Travertine

I  decided not to stain and seal my concrete picnic table.  I bought some 18" square Travertine and had the design elements I put between them, clearly and comfortably marking the eight seating areas, if I had benches, of course!  I think I will need a barbecue!
This is a "forever" table, steel framed and reinforced with rebar poured concrete top, and now slated.
It weighs a total of close to 600 pounds and the two legs supporting this  mass are buried two feet in the ground, surrounded with concrete.  It is cheaper than hamburger and will last a lot longer.

Picnic Table

It has been a long time since there was a picnic table on my little third acre.  Oh,  there are plenty of inviting benches and places to rest, opportunities to just sit and be and there are tables I have made all over the place, spots for freshly picked vegetables.  But for some strange reason it has been decades since I have had a picnic table, a purposeful place that invites the sitting down and sharing a meal.
I have built them for customers, big ones, solid plank tables, round ones.  I have thought of the future gatherings around these creations of mine, the food shared and conversations both whispered and shouted.  Music, laughter, outside happiness.

Two legs!  Table waiting for concrete top.

   My retirement is not exactly as I would have predicted it and I have been far too busy.  The off and on rainy and sunny days of Spring are giving the garden a jump start and it is calling me outside with things to pick already, flowers blooming and scent of life filling the air.  Yesterday I found the perfect place to plant a picnic bench and as I was building it imagined sitting there with invited guests.  This is a "forever table", about 3' x 7' and supported by two pedestal legs buried two feet in the ground and surrounded with concrete.  It has a 2" channel iron surround and a base of 1/2" concrete board inset to contain the concrete I will pour on a nice sunny day.  I will etch the concrete once cured with green and olive and brown stains and seal it, making a smooth table top that could support about a hundred people and comfortably seat 8 to 10.  Soon I will make the benches using the same construction techniques.  It will be here for awhile.

 1/2" rebar to make it even stronger!

Over 700 pageviews!

Yes, Over 700 Page Views last month and not a single comment!  That is inspiring.

Merry Christmas!!!

Voting in Oregon

There are two interesting issues in the upcoming elections in Oregon.  Marijuana is on the Ballot.
Right now marijuana is about as common as litter on the streets, just absolutely everywhere. I think it may no longer be a crime to have a little of this weed; it is certainly not enforced anyway.  The ballot issue is to make it even More legal, possession and growing it.  As a certified expert on growing tomatoes I might even try a plant or two!  What is the Big Deal of making it legal?  TAXES.  I guess our politicians have learned from Colorado and Washington and want to get in on the action!  The downside of this is that marijuana is everywhere!  Yes, if the measure passes you will be able to find a shop, a large variety and even candy laced marijuana, but it will all be taxed.  On the way to the shop you are likely to pass six or more opportunities to purchase marijuana without the tax.  It is just way too easy to grow.  I am sure these tax issues will work themselves out, especially the government hates competition!
The other issue is GMO's, the gene altered food we eat.  Nothing so radical as to make it illegal as in much of Europe, the ballot only says they have to be labelled.  We want to know what we are eating.
You ARE what you eat!   It is weird that they (Monsato) have developed corn, soybeans and rice that are impervious to herbicides.  They can drench them in Roundup and kill the weeds but not the plant.
Gee, I wonder if we are ingesting any of these poisons?  Oh, no, corporate American wouldn't do that to us, would they?
Oh, we have the other issues, the Democrats and Republicans trying to know each other out, lie it will make a difference.

The Last Supper!

Today is Thursday and just last Sunday it was 80 degrees in Eugene, Oregon!  This is way unusual and beginning the Monday after it was 80 degrees, it has been raining every sense.  More like "normal".  The good news is that I found hidden deep in foliage, a nice big pink tomato!  From saved and sent seeds from Germany! Thank you, Christine!  So, off I dash to the store and get some great bacon and made my "Last"  BLT of the season!  Unlike the first BLT, where I know there will be many more, this last one is eaten with a bit of sadness, knowing there won't be more for a whole other Season!  But, man I am telling you, it was good!

 this is all I do when saving seeds, nothing complicated.

Stone Posts in Corvallis!

I was born in Eugene, Oregon but raised in Corvallis, a nearby city about 50 miles North.  There are hundreds of my Stone Posts in the Eugene area and some scattered about in Washington, California and Nevada.  I have made these for over 20 years but never got one in Corvallis until now.  I have other work there, lots of metal, railings and trellises but I am happy to get one of my "signature pieces" permanently installed.  It is like "Kilroy Was Here", yes, my Post, Jerry Carlin was here!