Two for the Reading List

Just so I don't forget... I heard about these books on NPR today.

Window Garden

The newest living additions to the apartment are our cute lil plants! They've been around for awhile now, but this is their online debut, ta-da. We're growing chamomile, basil, and mint, but the more engaging specimens are our bonsai. Since this is a new hobby, the plan is to keep the trees alive before shaping and sculpting -- so far so good. Mine is even sprouting new leaves, after some conservative pruning that I've been doing over the past couple of weeks. Incidentally John is the unofficial pest control dude. Blah blah blah check out the pics.

Basil!

Mint!

Droopy chamomile: recent victim of bug infestation

Close-up of my succulents - those aren't spines; they're super-soft fuzzy hairs!

My growing bonsai: Chinese elm

John's robust juniper, with neighbors

Final Map Project

This map is the result of an awesome team effort. Unfortunately the rendering is rough, but I will attempt to fix that this summer. Our main objective was to find out the best Oakland city park for a hypothetical environmental education center targeted at middle and high school students. The criteria were based on transportation access and park amenities. I think it looks pretty cool, but the best part is that it can be used for real-world analysis, and it also has the potential to inform public leaders about the possibilities of developing more community resources. A successful project, it's a nice way to (almost) end the semester.