13 Ingenious Solutions to Survive Floods

13 Ingenious Solutions to Survive Floods

Wire surfing for life saving.

Bill Musselman lives in Kentucky close to the Ohio River. When it recently flooded, he certainly wasn't going to let the river take away his prized 1992 Porsche American Roadster. So he and a friend lashed together three bladders designed to carry 7,500 pounds.

A flood can be a great opportunity for a hair wash!

Don't let the rain get in the way of your happy hour meeting with friends.

Find new hobbies, such as flood boarding.

Or flood skiing (just attach a rope to the back of a car and take your board out for a ski).

You don't have to stop eating either. Priorities come first.

Always look for the funny side of bad things.

Don't overstress yourself with second hand risks such as electricity hazards.

If you don't want to get wet, don't forget your umbrella.

Pay attention to important news.

Don't be afraid of asking for a lift.

Find alternative ways of transportation.

Source:Special

Lieberman says hold off on new nuclear plants for now

A Senate proponent of nuclear energy called Sunday for a temporary halt in building new nuclear power plants in the United States until the situation in Japan can be examined.

Sen. Joe Lieberman, an independent from Connecticut who sits with the Democratic caucus, told the CBS program "Face the Nation" that the United States should "put the brakes on right now until we understand the ramifications of what's happening in Japan."

While noting he continued to support the development of nuclear power, Lieberman said more details were needed on the possible partial meltdown of at least one Japanese reactor after Friday's huge earthquake and tsunami.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, another nuclear energy proponent, deferred from offering a final opinion in an appearance on "Fox News Sunday," but indicated no change in his thinking.

"I don't think right after a major environmental catastrophe is a very good time to be making American domestic policy," McConnell said. Pressed again, he added: "We ought not to make American and domestic policy based upon an event that happened in Japan

Famous Places in the reflection of bubbles

 

Beautiful view of famous places in the eye of reflection.

Rare, Useful and Urban - Marie's Herbs at Melbourne's Farmers Markets

Meeting Marie and her Aladdin's Cave of Useful edibles was what really got me hopping at the North Melbourne Farmers Market.

Cecilia and Marie the Horiculturist exchange a meaningful herbal gaze

I bought some Alehoof, which she told me was used to bitter beer before they discovered Hops, and will twine prettily for meters over my blue-flowering courtyard rockery. Till I find an accomplice to brew up something enticing when its ready

Alehoof picture from Cornucopia Seeds another source of rare and thrilling plants.

The Waragul greens are now in, one of very few Australian Natives that are easy to eat (I bet the Megafauna was great though).

Greek Basil, which she tells me is more densely clumping than sweet basil, so good for the aestetic and sharing nature of a tight balcony space, so that was the third of my '4 for $10' deal.

The Salad Burnet with its pretty leaves is the new star of my garden. Won't it look great on a background of tomato bruschetta, or Dramatic on a bed of black wild rice, maybe with red goji berries....


You can find Marie at Weekend Farmer's markets all over the place: Yarraville, Botanic Gardens, Bundoora, Mulgrave, Templestowe, and of course North Melbourne.

Contact Marie on :

economedes@optusnet.com.au

Rachelle buying supplies for her Balcony garden. It seems she lives around the corner from me, and I bet whatever she is growning is gorgeous, so I've been looking up, looking forward to good things.

Megapolis radishes - Tokyo city farm

Here I am, trying to spot my house in Tokyo from up rather high. If I do A Google Earth zoom to my home with the Ota family, I might see this:


Oops too far. That's the garden of the old lady around the corner, still farming the family plot, generations on.

The gate carefully clipped Dr. Zeuss pine says 'direct selling place Entrance'

The farm is impeccable, the buildings from before the war, and the technology low and beautiful.

I popped in today, and the nice old lady tells me I can have beets or cabbage. Next week leeks and Persimmons. She chooses the six most plump, and I give her 2oo yen ($2)


About 20 minutes later, they are home, and a couple are sliced thinly and seasoned with salt, pepper and vinegar.
I can't stop eating them. I'm embarrassed by the amount of pleasure their yielding sweet flesh is giving me. Its like eating Snow White.
Their green tops have been sauted with mirin, soy, and strips of Tofu. Im trying to think of a better use of sixty cents, but I'm struggling.

If beets are anything like radishes, they would probably grow in a balcony in less than two months. I can't wait another year to eat this again. So if you are in melbourne, and want to make ceci very happy, put some beet seeds in for me, and we will do a nice trade when I get back in late spring.

persimmon balcony garden breakfasts

Ingrediants: organic oatmeal, crystal salt, pure cream, one syrupy persimmon. That's all.

Though its the crunchy, sweet persimmons I love best, last week's hoshigaki and this morning's oatmeal have changed my mind about planting an the astringent one - its utterly wonderful, and I will order one tomorrow.


When left long enough to be syrupy and sweet, the astringency disappears, and if you are lucky, so does the stringiness.

Department store persimmons - 10 of these, or buy a nice big tree.

Now I'm remembering, my first ever edible 'balcony' garden was a sweet persimmon tree. It came to the sunny second-floor north-facing window of the old wooden apartment I shared with Shu Inagaki, my first few years in Japan. We would eat together on the tatami, at the window, and I would just reach out to pluck my wonderful desert after each meal, eating without even peeling.
As the years go by, more and more objects and events become enchanted with echos of good times. So don't worry about getting old, just make sure you find many things to savor along the way. Life's pleasures intensify with each year's overlays of memories, a consoling thought.

pink, purple and blue edible garden, and a front door to match

I chose the edibles for the dappled courtyard garden floor, to coordinate with the front door repainting:
There is Beetroot, Ruby lettuce, red lettuce, and some flowers of coordinating hues.

I could have been welcoming people with a manicured door for years, but put up with an uninspiring and rather ragged one. For no good reason (saving a few dollars is not a good reason , when you live in an economy like ours). If I could persuade the neighbors into getting a 'paint bank' going, we could all repaint our doors every year, as outlandish as we liked, and trade the leftovers. Its my guess there is a greater volume of paint lurking in the Garages of Australia, than all the hardware stores put together.
We did the pink rim first, then my German Housemate had a few manly words with me. I tried deepening it to wine, but it came out that lilac color Ive used in the panels. Even though I'm an illustrator, its impossible to predict the outcome from looking at chips in the paint store. You just have to take a risk, keep you mistakes small to start with, re-paint and re-pay for them - they will happen. Creating something worth it always takes a few drafts. Looking at my door fills me with hope, and gratitude to Myriam my WWOOFer voluteer assistant, and (lucky me) wallpainting restoration expert.

Here is Myriam. Yes, she really is doing
heavy duty construction work using nail polish.

Inconveniently, I've a parallel desire to plant an edible Japanese Garden in this front courtyard once the cool weather hits. What then for the gorgeous, garish colors?
If any locals want some discounted paint leftovers, let me know. If anyone is painting in a green-tea/rice cracker color combination later in the year, and has leftovers, let me know that too.

Container Peach trees for balcony gardens

My sister Katie and I went to Plantmark, the wholesale plant heaven, to choose the ingredients for the edible balcony garden she is creating.
When she saw these densely-blossomed peach trees, she said we really should get them.
I said we really shouldn't.
I said those traditional fruit trees like peaches and apples are prone to too many diseases, too much trouble, just stick with figs and persimmons. Trusty and delicious.

Katie DeAraujo with little
strawberries, passionfruit, peach & lime, herbs & salad, and more.
And a very hungry sister taking the photo, wondering about lunch...

But I took another look at how beautiful they are, remembered how wonderfully, presumptiously wrong I have often been about things I've not tried, and dashed back for them at the last minute.

Enlightened by this site on container peach tree care, I'm starting to think peach trees may be HAPPIER grown in balconies: They will be under close surveilance, so can be tended swiftly and intimately when predators and ailments strike. The fruits and blossoms are safe from possums. You can control their water, so it recreates their conditions in their native China: A deluge once a week, with water sitting in a tray, then let them dry out a bit till next time. Liquid Fertilizer every 10 days, so you could make a rhythm of it and feed them after each Alfresco Sunday Brunch.

I've got some neem oil to organically treat the leaf curl fungi that was (predictably) having a go at some baby leaves. We will just take it on as a challenge. But there is one problem: how are the bees going to make their way up to the 7th story and make sure the pretty miss gets pollinated, so we can enjoy her peaches?

And peach care advice gratefully welcomed.

The bike repair joint at CERES , with its celestial protection construction.

We popped in to the wholefood cafe, by the Merri Creek, for a delicious late lunch, and enjoyed strolling though the perpetual CERES creativity. Plenty of healthy blossoms here

Living Walls

I completed a project of a living room with a PLANT theme in my last class this summer. Through this I discovered the concept of "living walls." They are walls with plants growing directly out of them; they can be planted with different plants to make many different beautiful designs.

Manhattan's First living wall!

The facade of Pure Yoga studio on 86th street.

A close up of a section.

Since I live in nyc I found one on the glorious upper east side on 86th street on the facade of a new yoga studio. I love the concept; they look so fresh and lush. And lets face it, New York needs more plants and trees. Go green!

You can even design them yourself through this website:

http://www.motherplants.net/index.htm

Here are more...

This one has 4 sides! Different color for each side.

Under Construction (source: http://www.eltlivingwalls.com/)

In Singapore. http://www.eltlivingwalls.com/

A feature on them from Elle Decor (I think)

Wall Mounted plants on the smaller scale

http://www.flowerbox.ca/boutique.asp

Alicia B.