poolz1

A shot of the cell heading into southern Frederick Co. From Jefferson. Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

Feel like I am about 7-10 days behind those of you around the 95 corridor. Yesterday was noticeable uptick in shells found on our trees around the yard but before that it was pretty sparse. I was explaining the lifecycle to my youngest (4th grader) and she brought up a good question. Her question....Are these cicadas the longest living insect? I am sure I could do a google search but just thinking about it...17 years is pretty crazy for an insect. Longer than a lot of mammals.

Not bad for a cellphone shot. Saw several today in Frederick but nothing here at our house yet.

Salt systems are extremely popular. Roughly 75% of our customer base have converted to salt. With that said, we are honest with our customers on what to expect from a salt system as there is a lot misinformation and misconceptions out there. We have a salt system on our pool and love it. A few things to keep an eye on when owning a salt pool.. - A natural byproduct of the generation of chlorine is to constantly raise your ph. If left unmonitored, ph levels can shoot through the roof and you certainly dont want to winterize your pool if it has a high ph level. - The chlorine generated is an unstable form of chorine that is gassed off as soon as UV rays make contact. Maintain a good level of CYA (stabilizer) so you can set the cell at a lower output thus extending the life of the cell. - Clean the cell per the manufacturer's instructions. The process that goes on inside the cell encourages calcium and other dissolved solids to precipitate out. This will cause scale build up on the flow switch, temp sensor and "fins" inside the cell. Left unchecked, it will ruin the cell in a season or two. Using a maintenance dose of a scale inhibitor will help reduce the scale build up. - Be very careful using an auto cover or solar blanket on a salt pool. The pool must be allowed to gas off the unused chlorine on a regular basis. The build up of gas under the cover will create a chlorine level that will be unsafe to swim, throw your water chemistry out of whack and make that expected pool party a dud. We have seen chlorine levels at 30+ppm after a customer returns home from vacation.

I dont wish for a major drought but just a little dry is nice for us river fisherman. Rivers are already in good shape....just need them to come down a bit more and it will be prime.

That shrimp and broccoli....wow! Agreed. Especially in Spanish and Mexican dishes. One of my favorites is pork tacos from leftover pulled pork. Cook in the cast iron, constantly deglazing, adding spices, squeezing lime juice. Pork get crispy and so flavorful...the cinnamon works well with it. Crispy pork tacos are one of my favorites and I am usually forcing myself to stop eating.

Its been over a year since this house has been a bachelor pad for a night. Found thawed ground beef in the fridge along with 2 beers, leftover ciabatta on the counter, a fresh bag of regular UTZ in the pantry..... Added a slice of provolone, onions, LT&M and ketchup with a side pickle. Ground beef courtesy of Frederick CO. 4H. Purchased last fall after the Great Fred Fair.

I use cinnamon quite a bit in my rubs and a lot of seasonings. Its all personal preference, obviously. I think it really adds another dimension to the flavor of beef especially. That chicken looks awesome! Ive been on a spatchcock chicken kick here recently on charcoal the grill....

Yep...the Monocacy too. And just when the rivers were getting into good fishing shape. The creek in our backyard is just about to break out of its banks...Think it may come up short though.

1.61" for the day. 1.45" of that being from this evening.

Pretty the same obs out this way. Large tree down on our back road. Sirens in the distance a few minutes ago and no power. I wasn't home for the wind line but my wife said it was pretty intense. Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

Agreed, the cedar plank is my go to for grilling salmon. Great taste and the soaked plank keeps the thinner parts of the fillet from drying out. Looks delicious!

Currently snowing in Garret Co. with stickage on a few traffic cams out there. Classic MD

Looking forward to strawberry season. We transplanted our strawberry bed last spring and it produced a modest crop. Really looking healthy this year...both canning and fresh picking/eating looks to be a certainty.

The best grocery store in a 50 mile radius....maybe ever. Always have the ingredients you are looking for and their produce section is a home chef's dream.....

One of my favorites for summer grilling is lime juice, honey, olive oil, garlic and cilantro. Marinate for a few for a few hours and baste while grilling. Its simple but I like the fresh taste and the honey caramelizes a bit for a little sweet kick in some bites. I love cilantro...but I know some people are not fans. Just try not to think of stink bugs while using it! My youngest does not like cilantro just for that reason...

Maybe so. I honestly dont know how fragile they are....I would just assume that disrupting their habitat would not end well for them. But, that is just an assumption. Maybe they are durable little suckers. I remember the last wave 17 years ago as well. Living in Middletown (fred Co) at the time and I was underwhelmed and disappointed. But, I had many customers in the Bethesda/Potomac/Silver Spring area then and they were certainly swarming down there.

I was surprised to read that they are pretty mobile underground for those 17 years. So, maybe they are more able than we think in finding their way to the surface? I dont know why but I just pictured them being dormant the entire time. Obviously, I dont know much about them.

One thing to consider with these things is the amount of construction/development around your area in the past 17 years. Any new roads, foundations or any other significant excavation can certainly disrupt/destroy their emergence. Think what a new development with hundreds of new homes and a shopping center to serve those homes would have done to that local population.

That's perfection right there, Millville. One of my favorites when I am slicing up at home is to take a nice slice of marbled ribeye, drizzle a little toasted sesame oil on top and sprinkle with a little sea salt. Oh baby...simple but that flavor is money. imo, of course...

I was just staring at some short ribs in our freezer the other day. I've made them several times over the years but havent been wowed by a recipe yet (could be user error!) This one looks great...I'll give it shot. Thanks for passing it along. Great idea for a thread...love to cook. Anything and everything. Been trying to perfect my pho broth over the winter. Its delicious and the fam tears it up but I just cant quite get that authentic restaurant quality...missing something. Here was some homemade roasted garlic hummus and flatbread with all the fixings. Went great with a light, crisp IPA...or 3...

20.5 Frosty morning and the grass could use its first cutting today.

round 2 was enough to dust the mulch... more graupel this round. down to 33

legit squall resulting a nice roof and car topper. big fluffies....down to 35 with some serious gusts out there.

Warning issued.... up to 67 with partly sunny skies. Very dark to the west.