july 10 2008
25 years ago the Kilauea Vulcano in Hawaii produced tremendous amounts of lava.
Since then it's never been completely quiet, but the last week it's spitting los of lava again.
It's always interesting to see the interaction between earthquakes around the world and vulcanic eruptions.
It makes me so aware we're guests on a living planet.
Today I saw this little movie on TV, and I didn't want you to leave my blog without seeing it.
june 13 2008
It's called the fairytale lane now.
Infact it's a huge road leading through one of the main parts of town.
Caterpillars of the brown spotted moth made this lovely lane with magestic trees into a spooky road of hairy grey.
First they've eaten all the leaves.
Then, on their way down, hunting for more food, they've left their silky remnants for all to see.
They were among the first signs of the changing climate.
The natural balance of a fine ecosystem has been changed.
Their natural predators are not developed enough to eat the larvae, so there's an overpopulation of caterpillars crowding the area.
Experience has taught that the trees will be able to grow leaves again and shed off the grey weaves and webs.
In case you want to see this spectacular and rare sight, he's a link to the video at our local paper.
june 8 2008
I was hanging the laundry on the line when my eye caught something red... just from a little corner.
So I carefully moved the pink castle-roses aside, moved a buxus branch, and then saw two tiny strawberries, as red and rich as only little woodstrawberries can be.
It's june the eighth 2008, a date noted now, as these are the first strawberries of the season.
They surprised me, as the larger ones are still green.
And I didn't know they were growing, hiding under the rose and buxus.
They've been able to escape the birds who are forever looking for nice bits and pieces everywhere in the garden.
And they've escaped the caterpillers who are destroying the little appleharvest I hoped for.
It's almost a holy moment when I carefully remove them.
I don't want to destroy the other surprises that might grow somewhere under the bushes, away from my sight.
I'm sure today it will be discussed who will be eating these two little ones.
Sharing with 8 persons is a bit too much, so maybe I will get one and my autistic son, who is celebrating his birthday today and tuesday.
Will the one I'll get taste sweet?
I guess so.
june 6 2008
When we moved in here, more than 20 years ago, one of the plans was making compost for my own garden.
And I went for it.
The first years I had to trow everything out of the huge container each year, because we threw everything in it which we thought would rot away.
But not everything belongs in a compost container or compost heap.
No meat. I've learned that, and not much leftovers from citrusfruit.
During the years the compost improved so much, that often I would find the bottomlid somewhere on the gardenpath and a large amount of compost stolen.
Yep, people robbed my compost in the early morning or during the night.
Unbelievable!!!
Want to know my compost secret?
Start out with some loose large stones on the bottom. To enable air to get in.
On the stones broken twigs and branches.
Most containers have a lid in the front at the bottom.
Get the level of the twigs and branches up till there, and put the longer twigs and branches in such a way that you can pull them out.
That way you can stir the compost from beneath and allow the ready compost to drop down.
I have a pile of twigs and broken branches beside the compostcontainer.
They are great to keep the compost open and aired.
Compost should be made in layers.
When you throw in too many leaves at once they get one thick sticky stinking layer, covered in mold.
So use other material in between, and keep it loose.
The best compost contains 2 parts of carbon on 1 part of nitrogen.
Carbon comes from hay, dried leaves, broken eggshells, branches, sawdust from unpainted wood, and even brown paper bags and ground coffee.
Nitrogen is produced from green leaves, grass, manure, left over fruit and vegetables.
As long as you keep the compost airy and mixed you can put everything in that breaks down, uncluding cotton fabric, for instance.
Stir the compost once in a while.
To get the process working, you can add "compost-support" from your dardening centre, or just add an amount of your own garden soil.
A bucket of hot water and then close the lid to let the warmth spread.
Never ever let the lot run dry, because that stops the process.
We've found out that making your own compost is fun.
Some people think it smells, but it doesn't at all.
I always keep some of the compost of a former year when I restart the whole lot in spring.
A year full of gardening and kitchenmaterial goes in the container, and I use it as a pleasant additive to the garden.
No need to tell my garden is the greenest in the whole neighbourhood. LOL!
june 2 2008
Those who are interested in what's happening in space can plug in at NASA TV to get the direct view on the docking manouevres and the actual docking of the Discovery to the International Space Station.
You can find NASA TV ::here::.
At the right of the site click:
other viewing options
and then:
Windows Media (Best for Full Screen)
It gives you the best view possible.
At times you can see where above the world the Discovery and the ISS are.
You can spot them, in a clear sky, without any aid.
But when you have instruments to see them closer, go ahead, as long as you're not using in the direction of the sun.
Last week we saw the ISS pass above our city.
It's so interesting to realise that with internet and all the other means of sending images from far up there to our earth, we're able to feel like we're actually present in time.
I'm going to enjoy this all, and you?
may 31 2008
May has been one of the warmest may's ever.
The normal average temperature is 12,7 degrees celcius.
This year it was 15,7.
We started out with 10 sunny dags, sunnier than ever.
But even though the rest of the month the temperatures were above average, we often had grey and dark days.
Yesterday we needed the lights on untill after noon!
It has rained a lot. Especially the last days.
The rains came from the Sahara, so everything now is covered in a fine layer of yellowish dust.
I thought it was pollen yesterday. But it's saharasand. Ugh.
In many parts of europe people have te deal with heavy weather. Rains and flooding.
It's awful.
Strangely enough we had some freezing night in the middle of the month, but I expect they're over now and I can put all the plants outside.
With such a nice month it's always a question here whether we've used all the nice weather which was waiting for us this year, whether all summer will be nice, or whether we'll have to deal with a dull summer with lots of drizzle.
We just have to wait.
Update:
It's just past midnight.
Couldn't be online because of the terrible weather.
It's still raining enormously and the lightning hasn't stopped.
There are many weather alarms here in europe, and here too.
I don't do it often, but during the bad weather this evening I got the girls downstairs. Just in case.
So may ends in a very powerful way.
may 10 2008
Another far too hot day here.
Spring is skipped, it's full summer.
Even with the window open during the night I kept turning and turning. What a night temperature!!!
I was glad to walk into the garden early in the morning.
It's like I can see everything grow by the minute.
The strawberries are flowering already, the blossoms have disappeared from the appletrees,
the tulips are gone.
Unbelievable!!
I was so caught up with all the saturday chores that i didn't notice my breathing was going worse.
Well, it can only go so much worse untill it's hard work to get some oxygen in.
So I got an asthma attack...
Haven't had one as bad for a couple of years.
Luckily I had my meds downstairs, so I took the maximum once, and a bit more....
In hospitals they go even higher with the dosage, and I had no intention to be at the hospital during mother's day. (Although the food is good then, LOL!)
After some time I could breathe better.. Phew!!!
april 15 2008
The Nevado del Huila in Colombia, about 150 miles southwest of Bogota, has erupted a short while ago.
It's spitting hot ashes.
About 13,000 to 15,000 people have been evacuated at the moment.
There are no data available yet.
No reports about injuries are issued.
The Nevado del Huila is the highest active vulcano in Columbia. It's a Stratovolcano as high as 5364 m that's 17,598 feet.
Right now it has 6 volcanic cones.
In 2007 damaging mudflows occured.
The last month more seismic activity was observed and occasional small ash plumes and a smell of sulphur.
april 10 2008
A 7.5 magnitude earthquake rocked the Loyalty Islands region of the South Pacific on Wednesday.
The Loyalty Islands is the name for an archipelago comprising the islands of Lifou, Mare, Ouvea and Tiga -- are part of the French territory of New Caledonia, lying about 100 kilometers east of the mainland of Australia.
The quake, centred 85 kilometres southwest of Vanuatu and 175 kilometres north-east of the Loyalty Islands in the French territory of New Caledonia, struck at 12.46GMT and 88 kilometres deep
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre issued no tsunami warning, but stated that earthquakes of such size "sometimes generate local tsunamis that can be destructive along coasts" within a hundred kilometres of the epicentre.
There were no immediate reports of damage.
Before the 7.5 magnitude earthquake hit, there were two quakes of a magnitude of 6.4 and 6.3 on the scale of Richter.
After the large earthquake 6 quakes were reported between 5.0 and 6.0, all, except the last two on exactly the same depth (35 km) and at about the same place.
The last two quakes were at a depth of 38,4 and 26.4.
march 13 2008
The storm from yesterday was stronger than that of the day before.
It has changed the outline of the lake nearby.
I don't think the designer has intended that.
We imagine him to be a person without phantasy.
Or maybe it's a team.
Some guys who want to transform the world into their image of how the world should be.
Clean, unprotected, cheap, noiseless... sterile!
They pulled out trees and left only three of them.
They didn't bother to get one of the chopped ones away.
Like a grafestone it stands in the wind, telling everybody that some stupid designer in a far away town just doesn't care.
There's no place for birds to nest,
for beetles to hide,
or for the wind to find resistance.
All the shrubs are gone.
And there's not one spring flower looking for the sun.
Yesterday the sand was blown around, scratching my face, like I was in a sandstorm in the dessert.
No roots to keep it all together.
It's how I feel there when I walk beside the lake.. without roots.
All the little late evening noises are gone,
the shadows,
and the protecting branches that stretched out over the almost secret path.
Now the wind and the waves have eaten away part of the trembles in the lining.
It's smooth now, like the outside of the desk it was designed on.
One can say nature has designed the smoothness yesterday.
But i't feels like grasping a daydream to overcome the troubles of the day.
So I took some fallen willow branches
and I can only hope they'll root,
here, in the warmth of my house.
march 12 2008
We've got our first stormdamage in ages.
A huge old tree just fell down.
He found a restingplace om a few bycicles and the rosebow.
We've been so lucky there was no additional damage.
I was glad one of my sons was home, so we were two against his dad, to solve the problem.
No way we were going to try to move the enormous tree to the gardenpath.
Not only it didn't fit, but it would also be more difficult to saw it in pieces.
So we cut off the branches, and then cut it in pieces. First the top, then lower and lower.
Let's hope the other old tree deals with the storm just as gracefully.
march 10 1008
In the afternoon the storm suddenly started.
It was one huge sweeping wind that bowed the trees, and since then it's howling around the house.
It's not as bad as in England though.
I can't reach my aunt and uncle, so I'm a bit worried.
But maybe they went to their son to stay there untill the worst is over, or maybe they have been evacuated.
So I left a message, asking them to call me as soon as possible, because I want to know if everything is OK.
march 10 2008
Stormwarnings are issued for the UK, France and The Netherlands.
Severe flood warnings have been issued for the Devon and Cornwall coast and 44 other warnings in locations including southern England, and the Severn and Mersey estuaries.
This might be the worst storm of this winter.
England and Wales should reckon with winds of up to 80mph (130km/h).
Blizzards and heavy snow are expected for Scotland.
Ferries have been delayed or cancelled, including those between Dover and Callais.
Steve Winston, Cornwall's emergency planning officer, said a combination of factors, including high spring tides and a very low pressure system, could lead to a "severe" event.
For those who want to see the storm "curling", click here and scroll down a but to see the satelite movie.
march 9 2008
The Ariane 5 rocket has been launched succesfully.
Again and again it's an amazing sight.
march 8 2008
While large areas in the world are covered in snow, we have to do it with rain.
But not rain alone.
Heavy winds will torture the streets the next days, and their forces are not yet known.
Sometimes I long for the good old days, when even the weather was rather dependable.
In february we had storms, in march lots of drizzle and then spring entered the country slowly and friendly.
Now the first springflowers already have lost their flowers, and the trees and shrubs start to blossom.
The swallows were flying the last three days in huge clouds. Even the blackbirds were afraid of their temper and their loud squeeks while they were looking for a place to sleep.
I stood outside.
Clapping my hands when the hundreds of black flying creatures wanted to push down and sit in the trees behind our garden.
We've given them a place to sleep a few years ago, and everything was a mess.
I don't want that again. No way!
I think the next evenings will be quiet when the winds rage around the house and the birds can't keep their cloudformation.
We'll see.
march 5 2008
I try to have a short walk each evening.
Before leaving the house I always have a look at spaceweather.
There's always something special on that site, and often it's directing my attention to something special in the sky.
More and more skywatchers have discovered the site the past years, and when beautiful photos are made they send them in, so we all can see them.
Today it's really worth to have a look there.
Someone made an amazing photo, using his sunglasses to prevent overexposure.
Wonderful!!!
