mattp

As children, my mother used to take us hiking in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. At age 8, my buddy Peter and I camped and climbed Mt. Monadnock in southern New Hampshire without any adults along. This was independence.

Might that be Glacier Peak, rising in the distance behind the Ten Peak/Mt Clark area peaks? [edit - the picture of Stu didn't load for me the first time I viewed this thread. I was talking about the top photo.]

When did they gate the road? It was open two weeks ago.

Bush/Cheney screwed us!

And I'm not even a fan. Onsight kick? What's that?

Mick, on the otherhand, looks like he still pulls down 5.12.

Both touchdown calls were marginal, but probably correct. Still, though, I think the two calls I noted already were totally bogus.

Then the refs move the ball a foot to deny the 1st down? Or did I see it wrong?

They got screwed on the incomplete pass call. The magic fridge was OK too.

That has been exactly my hesitation, Mo. I barely use fertilizer, let alone herbicide. Sometimes, however, drastic measures may be called for. The idea of dipping the ends of the little darlings in a roundup cocktail sounds like it might work. Pulling them up has utterly failed because they are all intergrowing with lots of vegetation that I want to keep, much of it fragile. Not wanting to use slug bait, I've been going out at night to pick cutworms by headlamp for the last ten years, and I might try something a little more effective on those little guys, too. Will that cause me to go mutant? BT on just the plants they are targetting maybe? As you note: just pulling the weeds and preventing regrowth has served me pretty well with a variety of pests, though. I got rid of the ivy and blackberry in this yard without a drop of herbicide. Time for kickoff...

Thanks, guys. I'm gonna need a 50 gallon drum of roundup, though. The stuff is spread nearly throughout my entire lot. Oh, and don't worry. I'll add Japanese Knotweed to my top ten most unwanted list.

The HVAC tape I've used has a much stronger adhesive then does duct tape and it comes with a peel-off waxy backing, but it is also less durable for wear and tear and doesn't stand up to abrasion or repeated folding very well - it isn't designed to be tough because heating ducts don't move around or get brushed up against a whole lot. I wouldn't expect it to hold up well if added to a foam pad.

Hey: now that we have the new GARDENING FORUM, does anybody know how to get rid of morning glory? I've pretty much done in the ivy and hamalyan blackberry that had taken over this lot, but that damn morning glory still grows among all the plantings I want to keep and I can go out there and carefully unwind it and pull it up as often as I want but it keeps coming back. Chemicals?

Japanese knotweed can be a fairly attractive plant in the right location. It has interesting bamboo-like stems and I have upon occasion considered planting it. I've seen it in the "wild" but had no idea it was such a menace.

Bamboo does not root very deep and is easily contained by root pruning. You can also line the hole where you plant it with heavy plastic. It will take a couple of years before it screens your bedroom window, though.

I think we could come up with LOTS of potential political cartoons I'd censor, if you make it crude/hateful/incendiary enough but I generally agree with your principal of granting wide latitude to political expression, Will.

Yes. It has had numerous winter ascents and is listed in Nelson's "select climbs" book as a winter outing (he also says something to the effect of "not worth it in Summer," and I disagree with that, 'cause in my book Mt. Index is just plain cool any time).

You'll find English Ivy at lots of local nurseries, too. I have not checked for himalaya blackberry.

Is this more sad, comical, or infuriating? Sad was that I didn't notice any commentators or the Dem response call him on it. That opening section was very carefully written to convey that impression or at least reaffirm that impression among the "believers" without actually saying it, so maybe they are afraid of the denials they'd get in response, but I hate to see the neocons get a free pass on this issue over and over again for - what - going on five years?

Don't overlook the possibility of buying a used ice tool at a great savings. You'll pay a premium for whatever folks are thinking is the shizzle right now, but just about any ice too with a hammer head will be sufficient to hammer in a picket once in a while, scratch you way over a bergschrund, or lean on in an icy gully somewhere.

Where he really told a whopper was when he said we have "relentlessly" sealed off the border so terrorists can't get into Iraq. That and when he continued to try to link Iraq and 911, and ...

After a week long trip in the Coast Range (Don't tell Dru I called it that) I was hiking out with my friend Mike, in the rain. No story really; the log was reeeely slippery and we didn't want to take the plunge so we belly crawled instead of running for it. About five miles of hiking through swamps followed, and an extra giant grizzly was waiting for us at the car. Fortunately we didn't have to shake hands with Mr. Big.

What are you talking about there, JayB. Has ANYBODY on this board ever said they supported Hamas? You sound like George "they are for us or aginst us" Bush here. Just because someone thinks that Isreali and US policies have been messed up, or that we think it appears that Hamas was legitimately elected, doesn't mean we're all fans of Hamas.

Jay, have we not said (along with the Israeli's) that we will not talk to them because they are a terrorist organization? Might we undermine the formation or function of their government if we stick to this position? Did we similarly refuse to talk to Likud because they were dedicated to the destruction of any Palestinian state?