Balcony Garden

Two weeks ago I decided to plant a balcony container garden. All of my plants were bought at Gardens of Babylon in the Nashville Farmers Market. I strongly recommend this business. They have a great selection and I found the employees to be extremely knowledgeable and friendly.

I already had two flower boxes that were going unused, so I decided to fill these with herbs. Each box contains two plants. One contains cilantro and curled parsley. The other contains basil and Greek oregano. I’ve also got a couple of potted plants. I’ve got two 10” pots, one containing a rosemary plant and the other thyme.

I also have a couple of tomato plants. I chose two varieties: Bush Champions and Juliets. The Bush Champion was recommended for container gardens because the plants are only 24” tall, but can produce full size tomatoes. What I didn’t know when I bought the plant is a determinant variety. This means the plant will produce one harvest, and then may not produce another. I would have preferred an indeterminate variety, or a plant that continues to produce all season long, but I really didn’t understand the concept at the time. I’m not sure what the Juliets will end up looking like. It’s often described as being too big to put into salads without slicing, but too small to be a “slicer” tomato. It’s an indeterminate variety so it should produce all season.
All of the plants have been doing very well. I used a little cilantro in some black bean and corn burritos I made the other day. I also combined some of the rosemary with goat cheese to stuff some chicken breasts. The tomatoes are doing very well. I moved them to larger pots, added gravel to improve drainage and staked the Juliets up. After reading a few articles I decided to add some companion plants-plants that have symbiotic relationships with each other. The bush champions now share space with some chives and the Juliets now live with some mint.

Here are some pictures.

I’m still trying to decide what to grow in the two 10” pots the tomatoes used to live in. If you have any suggestions let me know.

The Best Parks in Nashville

On Saturday morning I went to the downtown library looking for a travel guide on Charleston. They didn’t have any on hand but I did stumble on a travel guide on Nashville. I had no intention of reading it, but I skimmed it over this morning to see if there were any major attractions I have missed out on. There was a section in the book regarding all of the nicknames this city has had or currently has. The list included: Music City USA, The Athens of the South, The Belt Buckle of The South, The Wall Street of the South (Nashville was a major player in southern banking before the shift to entertainment and healthcare) and The City of Parks.

City of Parks is an accurate description. The Nashville Parks commission states they manage 113 properties encompassing over 10,000 acres. In addition we have eight state parks the Nashville Metro area, numerous dog parks, and an aggressive plan in place to connect every part of Nashville through a series of urban greenways. Here is a list of some of my favorite parks in Nashville.

1. Centennial Park: (West End and Natchez Trace) I live two blocks away from Centennial Park and it is easily my favorite park in town. In my opinion, Centennial Park is the heart of the city. On any given day you can find numerous people taking advantage of what this area has to offer. The Parthenon, a replica of the Greek landmark that remains from the Exhibition, is its cornerstone. It houses the statue of Athena, a museum, and an art gallery. Lake Watuga is probably the second most notable feature and you can often find people fishing, feeding the birds, or relaxing on its banks. The park also boasts acres of green space, gardens, walking/running trails, and many other attractions. The park sponsors most of Nashville's key events including Earth Day, Movies in the Park, The Shakespere Festival, The Italian Festival, The Country Music Marathon, numerous chairity walks, and many other events. The park was added to the National Register of Historical Places in 1972. In 2008 Mayor Karl Dean announced a major initiative to restore and preserve the park.

2. Shelby Bottoms: (Shelby and 20th) Shelby Bottoms is amazing because its 810 acres of undeveloped land located in an area where land would probably sell for a hefty price. It has five miles of paved and unpaved trails making it popular amongst runners, bikers, hikers, and birdwatchers. On the weekend, I often ride my bike across the river through Shelby Bottoms, and into the Stones River Greenway. Shelby Bottoms is also located near Shelby Park which is popular because of its playgrounds, baseball field, lake, picnic areas, and boat ramps.

3. “Dragon Park”: (Blakemore and 24th) The actual name of this park is Fannie Mae Dees Park, but it’s better known as “Dragon Park.” When I lived in Hillsboro Village I was only a block away from this park. I’ll admit that there are nicer parks, but I think this one is probably the coolest one if you’re a little kid. The highlight of the park is “The Dragon,” a giant sculpture of a sea serpent covered with mosaic designs. A lesser known fact is that the park is also the home to Tennessee’s first “Boundlessness Playground.” The playground is the brainchild of a local mom who was concerned because there was no play area that was accessible to children with physical and developmental disabilities. Through her hard work and the support of her community “Lily’s Garden” was constructed and named after her daughter.

4. Radnor Lake: (Granny White and Otter Creek Road) Radnor Lake is a state park located in the Oak Hill community. The lake is actually manmade, it was constructed by a railroad company to supply water for it’s steam engines. Eventually developers tried to make the area into suburban tract housing, but the public prevailed and it’s now one of Nashville more popular parks. The area is always packed with walkers, hikers, and birders taking advantage of the several miles of paved and unpaved trails. The area also boasts a large selection of wildlife including birds, otters, and deer.

5. The Warner Parks: (Highway 100) Edwin Warner and Percy Warner parks are located in West Nashville, and when combined is one of the largest parks in the US. Currently the park is at 2,684 acres with negotiations underway to purchase another 324 acres of ancient forest from the HG Hill family. I don’t make it out to this park as much as I would like but it’s very popular. It has several miles of hiking and equestrian trails and hosts the Iroquois Steeplechase.

Honorable Mention: Sevier Park, Beeman Park, Hall Of Fame Park, Hamilton Creek Park

Cool Stop Motion Video: Wolf Likes Pork

Catching up on Restaurants: Old Timer’s Pit BBQ, Mirror, Satay, Paradise Ridge, and Kien Giang

A blog about food is long overdue. I’ve actually been to a couple of new restaurants over the past few weeks. Here is the update:

Old Timers Pit BBQ: Barbeque is one of my favorite foods. Nashville BBQ has typically disappointed me but after reading Ulika’s coverage of Old Timer’s I decided to give it a try. Old Timers is located in Bordeaux. For the non-Nashville readers, it’s not one of those places you just happen to drive through. You actually have to make a concentrated effort to end up there. I went there for lunch on a Saturday instead of ordering a combo I decided to get two sandwiches: a BBQ sandwich and a fish sandwich. The BBQ was decent. It was moist, but not too moist. My only complaint was that there wasn’t enough “bark” the dark, slightly charred meat from the outside of the pork shoulder. The fish sandwich (sandwiches tend to be a mainstay the in the Nashville African-American community) was gigantic. There were at least five fish filets on two slices of white bread with pickles and hot sauce. I’d definitely eat here again. I’m also interested in getting some cracklin’ here if they ever have any freshly cooked when I pop in.

Mirror: I met up with a friend a few weeks ago for Brunch at Mirror. It was surprisingly empty when we arrived at noon. I do not recommend the Bloody Mary, as it was one of the worst non-commerical mix bloodys I have ever had. My frittata with goat cheese and roasted vegetables was excellent. Mirror doesn’t blow me away, but it doesn’t disappoint either.

Satay: I love thai food and was pumped when Satay opened up in the old Wing Basket location near my house. I have mixed feelings about this restaurant. The menu is way too basic. If I remember correctly there were two soups, two appatizers, two salads, and two entrees offered. The food was very basic and very fresh, but very unremarkable. Even though it was pretty affordable and very convenient to my house, I doubt I will eat here often.

Paradise Ridge: I was still on my BBQ kick and had to run out to West Nashville to get a few things. While I was there I popped into Paridise Ridge Grille to try out their barbeque. I was pretty hungry so I got the rib and pulled pork combo with fried okra and white beans. The ribs were good. They were pretty meaty and served with a decent sauce. The pulled pork was excellent. I’d definitely eat here again.

Kien Giang: This Vietnamese restaurant is located in West Nashville in a part of town that has become spotted with Vietnamese, Korean, and Mexican restaurants. I’ve eaten here twice over the past few weeks. The first time I went I had an excellent bowl of pho (Vietnamese noodle soup). The only problem was that while I remembered to ask for no tripe, I forgot to ask for no tendon. I think that the tendon does add some flavor to the broth, but don’t really like it’s taste or texture. The second time I went I got Bahn Xeo, or Vietnamese pancakes. Although called a pancake the dish is really more akin to an omlet. You place a piece of the pancake in a lettuce leaf and season it with fresh basil and other spices. My Bahn Xeo was stuffed with bean sprouts, vegetables and shrimp. While the atmosphere leaves a lot to be desired, it has become one of my favorite ethnic restaurants based on the low prices and great food. Expect terrible service if you go.

Well, it’s dinnertime. I’m saving the three restaurants I haven’t wrote about for after my meal.

Weekend Update: Record Store Day, Earth Day, Bre Aid, Lollapalooza

1) Record Store Day at Grimey’s was awesome. I saw a great performance by the Avett Brothers, bought “It’s Blitz” the new album by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, bought “Separation Sunday” by The Hold Steady and 10 used CD’s (at an amazing $2 a pop). Nashville is pretty lucky to have several great music stores in my opinion. It should also be noted that Grimey’s got some pub in a recent Spin article about the 15 best indie record stores in America (side note: I’ve been to five of them including Goner, Grimey’s, Ear-x-tacy, Reckless, and Amoeba)

2) Earth Day was pretty cool. This event was definitely improved over last year. Exhibits of note included some cool electric cars, a neat booth about invasive species, and the local farmers. I also got to see some great performances by Autovaughn and Charles "Wigg" Walker and the Dynamites. I picked up a copy of Local Table while I was there, reading it makes me want to join a CSA (Consumer supported agriculture). These are programs where an individual purchases “shares” of a farm from a local farmer. In return the farmer gives the shareholder a portion of the harvest, equivalent to the number of shares the individual owns. It sounds like a great way to get fresh, local produce on a consistent basis. My worries are that I may not be able to consume my share fast enough and I could possibly get tired of eating the same vegetables over and over, especially in the winter months when fewer crops are harvested. My Earth Day Pledges were to sign up for a few kilowatt hours of green power with the local electric company and to get off as many junk mail lists as possible.

3) I think Bre-Aid was a great success. This event was a fundraiser for my friend Bre Andrews. Bre, who is 28 years old was diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer. She was 15 weeks pregnant at the time. Bre has been going to her treatments and is expecting to deliver in a few weeks. The treatments haven’t been cheap though and her friends and family have been rallying to help her out. It was cool to see her small town get behind her and put an event like this on. I’m guessing that somewhere between 300 to 400 people showed up for the event. If everyone contributed the suggested $20 then there was probably well over $6,000 raised.

4) Bought my Lollapalooza tickets today. The lineup didn’t blow me away, but it’s pretty solid. The bands that I’m most excited about seeing are mostly bands I have seen before like the Beastie Boys, Kings of Leon, The Killers, Band of Horses, TV on the Radio, The Decemberists, and The Gaslight Anthem. There are several bands that I’ve never seen I’m interested in, including Janes Addiction, Snoop Dogg, Vampire Weekend, Animal Collective, Of Montreal, and Fleet Foxes.

Flight of the Conchords!

I'm heading down to the Ryman on Friday afternoon to see New Zealand's fourth most popular guitar-based digi-bongo accapella-rap-funk-comedy-folk dou. I'm really looking forward to the show. I'm not quite sure what to expect, but it should be a good time. Enjoy a few videos:

The Most Beautiful Girl (in the room)


If your into it


And of course Business Time

Pearls Before Swine: Danny Donkey

Danny Donkey is my favorite Pearls Before Swine character. Danny Donkey is a character in Rat's childrens book. He is minanthropic, loves to steal, has no morals, and only cares about drinking beer and smoking cigarettes.