Why I Oughta...

This Winter, we've been adding our kitchen waste to the carbon storage (mostly leaves) compost bin out back and have been sort of hand-turning it in to the top layer.  I add some kitchen waste, then add a thin layer of leaves on top.  And repeat.  I also started to add a little bit of biosolids to that same storage bin, too.   As the weather warms up, I'll get out there and turn the bin, but for now, I'm just thinking about how to add some amendments that might help speed-up the leaf bin a little bit. To that end, I was at the SBUX in Westmont last week and saw the big bag of used grounds on the counter that they were offering.  I grabbed a bag and brought it home.  Below are some photos of this ' Grounds for Your Garden ' package: I dumped the bag of grounds on the top of the bin and stir'd it in.  Below is how the grounds look straight out of the bag. In that photo, you can see some of the ornamental grasses that I cleaned up and put in the top of the bin. 

This seems like a relatively important development for our family:  a Starbucks is set to open in the outlot of the Lake Geneva Walmart.  Most mornings when we're up in Twin Lakes, I head out to either Bodi's bakeshop to pick up some donuts or to McDonald's for a couple of Big Breakfasts.  Then, I usually take a trip to the Walmart to pick up rations for the day.  Having a Starbucks there - and one with a drive thru - will be really nice and make a quick addition to the routine.  And, gives me another reason to make that 15 minute trip besides buying knock-off American Girl Dollie stuff for the girls along with the turkey and cheese stuff for Dallas' turkey and cheeses.

This morning I was at our local Starbucks picking Nat up a beverage when I spotted this record at the check-out counter. I really had to think hard to convince myself not to buy it.  I haven't bought a record in a long time, so this thing must have really spoken to me.  It is just a silly compilation they've titled " Let's Go ", but is packaged really cute and the point-of-purchase location was tempting.  I know some of you guys have bought this.  What do you think?  I really can't remember the last time I bought a record, so I'm not sure I can be convinced to go get it.