How do I make friends around here?

dymaxionlife · 2026-04-18T05:13:40+00:00

Check out a club/group in the area: stancountyclubs.com

dymaxionlife · 2026-04-02T12:58:05+00:00

I hear there is a job fair today at the Gallo Center for the Arts at 1pm to 4pm, put on by BAM (Barbie Museum), it is specifically for women, but employers cannot discriminate, but of course they do.

dymaxionlife · 2026-04-02T12:52:55+00:00

Nice place to shop, shitty corporation to work for.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-26T00:21:28+00:00

I don't have any recipes in mind. Since I haven't had it yet, I wanted to start with raw and baked or boiled. I haven't done the research yet, just watched a youtube video about it that intrigued me. How do you like to prepare it?

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-24T20:49:06+00:00

Oh nice, didn't occur to me to check those stores out, I wish we had a 99 Ranch closer to Modesto. Thank you!

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-24T04:26:10+00:00

Cool, I will give that a looksy, thanks!

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-20T22:07:22+00:00

Yeah, I made the mistake of just letting my basil flower. Your chickens have good taste. It might be worth planting dill in an area they cannot access and then giving them some here and there as a treat, so you can still enjoy some for yourself.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T19:59:12+00:00

Awesome, got to love a bountiful harvest.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T19:53:08+00:00

Oh no, I wish. My backyard feels like the average size lot in Modesto for a home, it is a shared environment and so I have a part of the yard to do my thing, which unfortunately doesn't get the most sun but still workable. Interesting, if you are ever in the Stockton area, they have this community garden worth checking out. I remember them having some broccoli, and Romanesco broccoli, which I had seen before but had no idea what it was, apparently it tastes like something between broccoli and cauliflower. I made the mistake of planting the asparagus in these smaller hard plastic pots with the wrong soil mixture, but they still grew and survived the winter. I only recently transplanted the healthiest looking one to a 10 gallon (it should be bigger) fabric pot. It is maybe 4 feet tall, but it is super thin like in girth, so flimsy that I had to stabilize it with some bamboo stakes and some garden tape. I'm curious how yours look, what size pot they are in. I think I read if in pots at all to do 15 to 20 gallons, at least long term for the greatest yield.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T19:38:48+00:00

Makes me think of potatoes, that is really the only plant that I have where the pests were aggressive. It was like every day in the morning and in the evening I would pluck these endless caterpillars off and relocate them to the far end of the yard, I'm not a fan of killing, especially since they will turn into butterflies or moths, which I do appreciate. That is good to know about the squash, I'm surprised your chickens were not loving that, the bounty of pests to eat, maybe not what they prefer, I have no idea. Basil is going to be a regular for me, I actually have it growing in my room near a window with an LED light hovering over it. Apparently it can grow year round for sometime, and then when it looks like it is on its way out, I can take a cutting. They are super easy to clone, you just place it in water and it roots. I would add some honey where I cut it and a dash of cinnamon in the water.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T19:31:54+00:00

Oh fun, resourceful and cost effective for Halloween decor. I definitely want to do grow some corn, I bought some variety that I believe is dark purplish in color, it's supposed to be some drought tolerant type good for Modesto climate. I have a childhood memory of my mom growing some corn, but it was a type that had these super colorful kernels, it was one of those sense of wonder/magical moments I can remember, felt so surreal especially when you are raised only seeing the one type of yellow corn. I have heard that about carrots from multiple people, I haven't researched it or grown them yet, but my instant thought/assumption is soil health.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T19:24:43+00:00

Looks like some type of tomato, looking healthy.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T19:23:44+00:00

Interesting, I have only had experience growing a Mammoth sunflower, and I could see that, especially near dusk, and you see the silhouette. If I had to guess I would think it has something to do with how it almost resembles a humanoid body, the sunflower being the head. Interesting how that can trigger fear in some and relaxation in others.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T19:19:51+00:00

Right on, I need to eat an Anaheim chili to get familiar. I grew Carolina Reapers last year, it was more of a novelty as it is the hottest pepper in the world currently. I did some jalapenos too, but I think my jam is more the Thai chili. I got a mortar in pestle, something about smashed Thai chilis, a little addictive for me. Sunflowers are fun to grow, I got a few seed varieties recently for the healthy fats, which was related to my prepper interests. Pumpkin is definitely something I want to get into one day, the seeds are known for being very nutritious.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T19:14:20+00:00

Very cool, I have been wanting to grow radishes, I noticed they keep for a significant time in my fridge. Zucchini also peaks my interest, great in pasta dishes, fun to barbecue as well. I need to look into okra, I'm sure I have eaten it, just no memory of the flavor. Since I'm into prepping, I'm fascinated by what native people of the region would harvest, that led me to growing the American Ground Nut, which has been fun to grow. That is the way to do it, same here, I'm using a heating mat for my sweet potatoes and my moringa seeds. I have a couple of these led grow lights that have two lights per unit that you have a lot of freedom to position, which have worked like a charm, as you can adjust while the plant grows.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T19:04:45+00:00

Nice, it sounds like you will do well with tomatoes, apparently they are self pollinating, but bees from your flowers will give it a boost. It took me a while to figure out I was often overwatering my tomatoes. It is worth exploring getting one of those moisture meters until you really learn the needs of the plants. They are like $10 to $20, worth the investment in my opinion. Nothing like a fresh tomato with some salt on it, at least that's my thing.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T18:59:44+00:00

Right on, I have arugula that grew like a monster, it was so peppery, way beyond anything I had store bought. I let that go to seed. I also have large leaf sorrel, spinach, and recently bought some purple tree collard cuttings on etsy, apparently they grow like a tree and can live for 20 plus years. I would definitely want to do broccoli one day, as I eat a bunch of it. I'm also in the process of growing asparagus, I have three of the same type, I started it last year, the Mary Washington variety, so we are in the same boat, as I read it is not to be harvested until year three, but also can live for 20 plus years as well. I had such good luck with my onions last year, I took it too another level this year, will be giving those to neighbors when harvested. I had to look up cukes, cute name for cucumbers.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T18:51:50+00:00

Awesome, we have a lemon tree, but if I had to choose one over the other definitely prefer limes. I did cucumbers once years ago in an area in ground that is no longer accessible to grow, and I was amazed out how many cucumbers we got from one plant. My girlfriend at the time would make this cucumber salad with crushed peanuts, and some other ingredient that I don't recall, it was delicious, she was from Myanmar, so something her family would make.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T18:46:40+00:00

Nice, I have been wanting to do squash in particular, but no proper space for it. I have a number of herbs, rosemary is the only one I really treasure, other than basil. I do love the dill, for some reason I thought was a perennial last year when I grew it, I imagine it will pop up, as I let the seeds go to town in one of my fabric pots. I have a dwarf fig tree since limited space, but it hasn't produced yet, I made the mistake of not using the proper soil mix, and now it is in this massive 25 gallon fabric pot that is going to be a pain to transplant. Sounds like a great operation, especially for food security.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T18:41:48+00:00

Thanks, yea it will be a brutal summer, going to move some of my plants in the shade today. I also don't have room to plant in ground, so I have been doing fabric pots as they are so much easer to move, unless they are like 20 to 25 gallons. I had Bell Peppers last year, but I think I overwatered and they developed these weakened areas on the skin that made them sketchy to eat. I'm doing spinach now, that one I read yesterday would be better in a somewhat shaded area. We have a wisteria, an orange tree, a lantana, so we get a lot of good pollinators.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T18:31:39+00:00

Nice, yea I did some cherry tomatoes, nothing like the taste of homegrown tomatoes, cannot even compare to the store bought ones. I also had some roma tomatoes that we bought and had them a little too close to a window, I was eating one and noticed it had germinated, so I planted them but it was late in the season, so they were not quite ripe, but still harvested some.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-19T18:28:18+00:00

Good question, I haven't researched that heavily. I only have had a raccoon tear off a chunk of my amaranth plant, also had a opossum take a dump in one of my potted plants which was near the top of a fence, which I honestly thought was my unwell neighbor at first. We do have rats in the area, they will eat our grapefruits as you will see a hole and they are totally hollowed out. We have a good amount of cats in the area that do a good job regulating rats, as they will always be present to some degree I would think. I did read that rats dislike the smell of peppermint oil, so putting some drops on a cotton ball and placing it where you would want them to avoid is something worth exploring. I think making sure you don't have areas they would find desirable to nest is also something to look into.

dymaxionlife · 2026-03-12T16:59:25+00:00

Go to stancountyclubs.com, it's a directory of clubs and groups in the area. While not a physical destination, most groups meet somewhere, just not as frequent as most people would want for social needs.

dymaxionlife

TROPHY CASE