife got sick of cooking it. One day I grated and froze 16 freezer bags full. It was a lot of work and now what is left of the squash is starting to wilt on the counter because of no child free, non sleeping time to get it grated and frozen. To keep from feeling that it is an utter waste, I tell myself they’ll do good for the compost.
The squash leaves started with mildew and I pulled the plants attempting to stop the spread. Well, it spread anyway and now there are no more fresh zucchini, squash, pati pan, or eight ball squash to add to the problem pile on the counter. I planted a mound of pati pan on Monday though and we’ll see how they fare in the cooler months. I don’t expect much but thought it would be a good use for the rest of the two year old seeds.
The Romaine lettuce was an absolute hit. It was gone too fast. I’ve learned about successive planting now. I planted some that should be ready in a few weeks and I planted more on Monday. I planted them near the sidewalk and I hope that as we go into the cooler months the heat from the sidewalk will keep them warm and happy.
Tomatoes have been my late-arriving friend. I worried about them when it seemed like every friend, neighbor and my mother in law had a hundred tomatoes on the vine and I had green marbles. I started watering hoping that wasn’t the problem, fertilized and then the leaves curled. Some research tipped me to the thought that maybe they had too much water so I cut back and they sprang back. A few weeks later and we’re in full tomato season and one evening this week my wife and I boiled, pealed seeded and froze six freezer bags full. As my wife squeezed the tomatoes she caught the juice and seeds in a Tupperware jug. V-8 has nothing on my fresh tomato juice and it didn’t last long enough.
Tomato lessons learned: Tomatoes will be planted way earlier next year in front of the brick wall under the front window for warmth and early starting. Additional tomatoes will be planted later when it is naturally warm out in the yard and I’ll watch out for over-watering.
Carrots have been great and the kids love going and a king sized carrot, washing it and eating three bites. The rest gets saved and grated into pasta and today I had the wild idea just now (still thinking of those beets in the fridge) to slice some up and add them to my beet vinegar brine. My mother in law has picked carrots before and so I say, "Me Too, Me Too" and head to the garden with the kids to pick and slice carrots.
The green beans did good until it got hot and then they kind of withered. I learned I can plant them again in our area in July. I planted some on Monday. Not July but I’ll pretend the seeds don’t know.
The broccoli also did good until it was too hot. It was very tasty. I left the ones in front for some green foliage and although they look a little weedy, I liked the yellow flowers. Next year I’m going to try planting it sooner and more of it. It just didn’t seem like when it came on that there was enough.
The potatoes were green and pretty at the beginning of the gardening season. They looked like I knew what I was doing. I didn’t. They started to wilt and I learned that after wilting is when you pick them. I kept watering hoping that whatever was under there kept growing. Well, they didn’t grow much more and I have a few potatoes for each plant. I had planted them in the richest, softest dirt that was soft at least 18 inches and potatoes only grew in the first 5 inches of soil. There were also some small ones, about the size of a small bouncy ball. They are really bitter to eat. The larger ones are fine. I don’t know if it is the variety, how I grew them, watering, or what but they did not meet my expectations. So, next year I’ll try again and hope for a better harvest.
The beets have been a delight. I love the color and flavor. They taste like sugar and the kids like them too. We’ve had them cooked and pickled and more than once I’ve had to stop myself before turning purple from the inside out. I’ve pickled them with vinegar in a pot in the fridge and they taste fine. Just cook the beets, slice them and put them in a pot with ½ vinegar ½ water and sugar to taste. I made them twice the first time I followed a recipe, the second time I didn’t and put in maybe a quarter of the sugar and they are nice and sour. Yum yum, my mouth is watering now thinking of them in the fridge.
The squash went into heavy production and the neighbors and friends benefited. My wife got sick of cooking it. One day I grated and froze 16 freezer bags full. It was a lot of work and now what is left of the squash is starting to wilt on the counter because of no child free, non sleeping time to get it grated and frozen. To keep from feeling that it is an utter waste, I tell myself they’ll do good for the compost.
The squash leaves started with mildew and I pulled the plants attempting to stop the spread. Well, it spread anyway and now there are no more fresh zucchini, squash, pati pan, or eight ball squash to add to the problem pile on the counter. I planted a mound of pati pan on Monday though and we’ll see how they fare in the cooler months. I don’t expect much but thought it would be a good use for the rest of the two year old seeds.
The Romaine lettuce was an absolute hit. It was gone too fast. I’ve learned about successive planting now. I planted some that should be ready in a few weeks and I planted more on Monday. I planted them near the sidewalk and I hope that as we go into the cooler months the heat from the sidewalk will keep them warm and happy.
Tomatoes have been my late-arriving friend. I worried about them when it seemed like every friend, neighbor and my mother in law had a hundred tomatoes on the vine and I had green marbles. I started watering hoping that wasn’t the problem, fertilized and then the leaves curled. Some research tipped me to the thought that maybe they had too much water so I cut back and they sprang back. A few weeks later and we’re in full tomato season and one evening this week my wife and I boiled, pealed seeded and froze six freezer bags full. As my wife squeezed the tomatoes she caught the juice and seeds in a Tupperware jug. V-8 has nothing on my fresh tomato juice and it didn’t last long enough.
Tomato lessons learned: Tomatoes will be planted way earlier next year in front of the brick wall under the front window for warmth and early starting. Additional tomatoes will be planted later when it is naturally warm out in the yard and I’ll watch out for over-watering.
Carrots have been great and the kids love going and a king sized carrot, washing it and eating three bites. The rest gets saved and grated into pasta and today I had the wild idea just now (still thinking of those beets in the fridge) to slice some up and add them to my beet vinegar brine. My mother in law has picked carrots before and so I say, "Me Too, Me Too" and head to the garden with the kids to pick and slice carrots.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Ponder Patriotism
While I don’t have much time to devote to this topic, it is something that I have certainly thought about while gardening and so will quickly write a few of my thoughts on patriotism before the kids wake up from a nap.
I love coming out of the house on a fresh morning and putting up the flag, which is what I did yesterday, July 4, 2009. Flag flying is certainly a patriotic gesture; however, I wouldn’t say that in every home with a flag there lives a patriot and that includes on the 4th of July. I’ve seen flags on homes where the flag is up every day. Some times there is also a second flag, one around the corner from us has the US Marines. I’m pretty sure that he is truly patriotic.
Yesterday there were flags on many houses all over. Flags I’ve never seen on houses before, flags that weren’t there on Memorial Day in May or Veterans Day last November or two months prior on September 11th. In the back yards of some of those houses yesterday were BBQ grills with hot dogs and hamburgers. But I really don’t know if all of those gestures were patriotic or if they were only celebratory, having a good time because it is a holiday. I don’t even know if they were commemorative or reflective. The thing I’ve thought about is all of those flags and how they weren’t there on Memorial Day intermingled with the same smell of BBQ. I wonder if these are truly patriotic people. I wonder if they would consider themselves patriotic.
In a neighborhood not far from us there is a street with many flags, three of them have lighted flags and pictures of soldiers. Although I’m not sure, I hazard to guess that these three neighbors have sons serving our country. I’m pretty sure they are truly patriotic.
For an immigrant to become a citizen of the United States they must pass a written exam. Most naturally born Americans would not pass this exam. One question that immigrants study is: Name the three branches of government. My fear is that the All-American answer to this question asked of a stadium full of people about to watch America ’s All-American pass time would be "Huh?" From the more educated maybe a question, "What, the government has branches?" Perhaps two or three would get it right. Are you one of them?
Continuing on with the game, before it starts someone would inevitably get up and sing the National Anthem. The crowd would rise and some hands would go to the heart. BUT, I wonder how many in the crowd would wonder why the rest of the anthem isn’t ever sung at baseball games. I wonder if they would even know the name of the song, the name of the man who was inspired to write it, and the reason why he was so inspired. If the home team wins and there are fireworks afterward, I wonder, would people thik the fireworks were celebratory for the winning team or a patriotic gesture that is now watered down to just being fanfare? Would they ever draw the connection between the song at the beginning and the fireworks at the end?
I compare those that waive a flag once or twice a year and consider themselves patriotic to those who claim to be religious and close to God but only make it to a worship service once or twice a year and maybe pray when they’re about to get in a car accident. Wake up! Get of your lazy BBQd bottoms! Patriotism isn’t BBQ or baseball or apple pie. If you’ve made it through the 4th of July without thinking of the sacrifices that went into forming this great nation, then I invite you to ponder. Being American doesn’t make you patriotic, patriotism makes you American.
I love coming out of the house on a fresh morning and putting up the flag, which is what I did yesterday, July 4, 2009. Flag flying is certainly a patriotic gesture; however, I wouldn’t say that in every home with a flag there lives a patriot and that includes on the 4th of July. I’ve seen flags on homes where the flag is up every day. Some times there is also a second flag, one around the corner from us has the US Marines. I’m pretty sure that he is truly patriotic.
Yesterday there were flags on many houses all over. Flags I’ve never seen on houses before, flags that weren’t there on Memorial Day in May or Veterans Day last November or two months prior on September 11th. In the back yards of some of those houses yesterday were BBQ grills with hot dogs and hamburgers. But I really don’t know if all of those gestures were patriotic or if they were only celebratory, having a good time because it is a holiday. I don’t even know if they were commemorative or reflective. The thing I’ve thought about is all of those flags and how they weren’t there on Memorial Day intermingled with the same smell of BBQ. I wonder if these are truly patriotic people. I wonder if they would consider themselves patriotic.
In a neighborhood not far from us there is a street with many flags, three of them have lighted flags and pictures of soldiers. Although I’m not sure, I hazard to guess that these three neighbors have sons serving our country. I’m pretty sure they are truly patriotic.
For an immigrant to become a citizen of the United States they must pass a written exam. Most naturally born Americans would not pass this exam. One question that immigrants study is: Name the three branches of government. My fear is that the All-American answer to this question asked of a stadium full of people about to watch America ’s All-American pass time would be "Huh?" From the more educated maybe a question, "What, the government has branches?" Perhaps two or three would get it right. Are you one of them?
Continuing on with the game, before it starts someone would inevitably get up and sing the National Anthem. The crowd would rise and some hands would go to the heart. BUT, I wonder how many in the crowd would wonder why the rest of the anthem isn’t ever sung at baseball games. I wonder if they would even know the name of the song, the name of the man who was inspired to write it, and the reason why he was so inspired. If the home team wins and there are fireworks afterward, I wonder, would people thik the fireworks were celebratory for the winning team or a patriotic gesture that is now watered down to just being fanfare? Would they ever draw the connection between the song at the beginning and the fireworks at the end?
I compare those that waive a flag once or twice a year and consider themselves patriotic to those who claim to be religious and close to God but only make it to a worship service once or twice a year and maybe pray when they’re about to get in a car accident. Wake up! Get of your lazy BBQd bottoms! Patriotism isn’t BBQ or baseball or apple pie. If you’ve made it through the 4th of July without thinking of the sacrifices that went into forming this great nation, then I invite you to ponder. Being American doesn’t make you patriotic, patriotism makes you American.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Ponder not much time to ponder
I haven't had much time to garden, to ponder while gardening or to blog about it. The nice thing is that this is the easy time of the year when all you have to do is water, pull a few weeds here and there, and EAT FRESH VEGGIES. Our squash is on!
Here is a picture from Sunday afternoon (June 14, 2009):
Here is a picture from Sunday afternoon (June 14, 2009):
Monday, June 8, 2009
Ponder Fresh Tomatoes
A gardening friend shared this tip with me. With tomato season around the corner, this is an excellent thing to keep in mind. Visit this link to learn how to keep tomatoes, either by storing stem down or taping the stem end air tight: Storing Tomatoes
The plan with all the tomatoes we're growing (8 tomato plants, 7 varieties) is for my wife to cook them into some of her sauces and freeze them. This way in the winter months all we'll have to do is boil the noodles and thaw the sauce and dinner is ready, made with summer fresh tomatoes. My plan is to pick the ripe tomatoes daily so that the passers by have less of a chance if we run into a sticky fingers problem (so far this hasn't been an issue but there aren't any shiny red tomatoes yet). Keeping the stems air tight will help preserve them until there are enough to make a large batch of sauce.
I planted some decorative gourds and the pumpkins on Saturday for our fall decorations and Halloween. My 4 year old had a blast. I broke open the 47 lb pumpkin from last year and he picked out the seeds while I dug and prepared mounds in the back yard. He then planted all the seeds. When I was done, he was not. He said I have more seeds and you need to dig right here. So I did.
I tasted the pumpkin raw and it was still sweet and delicious and smelled wonderful, just like the ones we ate in November. I put plastic wrap on it and put it in the fridge and gave some to our next door neighbor. I plan on cooking it tonight.
Here is a picture taken about an hour ago.
The plan with all the tomatoes we're growing (8 tomato plants, 7 varieties) is for my wife to cook them into some of her sauces and freeze them. This way in the winter months all we'll have to do is boil the noodles and thaw the sauce and dinner is ready, made with summer fresh tomatoes. My plan is to pick the ripe tomatoes daily so that the passers by have less of a chance if we run into a sticky fingers problem (so far this hasn't been an issue but there aren't any shiny red tomatoes yet). Keeping the stems air tight will help preserve them until there are enough to make a large batch of sauce.
I planted some decorative gourds and the pumpkins on Saturday for our fall decorations and Halloween. My 4 year old had a blast. I broke open the 47 lb pumpkin from last year and he picked out the seeds while I dug and prepared mounds in the back yard. He then planted all the seeds. When I was done, he was not. He said I have more seeds and you need to dig right here. So I did.
I tasted the pumpkin raw and it was still sweet and delicious and smelled wonderful, just like the ones we ate in November. I put plastic wrap on it and put it in the fridge and gave some to our next door neighbor. I plan on cooking it tonight.
Here is a picture taken about an hour ago.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
The Ponder Garden Today
Just a quick note and picture from today. The garden is doing good despite the water rations. I finally dared look at the water meter today and found (to the thirsty plant's glee) that we're not over our ration limit. Now, if this wind will just die down tonight they'll all get a good soak!
Doesn't that look so much better than grass!
Doesn't that look so much better than grass!
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Ponder the World at Four
Last night when it cooled down outside I turned on the porch light and as the heat of the day eased into night my four year old and I sat on the bench looking out at the garden. (This is the view from the bench.)
The neighbors were also out next door and they had a bag that in the darkening evening looked like a great big snail, one of his favorite things to find and play with in the garden. The conversation went something like this.
Me: I don’t like snails because they eat our food
Him: But they don’t go in our kitchen.
Me: No, our food that is outside growing on these plants and trees in our yard.
Him: And what about snails in other peoples yards?
Me: Well most other people grow grass and people don’t eat grass.
Him: Why?
Me: I don’t know.
To him, at four, it is completely normal to have a vegetable garden in the front yard. The next door neighbors with the grass he refers to as ‘the ones with a park in front of their house’. Interesting isn’t it. I still don’t know why people have to grow grass.
The neighbors were also out next door and they had a bag that in the darkening evening looked like a great big snail, one of his favorite things to find and play with in the garden. The conversation went something like this.
Me: I don’t like snails because they eat our food
Him: But they don’t go in our kitchen.
Me: No, our food that is outside growing on these plants and trees in our yard.
Him: And what about snails in other peoples yards?
Me: Well most other people grow grass and people don’t eat grass.
Him: Why?
Me: I don’t know.
To him, at four, it is completely normal to have a vegetable garden in the front yard. The next door neighbors with the grass he refers to as ‘the ones with a park in front of their house’. Interesting isn’t it. I still don’t know why people have to grow grass.
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