I thought you might like to see what I use to pick algae out of my little pond. Nothing fancy, but it sure does the trick. Cost me all of about $4, too! I probably could have made it for even less if I had gotten the brush at the dollar store, but I was at the hardware store, and didn't want to make another stop. I was being lazy. Anyway, here's the little gem at work:
Pretty sweet, huh?? I was able to pick up that clump of algae all at once, and go on about my business. Here's a closeup of the business end of the whole thing. Maybe you recognize it???
If you have a pond and are having a hard time grabbing the clumps of algae, these are easy to make. All you need is a NEW toilet brush with the extra little brush pokey-out thing, a few zip ties, and a stick/pole/handle. My handle was from a painting brush, probably 4-5 feet long. It could be an old broom, mop, or whatever you might have laying around that hasn't made it to the garbage yet. Zip tie the brush to the end of the handle, and away you go! Here's mine. Uh, maybe I should cut the zip ties?? Yea, I'll get right on that.
Speaking of ponds, I've got some flowers in mine!
And a few visitors at night! Guess I'd better put the new food somewhere else.
Here in the Sacramento Valley, we don't usually get rain this late in June. Like, very rarely. And if we do, it usually isn't very much. Today, however, isn't like most late June days in the Sacramento Valley. Today, we got rain. And lots of it. So far, we've gotten well over 3/4 of an inch! And it's still raining. Will we make a whole inch??? Only time will tell.
Dozer didn't seem to mind at all. He kind of likes the rain. But my chickens are another story. My poor chickens were drenched. Yes, they had shelter they could have gotten under. Doesn't mean they took advantage of that! They looked like really big drowned rats. Yea, my chickens; they're not brain surgeons.
Look what happened when I turned my back for a week in the garden! Holy smokes. These things were big enough to be considered a lethal weapon. There are five zucchini in my basket, and they weighed a total of 18 lbs! Yowzers.
Today, I'm in a funky mood. Just be forewarned. I'm not going to talk about gardening, or making cookies, or sewing. I'm not going to upload a cutesy picture of baby eggs from my baby hens, or what's going on outside. This is just.... funky.
I've been told the healthy adult loses about 100 hairs each day. That sounds like alot, especially when I see it all rolled up in a ball, ready to get thrown away. You know, I think I could make a coat for a rather large gerbil. Just from what I lose each day! This is what came out of my head in the last 24 hours. Can you believe it? 
Here in the valley of Northern California, we don't usually get rain in June. Normally, this time of year, I would have been out in the garden all weekend, weeding, planting, pruning, harvesting, and whatever else I could find to keep myself busy and out of the house. But this weekend, it rained. And rained. And rained. My lettuce loved it, and my cabbage loved it, and actually, the zucchini doesn't seem to mind. But me? I wasn't overly fond of it. Not now, anyway. So instead, I baked, and quilted, and read a book. Ok, I watched tv, too. That's where I got my baking ideas. Look at what I made! Three different types of cookies! Chocolate chip, French Butter Cookies, and a Chocolate Swirl/French Butter Cookie. They're all pretty good, so now I'm sending them all to work with my hubby.
I also did some quilting on a UFO (unfinished object) that's been hanging around for a few years. Astrid has inspired me to do a little more quilting, and I was thinking of her when I was sewing, listening to the rain with the bedroom window open. Here's two of the quilt blocks I finished. Now I have a total of 8 blocks done, and 4 more to go. Wahoo! Then the sashing, and off to the quilter!
Pretty sweet, huh?? I was able to pick up that clump of algae all at once, and go on about my business. Here's a closeup of the business end of the whole thing. Maybe you recognize it???
If you have a pond and are having a hard time grabbing the clumps of algae, these are easy to make. All you need is a NEW toilet brush with the extra little brush pokey-out thing, a few zip ties, and a stick/pole/handle. My handle was from a painting brush, probably 4-5 feet long. It could be an old broom, mop, or whatever you might have laying around that hasn't made it to the garbage yet. Zip tie the brush to the end of the handle, and away you go! Here's mine. Uh, maybe I should cut the zip ties?? Yea, I'll get right on that.
And a few visitors at night! Guess I'd better put the new food somewhere else.
