tame the vicious beast

We have an unusual custom in our community that involves collecting whatever trash we can find within or around our homes and placing it in the street. Whoever builds the largest pile wins! Then as an extra measure some place an American flag nearby to make draw even more attention to this monument of suburbia. We take pride in planting trees, shrubbery, collecting old chairs and appliances if for no other reason than to cut and tear them apart and add to our pile.

There are two types of qualifying material, the man made material such as which we purchase at RC Willy and Costco and the natural type otherwise known as Greenery.

Where some have a tradition of planting an evergreen to decorate for Christmas, we Sandyites plant aspens trees so that we can have a constant supply of greenery with which to decorate our streets. To the left you can see a evidence of a former Quaking Aspen, the novice may think it dead, but oh, that is not the case, as hundreds of baby aspens are quaking under the soil to supply us with greenery for years and years to come.

There are other sources of green! The dreaded Tam is another source. To the right is a photo of an attempt to tame the vicious beast, which is only temporary as the Tam will return. Only the serious pile masters dare plant the tam and the aspen.

Only the serious pile masters dare plant the tam and the aspen. Nay you say? Well below is evidence of just what can happen to the novice.

Here is all that that remains of the home of the unknowing. Only a mattress is left of this homeowner. Remember they will devour you and your home!

Cows and chickens and fun, oh my!

This week our office had a company picnic at the Wheeler Farm. There are picnic tables throughout this 75 acre farm, which is located in the middle of Salt Lake county. We found a place under a shade tree and enjoyed an early summer day for couple of hours before taking a 5 minute drive back to the office. What fun!

All the barnyard animals are about, including cows, chickens, horses, pigs and geese plus the stuff they leave behind. Every day at 5 pm is milking time, and throughout the day one can watch the blacksmith, have a tour of the turn of the century farm house or ride the hay wagon around the property. In the winter there is even ice cutting on the ice pond, in the summer a liquid mountain stream runs right through the farm property.

When our family was young, we spent a lot of time at Wheeler, whether it was cow milking or getting scared to death in the Halloween Haunted Woods! For a number of children this might be the only place to be able to see where milk really comes from, it's not the neighborhood Albertsons!

Here is short history of the the farm. "It was founded in June 17, 1886, when Sariah Hankinson Pixton married Henry Joseph Wheeler and together they made their home on this seventy-five acre farm. Helping Henry run the prosperous dairy enterprise, Sariah and the six Wheeler children each assumed a portion of the chores around the farm. Everyday there were cows to milk, eggs to gather, and wood to shop. Churning butter, making soap, trimming wicks, and cutting ice were just a few of the many necessary tasks.

The Farm is a restoration of the turn-of-the-century dairy farm of Henry J. Wheeler. Maintaining the farm presents to the public the history of Utah family agriculture. It is a representation of the rural lifestyle in Salt Lake County from 1890-1920 and presents the best farming methods of the Progressive Era. Historic demonstrations and exhibits are just a few of the things that will take you back in time. Here you may discover the old time farm lifestyle once common for most families in Utah but which is now largely past and gone."

http://www.wheelerfarm.com/index.html

What will we do?

This week begins a week that is sure to be stunning season conclusions to 24 and LOST. Just as we lament their departure from the airwaves, there is hope, Monk begins July 7th. So don't make alternate plans for that 120 minutes of what could be otherwise production time, our favorite detective is back.

Apparently Monk suffers from 38 phobias but there are many more he is sure to discover, here are a list of those that begin with "P", for more see:

Monk-ish phobias

• Pagophobia: Fear of ice or frost.
• Panthophobia: Fear of suffering and disease.
• Panophobia or Pantophobia: Fear of everything.
• Papaphobia: Fear of the Pope.
• Papyrophobia: Fear of paper.
• Paralipophobia: Fear of neglecting duty or responsibility.
• Paraphobia: Fear of sexual perversion.
• Parasitophobia: Fear of parasites.
• Paraskavedekatriaphobia: Fear of Friday the 13th.
• Parthenophobia: Fear of virgins or young girls.
• Pathophobia: Fear of disease.
• Patroiophobia: Fear of heredity.
• Philemaphobia or Philematophobia: Fear of kissing.
• Philophobia: Fear of falling in love or being in love.
• Philosophobia: Fear of philosophy.
• Phobophobia: Fear of phobias.
• Photoaugliaphobia: Fear of glaring lights.
• Photophobia: Fear of light.
• Phonophobia: Fear of noises or voices or one's own voice; of telephones.
• Phronemophobia: Fear of thinking.
• Pocrescophobia: Fear of gaining weight. (Obesophobia)
• Pogonophobia: Fear of beards.
• Poliosophobia: Fear of contracting poliomyelitis.
• Politicophobia: Fear or abnormal dislike of politicians.
• Polyphobia: Fear of many things.
• Poinephobia: Fear of punishment.
• Ponophobia: Fear of overworking or of pain.
• Porphyrophobia: Fear of the color purple.
• Potamophobia: Fear of rivers or running water.
• Potophobia: Fear of alcohol.
• Pteronophobia: Fear of being tickled by feathers.
• Pupaphobia : fear of puppets.
• Pyrexiophobia: Fear of Fever.
• Pyrophobia: Fear of fire.

Sabres are on a quest for the cup!

The Buffalo Sabres have steamrollered the Ottawa Senators four games to one in the NHL Conference Semi finals and are on to meet Carolina in the next round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Go Sabres! Shoot and Scooooorrrre!

Fried Dandelion Blossoms

Yard work again, it seems that there are a few leaks in the irrigation valves, missing sprinkler heads and the ever present dandelions. A friend mentioned that he always applies a pre emergent before the 'lions" attack. I guess it's a little late for that. Where was that advice a month ago!

The fore mentioned dandelion is otherwise known as Taraxacum. It's common name is derived from the French dent-de-lion, or "lion's tooth" The English folk term is "pissabeds": due to the plants diuretic properties!

Each spring my family would go gather a "mess a greens" from the yard before the blossoms spouted and cook them up like spinach. I can't say if I ever tried them, however if you do I would recommend you stay close to the loo! If that doesn’t concern you here is a link to some choice recipes,

http://www.mountain-breeze.com/kitchen/dandelions/

Yum, Fried Dandelion Blossoms sounds pretty good!

Crazy

I have no idea where this is located, but it must be crazy!

Earl

Today I note the passing of Earl Woods, father of golfer Tiger. It seems that the talent and fame of his son has overshadowed the realtionship between the two. A bond born of the love of the father for his son and the respect of the son for the father....

"I make it very, very clear that my purpose in raising Tiger was not to raise a golfer. I wanted to raise a good person," Woods told Golf Digest magazine about his book, Training a Tiger: A Father's Guide to Raising a Winner in Both Golf and Life.

Summer, yea!

This past week has seen the transition of life in the Rocky Mountains from the snow and rain of winter to the sun and heat of the summer months. Retired for 6 months are snowblowers and shovels for the joys of hoes, rakes and grass cutting. The skiers trade the skis and poles and gather their collection of irons, drivers and sun block and head to the green and fairways. That describes my activity for the last week, what fun to discover those muscles reserved for this time and to greet and meet those of common interests.