September 2 - The ducks are still flying in for breakfast and dinner. They number from 30 - 50 ducks and are eating about 12 pounds of cracked corn a day. They are in such great numbers that while one group is frenzying around the food dish several other groups are swimming around zenpond waiting for their turn. When a group is done, they begin bobbing their heads up and down, which is their signal to each other that it is time to fly away. Sometimes a duck will walk straight across the food dish full of corn. It looks like a fire walker walking across hot coals.

Last month, john and joyce had a "red" female racoon living under their deck. JoHanna Animal Control trapped and released the racoon on her farm in Lone Jack, Missouri. The racoon was not harmed in any way. It took a week and three moves of the cage before she was outsmarted. Here is a photo of her looking not too happy at being in a cage for a short time:

john and joyce are watching on T.V. the aftermath of hurricane Katrina on Biloxi, Gulfport, and New Orleans. john spent a year in Biloxi going through the Communications/Electronics school in the Air Force before being assigned to Anchorage, Alaska. Many people are dying while waiting for help. Complete anarchy has taken place and some "people" are shooting at rescue helicopters. john knows from being in the Good Friday earthquake that a disaster like this brings out the best and worst in people.

john and joyce feel that New Orleans is so badly damaged that it should not be rebuilt on it's present site, but instead moved to higher ground. That probably won't happen however.

Hopefully there will not be another hurricane before the millions of people needing help, get help. john has always felt that a disaster like this would happen on the West Coast as a result of a huge earthquake. When that does happen, the public will already be used to tens of thousands of people being killed in the United States.

john read an interesting article in USA Today last week entitled "Asteroid's path could put Earth in its sights." An asteroid called "Apophis", 1059 feet wide, will come within 22,600 miles from earth in 2029. If it goes through a "2000 foot keyhole" in 2029, then it WILL hit earth in 2036. There is a 1 in 8000 chance that it will hit earth. To read the entire article, go to www.usatoday.com and then search on "near earth asteroid".

September 5 - While joyce was out running this morning, she found "the first leaf of fall". Here it is:

Last night the ducks flew into zenpond at 6:45 PM, as usual. They came in the following sequence: 5-6-11-12. They stayed until 7:09 PM. They have been keeping this schedule for over a month. How do they know it is 6:45 PM? They had all flown in within 5 minutes.

There are thousands of snails clinging to the sides of the big pond. john was told that koi love to eat snails, so this may be why the koi are growing so fast!

September 7 - There were AT LEAST 50 ducks who flew in for breakfast this morning. joyce was out running when she looked up and saw a large flock of ducks heading in the direction of zenpond. They did indeed come to zenpond. "Frenzy" and "decimate" are the words that came to john's mind as he watched them crowd each other for the cracked corn. They flew in at 6:50 AM and were gone by 7:09 AM. The 12 pounds of cracked corn exists no more. john is going to take either a video or set up a web cam so you will be able to share this experience.

September 8 - The tuckmeister jumped up next to john this morning, as usual, at 6:30 AM. john scratched his neck (tucky's) for about 5 minutes and then tucky wanted his breakfast. It was then 6:40 AM. john looked out and saw that the ducks' food dish was only half full. john knew the ducks arrive at 6:50 AM and he had time to top off the cracked corn. It was then 6:50 AM, so john waited for the ducks to begin arriving. They began flying in at 6:51 AM, so they must be on Sun Time (sidereal time). They arrived in waves too numerous to count and too fast, but they came in four waves within 3 minutes. They ate and began to fly away within the next 15 minutes, again as usual. One group of about 15 stayed later this morning just to play in the water and bathe. Another group flew back in to join the others in the water. They obviously had a great time. It was then 7:10 AM before they finally flew away until this evening's meal.

September 10 - john and Eddie are working on building the new garden/waterfall/pond along the east fence. This garden will complete zenpond. john and joyce enjoy zenpond constantly and it is in full bloom right now. The summer did not burn the plants this year as we had enough rain.

john and joyce have been watching the terrible events unfold in New Orleans. They are donating money to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) to help the animals abandoned during the flooding. Here is the link to help the animals: www.aspca.org/disaster.

September 12 - john felt like experimenting with a new food recipe yesterday. He made Greek Red Peppers for dinner last night. joyce paid him a compliment by eating a whole stuffed red pepper. She normally eats like a bird. Here is the recipe:

Greek Red Peppers

(serving for 4)

ingredients:

1 pound of hamburger

1 medium onion, shallots, or green onions

1 cup brown/wild rice

1 pkg reduced-fat Feta Cheese

4 red peppers

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

2 cloves finely chopped fresh garlic

1 lemon

1/4 t Oregano

salt and pepper to taste

_____________

Cook the brown/wild rice in beef bullion.

Cook the hamburger. Add diced onion to the hamburger before it is completely browned.

Turn off heat to the hamburger/onion mixture when done.

Zest the lemon peel and squeeze the juice from the lemon. Remove seeds.

Add the brown/wild rice, lemon zest, lemon juice, feta cheese, parsley, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper to the hamburger. Mix ingredients together.

Prepare the red peppers by cutting off the green top and coring the insides.

If you want a soft pepper, steam the peppers until soft (john did not and the final peppers were too crisp).

Stuff the peppers with the mixed ingredients.

Stand in a open dish with a cup of dry white wine in the bottom.

Put the stuffed peppers into a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes.

Serve with lightly steamed whole green beans ... and a glass of your favorite white wine.

john has also added a sauce to go with the above. It is a variation of Tzatsiki Sauce. Here's the recipe:

6 - 8 inch cucumber

1 large container of sour cream (low fat) - usually this would be yogurt, but not now.

2 - 3 cloves of garlic

1 - 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper

Peel the cucumber, grate it coarsely into a colander and press out most of the liquid.

Add the cucumber to the sour cream with the garlic, olive oil and pepper. Blend together.

Add salt just before serving as the salt will cause the sauce to become more watery if added too early.

September 13 - Oops! john forgot to include the parsley and garlic above. He retroactively added those two items to the above recipe.

September 18 - You don't have to pay $450 for a skimmer or waterfall reservoir. john bought a utility sink from Home Depot for $30. He cut a slot in the front side to accept the front portion of a "plastic rain disperser" ($6). john calls it a plastic rain dispenser, but it may have another name. It used to be made of concrete and sits at the bottom of a down-spout. He attached the rain disperser to the sink with a piece of aluminum angle bracket ($1). He filled the cracks with Aqua-Seal (4x$3) from Home Depot. Finally, he sprayed the entire unit black using Krylon's Fusion spray paint for plastic($8). Total cost: $49!

Aqual-Seal is pretty neat stuff. It comes in a tube which you knead together. john thinks it must have moisture to set-up, so he proves some (read: spit). Aqual-Seal will fill holes/cracks under water, so it is great for sealing leaks in the sides of waterfalls. You can find it at Home Depot (of course). john has a Home Depot within 1/4 mile of his house.

john realized that it has been awhile since he has taken photos of zenpond. Here are some:

September 22 - john fell backwards 11 days ago when a bench's leg went through a wide crack in a deck at a relative's house. john really didn't think he had hurt himself very much except for a couple of bad-looking bumps on his right upper leg. Late yesterday afternoon, his lower leg began to swell and a purple bruise appeared on the inside of his ankle. He called the physician-on-call and was told to go to the ER right away. After 4 hours in ER, john was told he had developed a blood clot. Apparently, the clot wasn't where it would do serious harm. john is on antibiotics for the next 10 days and is keeping his leg elevated somewhat. This has stopped john from finishing the east garden for awhile.

October 1 (12:30 PM) - It is time to switch to a new page, but just for today john wanted to make sure "Liz" saw these pictures. john just started playing golf with three other guys. Since all four are such poor golfers and don't take the game too seriously, john decided he would give it a try. Now he has decided he REALLY needed some professional help, so he called Liz at the Overland Park Golf Course. As a result, he just completed his first ever golf lesson about an hour ago. he really was impressed with how much Liz could help him. If you live in Overland Park and need a great golf lesson, contact Liz at 913.638.8833.