It’s been well over a year since since we last saw lizards in our backyard. I blame outdoor cats. These are alligator lizards and I’ve spotted them twice in the last week. That gives me hope we’ll see them regularly again.

alligator lizard at bottom of fence looking at the camera.small alligator lizard in some leaf litter.

This seems like a legit earthquake signal. Happened in the middle of the night April 2nd so cultural noise is minimal.

#Earthquake recorded on the #RaspberryShake #CitizenScience seismic network. See what’s shaking near you with the @raspishake #ShakeNet mobile app

I just hooked up one more drip line to the little Antelco eZyvalve valve box. I think I’m done for the season reconfiguring our drip system. Time to see how reliable this thing is. I’m not sure what I’ll do with the last two valves. Spares for now. 🌱

Spring mornings in our front yard. Sage and Ceanothus are in full bloom. 💚🌱

sage (light purple) and ceanothus (violet) flowers.

Our native California grapes have been very busy over the last week! 🌱

This morning, two Northern Mockingbirds briefly hung out on our backyard patio. It seems super rare to see a pair of them.

We planted all our indoor pepper and tomato starts. The Serranos looked most distressed prior to transplant 🤞🌱

iOS Shortcut: RaspberryShake Helicorder 24 Hour Plot

I rapidly made a iOS 14 Shortcut that automatically pulls the last 24 hours of helicorder plots from your #RaspberryShake (it assumes a rs.local hostname). Handy to have on the Home Screen. Let me know if there’s any problems. If you’re not in the US west coast, you’ll need to adjust to UTC from your time zone (look for Add 7 hours). Get it here.

Older 3/28 Shortcut version

I just installed this Antelco eZyvalve 4 Zone Valve Box. I’m very pleased so far. We’ll see how durable and long lasting it is. I’ll be connecting drip to it. It’s wired to my Rachio Gen 2 irrigation controller.

I used the Controller app to create an automation that triggers upon press of my Logitech doorbell button. Then I converted it to a Shortcut so that upon doorbell press, my dining room lights will flash. Real cool. So the light is Set on or off and then reversed depending on the light status.

Ceanothus (California lilac) is magnificently blooming. 🌱

Row Crop irrigation kit from Drip Depot installed. Really pleased with this so far. I need to stake the tubes in a bit. Will be planting in a week or two. The peppers & tomatoes are hardening now. 🌱

Currently reading: 1Q84 (Vintage International) by Haruki Murakami 📚

Finished reading: A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin ★★★★★ 📚. I honestly could barely put the book down to sleep. Super.

J&J Vaccine ✅ thanks, quick call list!!

The nectarine is about to start shedding its flowers. Leaves are growing. Since it is pretty young starting its second year in the ground, I’ll be super impressed if it successfully fruits. 🌳🌱

A slow, rolling bloom for the apricot this year. It didn’t fruit at all last year. Here’s hoping for a fruitful year. (it has fruited before so we know it is possible) 🌳🌱

In-flight water drops.

drops of water

Twitter Feeds in the latest NetNewsWire 6 beta are great. The key is to be really choosy.

The monster alligator lizard in the shed still lives! Maybe 6 inches long. Been well over a year since last seen.

alligator lizard on an old fence board