Raspberry Pi

I got caught up with the hype and brought a Raspberry Pi.

If you don't know what that is then look it up. It is basically a PC on a small PCB that you could fit in your pocket.

http://www.raspberrypi.org/

It is more for electronic experimentation and projects.
I recently found out it is a 3.3v logic system and that using TTL 5v logic will damage the board. Great!
I have loads of TTL that I was going to use - so now I need to buy a convertor or something.

My main purpose of the Pi is to learn Apache web server, PHP and SQL. As it is a small portable PC - I can hook it up anytime and talk to it using any PC. It keeps everything external to my operational PCs and acts as a sort of test bed web server.
As it has an X server on there - I can log into it anywhere in my house via the wireless internet.

I hope to write some simple C++ programs. First project is to get 8 LEDs to flash in various sequences.
That is a first step.

As for the SQL - I hope to get to the point where I develop an online library of my books.
Another project would be an online shop with inventory control (big project - will have to have a lot of free time for that!).

So there it is - I joined a revolution. What next?

The Summer

The Summer has almost come to an end. I have not really updated my Blog for a while and the 2 or 3 followers have been waiting for an update... so here I am.

Stacy went to bed early. The pregnancy is making her get up early and go to bed early.
I hope her nausea goes soon. I am thinking that this is a girl as they are usually trouble. All will be revealed in October. This will be our October surprise. Stacy is naming this child - so we will have to see what she comes up with.

The summer has consisted of travel to the UK, gardening and bits and bobs.

Here is a garden update:

The sun killed off some of the plants while I was in the UK for two weeks. Some cucumber plants died. One or two tomato plants suffered and the runner beans come to the end of their life.

One think that did happen is that my bell peppers are growing like mad!
This is a first. I think locating my garden close to the house in the shade has helped the plants grow.
Funnily enough the tomato plants closer to the house have grown the best.

The peppers had holes in them - so I put 'Seven dust' on them and the holes disappeared. 

I cannot eat them fast enough. I have about 6 in the fridge and about 10 growing well outside!

The tomatoes were funny shapes. I caught two tomato horn worms today. They can munch a whole plant in days. I notice grenade shaped poo on the deck and noticed the small little scum bag. 

Looks like I need to keep a close eye on the garden as we go though the next growth spurt as it gets cooler. 

One task I did do the other day was to strengthen the Kiwi support structure. I purchased some thick galvanized cable and some hooks. I got these little tightening devices which can be adjusted to get the tension right. I fitted a load of two by four pressure treated planks. As the tension was bending the end planks too much - I fitted a couple of supporting planks to take some of the strain.

Below is roughly what you are supposed to do, if you take notice of you tube videos and growing guides (i.e. three evenly spaced tight cables). To be honest I did not put much effort in at first as I was not sure if the Kiwi plants would survive - but they have and I really hope they grow well now I have strengthened the trellis. The one closest to the house is actually growing better than the one closer to the sun. It should be the other way around...

I am told - once these things start growing well, that they can produce 200lb of fruit each plant. This trellis can easily take 400lb distributed around. I could hang from each beam and I am 188lb. 

Out of all the trees and Kiwi plants I have planted I have no fruit to show. Maybe one year I hope. The apricot tree is doing well. I hope I get Apricots next year.

You can see in the photo below the top of the tomato plants next to the deck. That is an 8ft trellis - so you can see that the plants are pretty tall!!!  not bearing many tomatoes at the moment though. The squirrels seem to be eating them, which is a pain.

I had some melons growing, but something got into the bottom of them (possibly slugs or worms or ants - or all three) and they went rotten. I was told that growing melons was the easiest thing to do. So far I dispute that assertion. 

Garden Update - May/June

We have been having rain in Georgia recently. It's making things grow quite well. 

These Peas are actually up over my head now - so around 6ft!

Last year I limited them to 3ft. I guess that was a mistake... 

I was able to pick many peas - and they tasted great. 

Plants are starting to wither now as we get closer to the hot summer temps. 

I had these cucumbers next to tomatoes last year and got a few cucumbers. This year they are growing like mad. I have many cucumbers coming - I can't eat them fast enough!

Sage is doing well. My tobacco chili plant is still very small. It's the only thing that has not really grown here. I am starting to see bell peppers growing now. 

This year I am seeing many green beans. This fence idea has really paid off already. No animals have chewed them up. 

The plants have much more growth in them - so this went very well this year. 

 This location is in a partial shade area also. 

These are the sweet potatoes. I keep adding earth. I am almost up to the top now. Once they are ready (not sure when) I will just lift off the wire and the potatoes should fall out. it may not work out that easy...

This is where my tomato plants are right now. 

I have them next to 8ft trellis - maybe they will get that high?

Some of the tomatoes right now. 

The beefsteak ones are about the size of a fist already. 

Some produce. I have had about three bowls of beans worth already. I had to blanch and freeze some of them as there are too many to eat in one week! 

Copying brazil

Not sure if the photo is too clear but it looks like a copy of the 'Christ the redeemer' statue in brazil.

Mutant fish egg fruit

Continuing the theme of new food concepts, check this fruit out. Can't remember what it is called, but it looks like fish eggs or something. Like a pomegranate it has seeds in the fruit segments. But unlike a pomegranate the segments are slimy. Didn't enjoy the crunchy seeds...

Try the fish.

Well I am still in Peru. I wanted to try something different and traditional in Peru. A fish dish was recommended. It was described as white fish (like cod) cooked in a spicy lime sauce served with potato. Sounded like fish and chips! Yummy!

The picture shows what I got served. It was basically a big pile of raw fish segments with a small bit of white on the surface (that was the cooked part). The sweet potato was nice. The corn was not too tasty. The lime sauce exploded on the tongue.
I am not a big fan of raw fish but managed to eat half of it. Never again...

Earth station

This is a big old style dish. Notice the side cabin. This was to house a team of cryogenic engineers trying to keep the LNB as cool as possible with liquid nitrogen. It has been put out of commission now, but stands as a monument of a bygone age of sat coms...