Month: August 2019

Twining

On By CarynIn Craft

How have I never learned to twine? I happened across a video on how to make twine from grass and roots, and had to try it, but didn’t have grass at hand (and it is over 100 degrees out, I’m staying inside), so used my daughter’s hair.

Twined principles applied to hair

I had a cute little machine when I was her age that would twine doll hair in a similar fashion, but it turns out you don’t need a machine; it is possible to twine by hand.

Next I took a 1” strip of old sheet and tried again. So fun!

Twined cotton sheet

I really feel that this is life changing; that I have the ability to make rope from nearly anything (even paper!). At the very least it is a good survival skill.

Evaporative cooling

On By CarynIn Coop
Chickens checking out the new sheet

Another local chicken keeper posted that she puts up a sheet in the breezy part of her run and wets it down with water to get some evaporative cooling for her hens. I had to try it since the high temps have been over 100 degrees F for a week and are forecast to go another week (which is still better than the three months of 100 plus degrees last year).

New sheet is no big deal on the scary meter

So I grabbed a cotton flat twin sheet and tied it to the hardware cloth and wet it down with the hose. The chickens were not scared of it, which is a big plus. Time will tell if it provides them a more comfortable area.

Outside view of wet sheet

Cicada nymph

On By CarynIn Wildlife

Walking through the back woods I saw an actual cicada nymph. Not the cast off shell, not the adult cicada, but a nymph who had just dug out of the ground and was looking for a place to climb up high. I’ve never witnessed this before!

Cicada nymph

Its a bit hard to see in the leaf litter, so I guess this post becomes a little bit of Where’s Waldo.

Aluminum recycles

On By CarynIn Uncategorized
13 pounds of aluminum cans

I took my crushed aluminum cans to the metal recycle center. I was just thinking I would drop it off (our trash collector doesn’t offer recycling in our area), but they pay for aluminum. So I put my bag on the scale, got a weight of 13 pounds, and took my ticket to get my $4.42. The man behind the counter gave me a lollipop with my cash. I was also referred to as “the young lady” (which I am not). It was definitely an experience.

Grapevine beetle

On By CarynIn Wildlife
Grapevine beetle between the brick and the trim on the house

My eldest has been telling me that she has been seeing extra large June bugs in the yard. I finally was able to spot one and take a picture! According to my iNaturalist app, this is the Grapevine beetle, also known as the spotted June bug. And it is larger than your average June bug; this one is just over 1” long. This phrase on Wikipedia amused me: “The beetles fly at a fast speed, usually in a curving flight.” That is a pretty big buzzing curve ball coming at you through the dark.