Hello, everyone, on this first Sunday and first day of July.  The weather certainly feels like July.  The weather people predict 90s for today and the rest of the week with strong possibility of thunderstorms each day.  I collected another handful of dragon's tongue beans which are now in the freezer.  I should gcut some more mint and lemon balm but I am thinking about being lazy today.  We did our shopping yesterday and ate breakfast out.  We got back before the high heat but it was still uncomfortable.  The patio temperature topped out at around 92.  We expect the same today.

Glad you are keeping cool, Kay.  On the voting machines--I have a nasty, suspicious mind.  Considering the easy with which motivated parties can hack the system I want a paper back-up and checks along the way. But then I think about the Repthuglican efforts to  purge the voting roles to combat nonexistent voter fraud and I suspect the move to paperless, computerized voting systems is simply part of their effort to steal elections--just in case they can't count of the Supreme Court to give them the results they want. Sorry if I sound cynical but I have had ten years of their shenanigans to become so.  I agree with you on the student loan mess.  I will die before I can pay anything on mine.  When I had a 'good' job it wasn't good enough to allow me to pay the full interest much less anything on the principle.  A couple of writers have described the system we now have for funding education as 'debt slavery.'  I agree with them.

I saw the reports earlier last weed that announced Charles Rangel's victory in his primary campaign.  Well, this piece from Politico (found by way of Political Wire) indicates that a definite question mark hangs over that 'victory.'  This weird and way-too-long election season is getting weirder by the day.  I suspect the results of the elections this year will be neither definitive nor satisfying.

While I can agree that this year has been disastrous for many farmers, I amazed at Scott Walker's hypocrisy.  He railed at those greedy public workers as he destroyed their bargaining power and their pensions but now requests a Federal disaster declaration for Wisconsin's fruit farmers.  That so they will qualify for Federal assistance programs.  I guess some 'animals' really are more equal than others.  It is interesting that none of the news sources are reporting the hypocrisy along with the request.

Maha has another interesting entry in the "Repthuglican passion to cut the Federal budget until their state needs Federal help" file.  This time from Michelle Malkin and several Repthuglicans Representatives from Colorado.

This intriguing item came from Yves Smith at Naked Capitalist.  Many years ago I remember that the original founders of Ben & Jerry's ice cream restricted their own pay to about 20 times the pay of their lowest paid employee.  I also remember reading (some 30 years ago or so) that executives in Japan traditionally were paid the same 20 times their lowest workers salary.  I think that is fair.  Especially in today's world, where most CEOs aren't really entrepreneurs in the original sense of the word.  They are caretakers and managers.

I was somewhat amused with the reporting of the EU meeting this past week.  Everyone was ecstatic that 'Merkel blinked' and rescue funds from whichever three- or four-letter agency created over the last few years will funnel money directly to Spanish and Italian banks to shore up their balance sheets.  The Dow soared by some 280 points (give or take) on the news.  Me?  I was skeptical.  We have the spectacle of deeply indebted countries are going to more deeply in debt by accepting loans while many of those deeply indebted countries are on the hook for funds their governments are going to have to hand over to the which ever agency will handle the funds.  (There are so many I really can't keep track as they come and go.)  Charles Hugh Smith is also skeptical.  I wonder how long the euphoria will last before reality rears its ugly head and we realize how well and thoroughly f#%^ed we are.

Good Saturday to everyone.  Yesterday was something.  We didn't get to 90 because the rains came in. I described the afternoon thunderstorm on the blog.  Thanks for the good thoughts, Annie's Granny.  The garden came through very well.  Didn't lose any plants and no serious damage to any.  But I had an unsettled night as new storms rolled through.  For all that we only got, maybe, half an inch.  Welcome, yes; but not enough to dent our dry conditions.  The weather people predict the same for today.  Glad to see you back, Kay.  Hope you are keeping cool while working for the Obama campaign.  We change up our activities to avoid the heat as much as possible.  The only one really put out by the heat is Kuma because we keep him in.  He simply doesn't understand that it is for his own good.

Did everyone notice how the mainstream media have ballyhooed the legislation passed last week to extend the low interest rates on student loans and a 2-year highway program?  Here is an article which details what they didn't emphasize--the other burdens students will have to balance out the low interest rates.  No more grace period so new graduates (most without jobs) must start repaying immediately after graduation.  Graduate students have to pay the interest while still in school.  Fewer Pell grants for shorter time and students will find it more difficult to qualify at all.  What Government giveth with one hand it taketh away with the other.  The one thing that isn't discussed at all is the wisdom (or lack thereof) of incurring debt for education which may or (more likely) may not lead to a prosperous and secure future.  I don't think encouraging debt as an 'investment' as we have for the last forty or fifty years is a rational policy and it is even less rational in an era of insecurity and declining prosperity.

If our faux news media failed to fully inform us on the student loan bill, they have been very derelict on the issue of the Affordable Care Act.  Take a look at this from Crooks & Liars.  The only feature of the ACA that isn't popular with the poll respondents was the individual mandate.  But most didn't realize that those features were included.  And what was the only part of the act that was worried over constantly by the media and the conservative gasbags interviewed by our empty talking heads?  You guessed it--the mandate.  I think we are beginning to realize the truth of two only sayings: a democracy functions well only when there is an educated electorate and only when that electorate is well informed.  Our system of miss-education is destroying the first and our entertainment-masquerading-as-news media is doing a real job on the other.

And now for another 'Oh shit moment' from the nice folks at Grist.  Anyone, like us, who wants to know the source of their food is basically told to shut up because we can't be allowed to infringe on some company's right to sell us crap.

I have seen various stories about voting machines over the last several election cycles.  These machines are generally unreliable and are easily hacked/manipulated.  Now the Irish government is abandoning these same machines in a laudable fit of reasonableness.

Hello on another soon-to-be hot Friday.  The temperature is not supposed to get as hot and humid as yesterday.  We did get to 100.  First time, they say, since 2005.  They say we may get some pop-up thunderstorms--emphasis on 'may.'  We did have thunder and lightning last night but from what I saw not much rain.  A little to the north and west of us they had small hail.  I have already been busy this morning.  Most of the plants on the fence had good levels of moisture but the tomato buckets and the large containers needed water.  All of my plants have come through this hot weather really well--even the corn.  I harvested patchouli, stevia, savory, peppermint, oregano, and Mexican tarragon and all is drying now in my dehydrator.  We got our first tomatoes yesterday--the Cherokee purple.  Beautiful and tasty.  We won't have any more for a while.

Oh, well.  I don't know whether to be happy or sad.  What I am is somewhat--uneasy.  We got sudden cloud cover that has dropped the temperatures from 85 an hour ago to 79 now.  The wind is kicking up to the point where I took the hummingbird feeder down and the cover off the greenhouse.  The trees are reeling in a drunken dance.  Saw the strangest cloud formations.  Thunder, lightning and rain--driving rain, sidewise rain--mixed with small hail. The sound of the hail on the glass--something like a rock hitting with force.  All I can do now is hope the plants aren't damaged badly.  The corn is waving in the wind.  Hope it stays upright.  Why am I uneasy?  The speed of the change.  I was used to drastic temperature and condition changes when I lived in Colorado but that is rare here in northwest Indiana.  I don't think I will have to water anything tomorrow.

Good very hot Thursday, Everyone.  The overnight temperature here on our patio dipped only to 70.  The time: now is 6:40am and the temperature has risen to 75.  We expect something near or over 100.  The news has been clamoring warning about the heat for several days.  We have already closed up and thoroughly pissed off Kuma who wants to be outside.  I have finished the watering.  This spring I added a good bit of vermiculite to my soil and that is paying off in water savings.  I only watered two of the plants on the fence, one tomato, and four of the large containers.  Last year I had to water every planter every day.  I have some plans for next season which should reduce the watering even more.  The corn so far is the major water hog but it is looking very good compared so some pictured in the news reports.  I should harvest some of the herbs but I think I will leave that for tomorrow morning.

I didn't really see much on the internet to comment on.  Yeah, the Supreme Court did  uphold the Affordable Care Act, including the individual mandate.  But that hasn't settled the matter.  Dear Mittens is promising to cancel  it on his first day in office which, I think, makes a damned good reason to make sure he doesn't get that first day in office.  The fires in Colorado continue to eat up everything in their paths and the high winds and higher temperatures only push them along.  That is more heartbreaking than other fires in other places because I lived nearby and loved the mountain forests.  JP Morgan's loss on their "London Whale's" trade may hit $9billion.  It must be nice to play the fool with someone else's money.  On that note I think I will close for today.

Good Wednesday to everyone.  It is still cool though we should have low 90s today.  We will see how long before we have to close up and put on the air.  We prefer not to use it if possible.  I just finished watering the plants but I have changed my pattern a bit.  I have a moisture probe and I decided to use it on everything.  Usually I just use it on the plants on the fence.  The major problem I have with containers is that the surface may be dry and it may even be dry for an inch below the surface but when you get down to where the roots are they may be very wet.  I only had to water 6 of the large pots/containers and two of the pots on the fence.  I have a couple of other chores outside but right now it is the easy part of the season.  A lot of flowers but not much to harvest.

I noticed an obituary this morning: Nora Ephron has died at age 71.  I remember the titles of many of her movies but I never saw any of them.  I remember her essays more.

The fire season out west is already one of the most disastrous on record.  Out our way it is very dry.  We got a good look as we drove around on a full day of errands yesterday.  The grass along the road sides and medians is brown with only small streaks of green.  The corn, in those fields that aren't being built on, is looking better than the corn featured in some of the news stories from Illinois.  The news has carried warnings in various areas canceling 4th of July fireworks shows, cautioning against (or banning outright) private fireworks.  The news last night said Chicago might be moved into a drought category officially as early as tomorrow.  We, here in northern Indiana, are classified as extremely dry and not far north of moderate drought.

Morford has a very good take on the whole notion of 'having-it-all.'  That seems to be a peculiarly American disease that is spreading worldwide.  It is especially widespread among the young, whose ambition and appetites have not yet encountered serious limits, and older adults who are emotionally unable to make serious choices.  As Morford says, let's define our terms starting with 'all.'

Good Tuesday, Everyone.  We have another cool day today on tap before the heat comes back tomorrow through next week.  I don't have to water anything today according to the moisture meter so I will leave that for tomorrow morning.  I didn't see anything worth commenting on yesterday.  That has been a more frequent occurrence because the same old issues are roiling the political/economic scene and the same old idiots argue over the same old 'solutions'  like a pair of starving dogs over a meatless bone.  Lets see what I find today.

Well, this looks interesting.  This is the one fundamental philosophical argument in the health care debate and the author is absolutely right--no one wants to talk about it.  Certain things in life should be a matter of right and health care is one of them.  I would argue that access to quality education is another but that is a discussion for a different time.  Chait is absolutely correct--the Repthuglicans are desperate to hide their moral arguments and the consequences of the application of their so-called principles.  That is why I will not vote for any Repthuglican candidate for statewide or national office.

If the results of this poll are accurate Americans may finally be taking a more realistic view of exactly what the President can do to cure the economic problems the country faces.  We have always had a rather cynical view of campaign promises.  The ability of any candidate to fulfill his/her promises is limited.  And, given the role now of personal and corporate wealth, most of the candidates are going to be far more responsive to the demands of the privileged than they are to the demands of the 'Average' American.

I wondered when/if NATO would find an reason to get more involved in Syria.  This just might do it.  I notice that the broadcast mainstream media has largely ignored the incident and the print media has said very little.

Good Sunday to all of you out there.  They say we might get some scattered, fast-moving showers today but not enough rain to do anything for us.  The grass around the town shows larger portions of brown.  I just finished watering everything.  I just don't trust that Mother Nature will provide.  And I didn't have to water anything yesterday.  I should harvest and dry some more basil and savory.  The first Cherokee Purple tomatoes are, maybe, a week away from ripe.  I saw some new blossoms on the lemon squash--hope some nice squashes follow.

Glad you stopped by, Annie's Granny.  I do try to make the most of the space I have and, since it is all cement, I have to use containers.  One of the relatives was talking about doing containers a little while ago and was wondering how limited container gardening was with respect to the kinds of plants you can use.  I told her that you can plant anything so long as you have a container big enough for it.  My only rules: the plant has to be useful and interesting.  Last year I grew a couple of Vietnamese Multicolor Peppers.  They were absolutely beautiful and the peppers, which progressed through five color changes while maturing, were like sparkling little jewels.  But the peppers were smaller than I thought they would be and hotter that we liked--so I didn't plant them again.  A couple of years ago I tried the Table Queen acorn squash and a small melon (Tigger).  The squash was much too difficult to control and yielded too little.  But I haven't given up on squash--this year I have the Butterbush squash (shown yesterday) and lemon squash.  The little melon this year is the Vine Peach because we didn't like the flavor of the Tigger.  Sometimes my enthusiasm gets the better of me and I badly overcrowded the plants.  I did that last year with my tomatoes and several plants failed to produce.  I am still experimenting on where to put what plants.