Ma-ri-mo!

While browsing for some fishes in a local pet store, we came across this thing. For a moment I thought it was just a sponge.

Turns out it was actually a living thing - a 'moss ball', or as it is fondly called, a 'Marimo ball'.

The Marimo ball is actually well known, specially in Japan where it is protected and considered a national treasure. They have Marimo balls in the wild that can grow up to 12" in diameter.

What's interesting is how they end up in a ball form. Credit this to the water currents and evolution I guess. It does also propagate in 'loose form' and lay on the bottom like a carpet, but normally they 'ball up' and grow in such a manner.

With it's hardiness and low light needs, aquarium enthusiasts eventually discovered that it is a good addition to marine plants. It requires almost no maintenance at all, just the occasional cleaning with running water and 'palming' to keep it in a good round shape.

Another good plus is that algae-eating fishes don't really care for it (my Pleco avoids it) so one doesn't have to worry about it ending up as fish food.

Even though it is a bit pricey for a ball of moss, I'm still glad to have taken the plunge to add it to our aquarium. And we may even add one or more in the future!

DIY Car Tech

I always enjoy a good DIY project, specially car stuff. Been a car nut since a kid.

But before taking on such projects, always do your research. And having some sort of mechanical/electrical know-how and sense definitely helps - including the will to get down n' dirty because projects like these can go from butter-smooth to all out chaos in a matter of seconds!

Give yourself enough time and get help too. An additional hand will be good to have, as long as you two don't keep on bumping into each other.

So I tackled one of my fave car projects, a stereo install. Once you know how to remove (and return) the console panel and trim, everything else is a piece of cake ;-)

Took my time and got the unit in, and quite happy with the result. There are still two more pending sub-projects with this that are to be done - the reverse camera and HD radio module installs. The reverse camera is partly done, but the HD tunere will require a takedown of the head unit again.

More man-hours to come! Can't wait to get it all done;-) But never rush!

In the meantime, I'll study the layout first and finish some Angry Bird levels!

Cheers!

Duck!

You got to be real tall to duck under this sign! ;-)

Bite of Oregon

Another yearly fair, the Bite of Oregon showcases food vendors, that range from small carts to big time/mainstream vendors alike.

You can sample things from desserts to full blown entrees. They also offer full servings if one decides that the $3 sampler is not enough.

The good thing about this is that it is a ticketed and gated event, so there is some crowd control in place. But it does get packed, specially towards the evening.

The food samplers range from $3-5, and there are drinks from $2 and up. Got beer? Lots of it! There is also a wine tasting section with lots of good selections.

We got a one day pass and it we made the most of it.

And we'll definitely be back for next year's!

Pig out?

Well, not quite, but the food in Pig N' Pancake is good enough if one would decide to go pig out and have some good eats.

The nice thing is they serve breakfast all day. Having pancakes for dinner is definitely a treat!

After a good stroll at the beach and downtown Seaside, why not swing by Pig N' Pancake and have an omelette or two? Oh, and a cup of clam chowder to top it off!