A Martha Manly Man. That's the title I thought about for this online presence. I am a big fan of Martha Stewart Living. I've noticed, however, that the magazine is not supposed to appeal to a male audience. In addition to the craft ideas and recipes, the magazine typically includes tips for beauty care. Just once, I'd like to see an article intended for the gents. I'd feel less awkward about my fondness for Martha Stewart Living if they would. One of my favorite recipes from Martha Stewart Living comes from the December 2004 edition. Most Christmas gingerbread houses are inedible decorations. The walls used to be gingerbread cookies, but now they are hard and strong enough to hold the weight of modern kitchen appliances. In the December 2004 edition of Martha Stewart Living, however, there is a recipe for a gingerbread cake house. Not only is the house entirely edible, but it is a pleasure to eat. One thing that I appreciate about Martha Stewart Living is that the recipes really are from scratch. They are also often traditional recipes. That means they are recipes explaining the right--rather than modern--way to cook a dish. I made the gingerbread cake house recipe as described in the magazine. I could not, however, bring myself to make the frosting that went with this recipe. The cake recipe is spectacular, but the frosting recipe is too complicated for buttercream. Instead, I made the buttercream recipe found at Sweet Savory Life. The recipe on Sweet Savory Life for buttercream frosting is both easy and uses simple readily found ingredients. It also did a fine job of holding up the gingerbread cake. My kids, who love decorating gingerbread houses, were particularly excited about decorating a gingerbread house they could eat. In the end, only my daughter helped to decorate the house. An argument between my daughter and my son leading up to the decorating meant that my son was having some alone time in his room when my daughter decorated. So it goes. When I make the cake again next Christmas, I think I'll make a chocolate and a vanilla buttercream frosting. I'll use the chocolate frosting for the walls and roof, and I'll use the vanilla frosting to make shingles for the roof and doors and windows for the walls. That way, it will be more of a centerpiece, and it will be even more delicious. Like I said, I'm always thinking in manly ways.

Coop Greenhouse

I have a number of failed projects, and few successes. I tried making a portable drying rack for our laundry. Unfortunately, I found out the hard way that my rack was unable to hold wet sleeping bags. At least nobody was standing under it when it fell. I also have some successes. My kids and their friends are enjoying the not-quite completed playhouse in the back yard. Collecting supplies for these sundry projects has left the basement full of scrap pieces and other odds and ends. What to do with all that stuff? A normal person would probably just throw it out, but I'm a pack rat who mourns when anything is thrown out. Why not make a greenhouse instead? I've had success starting my seeds in the basement under a fluorescent light, but this method has always had its problems. Airflow is a continual problem in a damp basement. Roots like to be dry from time to time, and a nice breeze encourages the soil to dry out. There's little breeze in the basement, however, and my seedlings often suffer from wet feet. My seedlings are also usually a bit leggy. When my seedlings become big enough to harden off, I have a tendency to forget about them. A couple of days in my basement without the benefit of the suns rays makes them weak. They always recover once I set them out in the garden, but I'm sure that I would get tomatoes a few weeks earlier if I weren't so careless. Thus, I find myself with a happy coincidence. I have extra lumber and extra windows. I also found some free shower doors for free on Craigslist this week. I also would like a place to put my young seedlings when they're ready for a bit more sun. It would also be nice to able to get some fresh greens in the early spring and late fall. Lettuce in the grocery stores around here usually appear more ready for my compost pile than my dinner table. When lettuce is in season in our garden we enjoy some hearty salads while the season lasts. Wouldn't it be nice to have those hearty salads just a little bit longer this year? Here's the spot for the future greenhouse. I removed the compost bin and birdhouse. They'll find new homes nearby. You can see one of the failed projects in the background that is being cannibalized for this project. The future greenhouse is going to be a very small operation. First, I don't have a lot of time to devote to a greenhouse. Big projects = lots of time. Small projects = somewhat less time. Christmas is coming soon, and my project time competes with family time. This time of year, I also have to complete with the weather. In Missouri, winter means some days will make it into the 40s or 50s. It can also be zero degrees outside. Just depends. Second, I want to spend next to nothing on this project. As I said, Christmas is just around the corner. Our money therefore has to be spent on useless plastic junk rather than a useful project like a greenhouse. I mean, I really have to put the kids first before I spend money on my own hobbies. Before the holidays are over, I will hopefully have a nice little greenhouse up and ready for early spring/late winter. Then when opportunity permits later this spring I may decide to build a small chicken coop on the back of it. At first, I wanted to do this in order to save space. Only then did I discover that this chicken coop/greenhouse house idea is actually a thing. Apparently, there are some folks in the permaculture world who believe that chicken coops and greenhouses were just meant to go together like Angelina and Brad. Supposedly, the chickens will help keep the greenhouse warm on cold winter nights. Sounds great in theory--I saw "The Matrix" too--but I just don't see the chickens making that big of an impact on the temperature in the greenhouse. At least, not on the scale that I'm planning. At most, I will have room for four chickens, and I can't imagine four chickens providing enough body heat to make a difference inside the greenhouse. I just envisioned it as a time saving and space saving tool. Scraps and garden waste go into the coop next door. Walk into the greenhouse and lift the lid on the "shelf" to find eggs. If having chickens next door means I get to eat fresh salads in January, so much the better. I'll keep you posted, and let you know if it works. This may, however, take a while. If I ever get around to adding a coop to the greenhouse, it won't be until later this spring when the sun will be providing all the warmth my seedlings will need. It wouldn't be until next November when the little ladies next door to the greenhouse will start making any difference. I'll also let you know if I end up with any chicken "the ones" like in "The Matrix." I can see it now, a little chicken Neo liberating her fellow hens from my nefarious plot to use their body heat to grow my food. All the while I'll be stealing their eggs. Then when they reach chicken menopause, they become soup. I bet the permaculture people never thought about it like that. They described their vision as a microcosm of the harmonious relationship that should exist between plants and animals. I guess they never thought about it from the chicken's point of view.