well the worst is over.
worst xmas ever. kids were atrocious. blackest of black.
but i still breathe.
how about you?
Posted by mopinko | Sun Dec 28, 2014, 08:59 PM (8 replies)in defense of weeds.
(from my farm blog on fb. i am being harassed by the city of chicago. i will have a lot to say in this group.)
so, i have learned more than i wanted to know about the chicago "weed" ordinance. i deny that i am or was in violation of the ordinance.
as i understand it, one key provision is that weeds are "untended", and then gives a couple arbitrary heights, and says anything over 4' must be cut back in the winter. no specific species are mentioned, and it is up to the discretion of the hearing officer, who may or may not know anything about wildflowers or native food plants.
i deny that i am or was in violation of the ordinance.
yes, many native plants have sprung up on my farm. yes, i let a lot of them grow, thrive and even seed.
BUT, nothing is allowed to stay unless it serves a purpose.
i do weed my weeds.
i eat my weeds.
i feed my weeds to my critters.
so, if i can eat it, i let it grow. if it makes an edible seed, i let it grow.
if pollinators frequent it, i let it grow.
if birds eat the seeds, i let it grow.
we harvested 2 kinds of mustard for human use.
we harvested a couple bushels of amaranth.
green corp kids harvested 4 big burlap bags of poor mans pepper, and a large pile of lambs quarters. (which grow beyond the arbitrary height of 4')
my chickens have feasted on an armload of fresh weeds 3-4 times a week since spring. their favorites gets sorted out where they are out of place.
when something threatens a crop, i pull it out.
if it conserves the topsoil, i let it grow.
if it feeds the soil, i let it grow.
if i think it is pretty, i let it grow.
there are several recognized wildflowers on the farm. i let them grow.
if it is something that it is useless to fight, and the bees like it, i let it grow.
if it is invasive, i dont let it grow.
if it is in the wrong place, i dont let it grow.
if it is overgrown, i dont let it grow.
i have cleared a dozen nuisance trees.
i have cleared a huge wild grape for now, tho i have let it cover much of the rear of the lot. some sort of building will be put there in the near future, i hope.
that is if this stupid fight with the city doesnt bleed the building fund dry.
i know a lot of people dont see the beauty that i see on my farm. i feel sorry for them. they should visit more often. they should learn.
i am happy to teach them.
one more time- the native plants at moah's ark are not untended. they are food. how can food be a weed?
mopinko (42,801 posts)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1235256settlement finally in the works.
he moved out april 15th, after 32 years and 4 kids together. mostly never "worked", tho i have made art and raised hell for most of those years.
we had a beautiful trip to hawaii in january, like a honeymoon. last year was very tough. launching the last kids. things just falling apart. we almost didnt go.
then, a 10 day lovefest.
3 days later, he declared he had grounds for divorce. my crime? replacing my beloved parrot who had escaped with a little fellow who needed a home.
and smoking dope with our 22 yo son.
high crimes, i guess.
been dragging through it all, with little crimes along the way. hiding money, stealing money, putting money in one day and taking it out the next.
and finally have an offer almost ready to present.
such hard choices.
there is property and money enough for him to drop the assets, walk away, and we both can start over.
he is starting to make fat money. i would likely be better off taking the maintenance, but damn. i just want him out of my life. he has been such a jerk.
got a piece of property with almost zero equity that i need to keep with my little farm. that means a fat mortgage for the next 12 years at least. trouble is, i dont know if it is possible to even get a mortgage on my own. which i could do with a nice maintenance check.
there is a fat 401k. i'm old enough to take disbursements.
need to crunch some numbers, i guess. i could always retire the loans out of that money. it would leave me with nearly free and clear rent checks.
i suspect that if i could keep the current terms, i would be better off making the payments. but i have serious doubts about keeping those terms on my own credit/income.
i just want it to be aalllll over. let him take his income and go get that trophy wife now.
the only thing i really want going forward is a split of his bonuses. at least that gives me a way to pay down those loans.
at least it doesnt feel like it has been for naught. we built things together. i wont starve.
but damn. can i just get out on the other side?
mopinko (42,801 posts)
2. i know.
i know no mater what i will get by. the big things is that i fear a meltdown in his future. i would rather take the money and say goodbye.
unfortunately, he racked up a huge debt in the last 2 years. we were nearly debt free. then we bought a 2 flat, and dumped a ton into it. now both properties have mortgages. opps. debts. forgot about that side of the ledger sheet, as it has been pretty clean for a long, long time. plus he insisted that they would be paid off in any settlement.
talk about your oh shit moments.
and in the end, that is what it is about. autonomy, or continued dependence. each has its own set of assets and risks. and like i said, i fear he is drinking more, which is not good. he is depressed, imho, or worse. and i wouldnt put it past him to take a dive just for spite.
i must admit, tho, that he is likely only going to fail up. he is already at the level where they never fire anyone. and psychos are richly rewarded. they would prolly give him a huge pity bump on his next review if he was splittin those checks w me.
number crunching is the order of my day, tho.
i do know someone good to call. imma do a little crunch on my own first.
ugh.
and btw, it is cold and raining here today. my farm looks like a bomb went off. the fat raspberry crop that was just starting to come in is dead. i was just starting to get tomatoes, and now they will shut down. hopefully we get a little sun soon, and i can at least salvage what is on the vine. man.
and another- youngest daughter has been sick all her life. she finally found an autonomic specialist who seems to have his finger on the problem. he thinks it is genetic. which prolly means no healthy biological grandkids for me, at least not without a lot of high tech help. other daughter has had a lot of issues as well. eesh. so glad for her to have answers. and she long since decided she should not reproduce. but damn. smack.
what a day. i knew i shoulda just gone back to bed this morning.
mopinko's Journal
obama will be more than magnanimous. he will be a healer.
Posted by mopinko in General Discussion: Presidential (Through Nov 2009)
Sat Apr 19th 2008, 10:36 PM
i say this to you from the bottom of my heart. there are very few here that are not on the obama train that i give 2 shits about. you are one of them. i read your posts, and i wish i could find a way to help you see the guy like i do. i believe in this guy. on my children's head, i swear to you that he is the real deal. he is my homie, and i know. i know who his friends are, i know who his mentors are, i know who helped him get started on this trip, i see how hard folks around here have worked for him. i think that half the illinois general assembly has taken a bus trip to knock on doors. my congresswoman, jan schakowsky, one of the most honest and brave members of the us house, is one of his biggest backers. she will be at his downtown office tomorrow, making phone calls to PA, ALL DAY.
i met him when he ran for the senate. he was out in the deep red burbs, trying to help get a democrat elected. and that is exactly why he has risen as far as he has. he has succeeded by locking arms with those around him, and marching forward together. i promise that is what he will do once this thing is locked up. he will proceed with humility, with dignity, with honesty, and with humor.
i personally invite you to come along.
mopinko's Journal
check in thread- who is for al gore '08?
Posted by mopinko in Al Gore Group
Sun Aug 05th 2007, 09:09 PM
and what are you going to do to convince him to run, and to help him get elected?
me- hopefully, i am going to run as delegate for gore. i will talk to my neighborhood democratic party tomorrow at their regular meeting. i worked hard for my alderman, know his people, and think that i will get their support.
i am also getting ready to start a blog. there are some right wing smear sites in my neighborhood, so i am trying to do a little truthout. al will definitely be a part of that.
i sent an email to the guy are gorehub.com, and he loved the gd thread. i am now on the email list, and promise to post things here that come in. that is not an excuse for you not to do the same, tho.
so, check in, show us what you got.
ps- donate. i did the other day, even before talking to dylan malone. gopt a couple of things in the way of the bank account right this minute, i will donate more soon.
