The ghost dog in the kitchen

Excuse the mess, I'm working!

Things are progressing in the kitchen, and before it gets too built up, I've decided to install the mosaic above the counter in the kitchen.  As described in a previous post, the idea was to have a long mural placed over of the bond-beam concrete.  As it is now (see photo above), it's pretty unattractive; half is a strip of concrete, half is a mix of concrete, stones and brick.  The colors of the mosaic will blend well with the burnt adobe and the overall darkness of this corner.

An aside: eventually, I hope to make wine here and when that day comes, I'll need a label.  In a previous post, I described the Ghost Dog, and I've been thinking about logos.  I've come up with the design shown at left.  The main body is ceramic tile with bits of mirror for stars and glass nuggets for leaves.  The ghost dog will be cut from pale yellow glass.

The mosaic has made ahead of time in IL, using the same technique used on the mosaic on the kitchen floor (see previous post).  The mosaic will be cut into manageable pieces, packed into a box, and taken to NM for installation.

Stay tuned for photos of the installation and end results.



By the way, big Yea! to Southwest Airlines for allowing me two free boxes of weird stuff each time I fly to Alb.  I have slowly moved  nearly an entire household box by box on SWA over the past two years and the airline staff have never been anything but super positive.

Garden Update / May 2011

Boxes of chilies, off the plane and ready for planting

Another gardening year begins in NM, or more accurately, began last month.  The big issue this year will be the drought (so far no rain since last November) and the browsing in the garden and orchard as they search for food.  My sister checked the garden this week and said some of the lavender plant have been ripped out and the veggie beds have evidence of "tampering".  The footprints were from javalina, and I know they move around a lot looking for water when the creek stops running. Things are going to be tough until I get the fence up in back and the wall up in front.  Sigh.

One old bed and one new, before planting

The garden is in and growing well.  We have 5 varieties of chile this year, along with some beans and squash.  Last fall, the javalina ate all my pumpkins and in their rummaging tossed a few popcorn cobs around.  My sister said some of the corn is volunteering this year and I'm happy about that.  Last year was the first time I ever planted strawberry popcorn, and it was hands down, the best popcorn I ever tasted.

This year I made two new vegetable beds and they, along with last year's bed, were augmented with manure from Sally, the horse next door.  Because I have limited fencing, only two of the beds were planted.  Still, that's a lot of beans and chili!

Grape cutting with cobble mulch & deer protection

The fruit trees are ok, but the dry winter was tough on them.  I turn the irrigation off in Nov, so they had no water through mid April, when I turned on the system again. It looks like I may have lost a few, but it's too early to tell for sure.  My sister reports that some of the trees are sprouting now, but she can't tell if it's from above or below the graft union. If those trees are gone, I think I'll plant some blackberries in their places.  Amazingly, the one tree (a peach, Rio Oso Gem) that has given me the most trouble from the beginning (poor growth, resists training, ect) is doing really well; silly tree. The grapes from my mother's house are quite happy and very cute. 

Meet the Locals: Spring Surprise

scorpian - unknown spp



 The first trip of the season was wonderful.  After a hard day's work toting rocks from here to there in the yard (subject of upcoming posts), I was reclining in an old chair, crocheting a summer top and listening to an audiobook.  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something.  Just over my shoulder, a little (~1") scorpian was wending his way up the wall.  Hmmmmm.  I took a photo (forgive me for not including a finger for scale) and put him in a jar.  I set him on the front stoop to consider his predicament and went back into the house.

Not too much later, another, larger scorpian caught my eye traipsing along the floor/wall margin.  Another jar, another trip to the stoop.   DARN!  I sleep on the floor on an air mattress and don't like the idea of having "friends" with me. 

I know that there are all kinds of invertebrates around (I've seen them), but the house has been sealed up fairly well for about a year.  However, where there's a will, there's a way.  This was March and during the changing of the seasons, there is a lot of flux in the invertebrate populations.  The scorps were waking up and looking for new, interesting places.  Because the house is adobe, the walls are considerably warmer than the yard at night, and scorpians are drawn to warmth.

I am happy to report that, even though I caught a few more scorps in the house, I didn't have any negative interactions with them when the lights went out. 

Grout.... the horror!

What a handsome fellow - a roadrunner pebble mosaic - done!

This post is dedicated to my friend Melody Ellis, a truly fine ceramic artist.

The first trip of the season out to NM and one of the goals was to grout the blue glass wall in the bathroom.  A previous post described the installation of the pebble mosaics, and all that was left to complete the project was the grout.  I admit I had a lot of aprehension; mainly due to the pebbles.  True, I had sealed them thoroughly, but I just couldn't get away from the idea that grout would stick into those tiny pits and crevices and ruin the lovely birds.

Melody suggested grouting to match the tile color which would emphasize the mosaics and diminish the tile.  Since I wanted to visually expand the space (tiny bathroom!) having the effect of a large blue sky would be beneficial.  Surprisingly, I had a difficult time finding grout colorants (either you pay a lot for tiny amounts of pigment, or you pay less for enough pigment to color a warehouse floor).  In the end, I had to special order pale blue grout from Home Despot, but no complaints.

So, here's the process:

Tape off the area around the mosaic.  I did this because I chose to grout the birds with a grey/beige grout.  Although in hindsight, I should have used a darker grey.

Grout each bird.  Recalling Melody's advice, I just pressed the grout between the rocks with my hands.

Clean off the excess grout.  Not as difficult as I thought it would be!  Yes, there was a bit left behind, but I can live with it.

Remove the tape, and let the grout set overnight.  I retaped over the birds, then grouted the tiles (not worthy of a photo).  Even though the background grout is a clear, light blue, it looks grey in the pictures.  The overall look is just like a blue sky. 






So, I have to apologize Melody.  Cleaning the mosaics was NOT horrific (I was sure it would be), no grout left in the crevises (I was sure there would be), and my birds are lovely (I was scared).  I had doubts.  You did not.  You told me all would be well and it is!  Thank you Melody, your advise was spot on.

cranes flying toward the window