Ah, it�s the Reporting Back that makes you quiver, is it? Apologies for the delay in reporting, those who were eager to hear the synopsis of east coast leisure activities, but the lab lost my soil samples and I had to return to our digging site to collect replacements to be analyzed, and I couldn�t do a Report Back without soil results, now could I? That would be a disgrace. Mere words cannot quite describe the wonder of that which was this first picnic. No, nothing short of interpretive dancing would be accurate. But since all I have are words: There was enough food to feed a small army, though with Washington�s reputation for being gluttonous and evile, what else would one expect? Lisa�s cookies were phenomenal and I kicked myself for days for not remembering to take some home with me� If you ever undertake baking again, Lisa, I�ll pay you for two dozen!!! :) The bees must be lurking on the list, too, as they were nearly more friendly than the Picnickers (this may of course be attributed to the fact that Picknickers are less likely to attempt to do a few laps in your spiked orange and/or cranberry juice). Right, and there are no bees IN the ocean, in case you were confused about where the Mid-Atlantic Coast is. Apologies for a non-specific recount of all who attended, as we ended up, surprisingly, outnumbering the birthday party of a reported 75 attendees who had ACTUALLY reserved the picnic spot that we eventually commandeered. I�m pretty sure the birthday partiers were lying about their guest list, though. There was no way there were 75 people there. A lovely waterfall (kindly decorated by the locals with empty Beast cans and Slurpee cups) served as a delightful background on what was probably the first obscenely pleasant day so far this fall. It was almost easy to forget one was in the politically, socially, and economically tumultuous District of Columbia, that is, barring the occasional outbreak of sirens from just past the line of evergreens at the edge of Rock Creek Park. Did you know there really is a Pierce Mill, after which the nearby road was named? I didn�t. It�s a pretty sorry mill as far as mills go, but not altogether aesthetically unpleasant for a historic unused mill. A non-Sinister picnicker swore he saw a frog in the stream by the Mill, but we�re pretty sure he was drunk, or just cruelly taunting the nearby wee ones, who also swore the frog existed and then ran away to pee in their trousers. A pretty low-key event, really � we chatted about the band, of course, DICKYWUSS, of course, and those of us who had not yet heard it quickly grew jealous of those who had. Lisa entertained us with stories about what used to be Stuart�s car and the Dog on Wheels, and we discussed the merits � or lack thereof � of Constitution Hall as a venue for a band like Belle & Sebastian. The general consensus was that the Hall, indeed, sucks, for pretty much any band, and definitely for the likes of B&S. Thank God they will be appearing at the more commercial -- and thusly more indie-kid spurned -- 9:30 Club next month. So suck it up, DC hipsters, and come out to join the B&S fun. It�s so rare we get to enjoy them live in these here parts. With the exception perhaps of the bruises I obtained from being assaulted with tennis balls, we all left unscathed, well-fed, and definitely well-sunned. I unfortunately could not locate Jenny at Wag night, but perhaps next time, eh? Special thanks to those who brought food and drink, and whoever brought the tennis ball� You'll get yours. :) Kevin, sorry you had to miss the event. There�s something to be said for just stuffing your personal life in a tote and bringing it with you, instead of missing a rare event like this one. We could always have fed one more� :) Don�t lose sleep if you also were a no-show. Perhaps someone else will take it upon him or herself to organize Act II. Thanks to all, and I�ll see you �round the List. ~ Kim P.S. AND THE SOIL RESULTS WERE AS FOLLOWS: * AREA: Near Pierce Mill; Pierce Mill Road, Washington, D.C. NW * Soil Nutrient Levels (based on ideal conditions for agronomic crops): - pH ~ 6.2 (barely optimum) - Phosphorus ~ 38 ppm (optimum) - Potassium ~ 276 ppm (above optimum) - Magnesium ~ 49 ppm (below optimum) - Calcium ~ 2660 ppm * Recommendations: Treatment with calcium carbonate to raise the magnesium level and pH of the soil. Needed nutrients for a yield of 6 T/acre of alfalfa include 50 lb phosphate/acre. For 100 Bu/acre, the soil will require a treatment of 100 lb nitrogen/acre and 20 lb phosphate/acre. 33 T/acre corn for silage will require soil treatment of 240 lb nitrogen/acre and 80 lb phosphate/acre. * Basically, we don�t recommend anyone begin farming Rock Creek Park. At least not near the bike path, anyway. __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! SiteBuilder - Free, easy-to-use web site design software http://sitebuilder.yahoo.com +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail sinister@missprint.org. To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to majordomo@missprint.org. 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