Vashon Island garden plan...for a 750sq foot garden...

While everyone else in this country is freezing their tails off everyone who is West of the Cascades/Sierra Nevadas is doing alright (Alaska and Hawaii too!). 

So luck us today we pruned the apple trees, pulled roots from the garden, sent a package, priced out lumber for raised beds and went a bit nuts on my family.  But on this lovely January day the stuff of my fantasy life is mostly about gardening. 

So let me share with you the fantasy!

The green outline is the garden.  It is 750 square feet, but parts are very wet, uneven and parts of it still have a lot of roots that need pulled. As this is our first year in the house I am fairly certain it will be sunny their for the bulk of summer but I don't know what kind of light it gets in the spring...

Here's what needs done soonest...but they aren't exactly in order.

• Ordering fencing and install - 
• Keep hacking down the brush that is next to the garden but will eventually become lawn (the brush has to come down to allow maximal sun!
• Having the brush man come and chip all the brush
• Order seeds and start them under a grow light.

By April I hope to get at least one raised bed (the orange are raised beds) built. I don't know if we can afford more than one this year because the front end of fencing and chipping brush is costing us.  

If you look at the diagram you'll also notice that there are not things like carrots, potatoes, onions, etc. We don't have a goal to become self sufficient and are actually happy to let other people grow some of those things for us. We want to raise things that taste the best when they are home grown- we have never noticed a difference in the quality of those things when we raise them.

So that's what's up 

Vashon Island- some random links...

Did you ever see this- it's from National Geographic?    It's a cool little clip on milling for lumber in a sustainable way on Vashon...most of it looks filmed in Island Center forest.

Or Gluten Free Girl- who lives on Vashon and is quite the cookbook author!

If you are looking for the perfect gift for a lova how about a singing message? 

The fashion on Vashon is especially...ummm.   Well, you give me a description?!

Do you know there is an Orthodox Monastery on the Island?  Someone once told me they think Vashon is very religious. I would not say that...

So there you go.

Winter Fog on Vashon.

These photos look like they are black and white but the fog makes the colors seem much more dim.

Working on Island- the places to sit with your laptop on Vashon

This is not about getting a job on Vashon.  This is not about employment on Vashon.  Very simply this post contains tips for Islanders or Island visitors who need to get out of the house and sit in front of a computer and get some work done, or writing, or studying.

Here are my favorite places:

1. Cafe Luna

Why? lots of tables that are small, lots of outlets to plug the computer in (a computer with a low battery is a pet peeve of mine), great coffee, good lunch, fast wifi

Why not? It can be busy and loud.

2. Snapdragon

Why? Lots of tables that are small, cheap espresso, really good pastries and food, fireplace, their lounge chairs are comfortable

Why not? There is only one outlet in the entire place, the wireless has been finicky on me, again can be busy and loud

3. Library

Why? Good wifi, Quiet, large tables to spread out in.  Enough outlets, you don't have to pay to be there

Why not? No food, I actually find books very distracting as a lover of books a library is a dangerous place for me

4. Hardware Store

Why? Wifi, the right time of day (weekday mornings) you can spread out, meals, alcohol (nothing makes work better like a glass of red wine). Personally, I have never worked at the Hardware store, but my father-in-law has during several of his visits.

Why not? Do you really want wait-staff as you do your work? Being their during a busy time is just rude.

5. Vashon Island Roasterie

Why? No wifi- sometimes we don't really need the internet, great coffee, if people don't know you they probably won't talk to you

Why not? No wifi, not much seating with tables, and really I don't think this place wants people there working on their computers. It's just not the vibe.


So were are the places on Island where you go when you need to get work done out of the house?

Rough day to commute

At 6:50 this morning I got a text message from the King County Water taxi.  -Cancelled from the rough wind. All water taxi rides this morning were cancelled.

I took the bus to the ferry, hopped the ferry, got on another bus, and then another bus, and arrive at work quite late.  It threw a wrench in many Islander commutes!

This afternoon, sitting at my desk I get another text message, "the Vashon route of the Water Taxi has been canceled tonight due to weather conditions."  Thank God I am working late anyway!

It has been a rough fall for WT cancellations.  The wind has been bad, the fog has been worse and in general I feel like I am telling my work too often that the boat was late or whatever...I hate that feeling.


This is the life of Island people. Flexibility around the water, reminders that nature is bigger than you are.  It is annoying, no doubt, but I don't have ANY desire to end up in a life jacket floating around Puget Sound waiting for the Coast Guard to rescue me.

My only wish really, is that the Water Taxi would tell us something about how the decision is made.  I found this information, the marine forecast, on the national weather service website: (http://forecast.weather.gov/shmrn.php?mz=pzz135&syn=pzz100)

 PZZ135-040615-
 PUGET SOUND AND HOOD CANAL-
 300 PM PST TUE DEC 3 2013
 
 SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM PST THIS EVENING
 

 TONIGHT
 NE WIND 15 TO 25 KT EASING TO 5 TO 15 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT.
 WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT SUBSIDING TO 2 FT OR LESS.

 WED
 NE WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS.

 WED NIGHT
 NE WIND TO 10 KT BECOMING SE AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES
 1 FT OR LESS.

 THU
 SE WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS.

 THU NIGHT
 SE WIND 10 TO 20 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT.

 FRI
 NE WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT.

 FRI NIGHT
 NE WIND 10 TO 20 KT BECOMING N 10 TO 15 KT AFTER
 MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT.

 SAT
 SE WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS.

 SUN
 S WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS.
 
 $$

My guess is that this forecast is what makes the decision for if the boat goes or not,  with a little bit of hunting on wind conditions in the PNW I also found this

http://www.sailflow.com/en-us/Search/ViewResults.aspx#47.498,-122.559,10,1

Which makes me think it must be VERY windy on Alki Point in West Seattle.
So there it is. The reason the boat doesn't run...(or is it?)

Vashon Trash Pick up during Thanksgiving week 2013

In case this blog comes up in a search you are doing- apparently trash pick up the week of Thanksgiving -is this-

If you usually have pick up on Thursday it is Friday.
If you usually have pick up on Friday it is Saturday.

Follow the link below:

http://www.murreysdisposal.com/announcements.aspx

Apparently Murrey's disposal does Vashon trash.

Vashon Beach- winter explorations

We are having a cold snap here in the Pacific Northwest.  That means our highs are in the 30's and 40's rather than 40's and 50's.  In some of the low spots in our yard the frost is staying throughout the day.  (I know you who live in actually cold place scoff at this!)  Here in the PNW cold weather often is accompanied with clear weather- and lately that is the case.

Here on Vashon the mountains are out! The water looks blue, and it is all so lovely!  Today, we wanted to go down to the beach! We also wanted to enjoy a bit of the sun!  Except cold weather and the beach can sometimes just chill a person to the bone.

So here's what we did, and here is my suggestion for fun winter beach visit with kids.  We packed up a thermos of cocoa, a jar of mini-marshmallows, 2 apples, and a bag of crackers and 4 mugs in a nice little basket and did some slurping cocoa, beach combing, rock throwing, and duck watching.

I'll admit we weren't there for too long and it wasn't the time of our life, but the sunset was BEAUTIFUL, the cocoa was yummy, and we had some beach time!