New zone out music: Second Slumber – Empty Nest (2020)

New zone out music: Second Slumber – Empty Nest (2020)

Posted inMusic, Works by Eric
Unlike writing, I've still kept music "pure." By that I mean it's still something I go to when I just want to freely express myself, pushing out what's in my head and heart and soul in an abstract way without worrying about whether or not it's "right." So when throughout 2019 I was working on an album I knew would end up being called "Empty Nest," it wasn't a formal project I was working towards -- dear lord I do too much of that -- it was just something I gravitated to when I wanted to escape my thoughts, cares,…
Cooped Up At Home? Put Your Brain To Good Use

Cooped Up At Home? Put Your Brain To Good Use

Posted inContributed Posts
Image Credit: Pexels, Free to Use Licence  COVID-19 has well and truly put a spanner in the works of our day to day activities. Whereas last month we could whittle away the hours with our daily commute, social gatherings, and other communal activities, now we’re staying at home, which many of us have found to be quite a difficult transition to make. You see for some of us, staying at home prevents us from escaping boredom, inevitably leaving us alone with the thoughts that we try so hard to suppress. So what can you do to prevent the existential dread…
Planting Onions for the End Times (and other veggies you can store)

Planting Onions for the End Times (and other veggies you can store)

Posted inGardening, Random Musings
When the nearby strip malls and shopping plazas are in flames, rioters tearing one another's hair out and stomping one another to death in the blood-and-covid19-soaked parking lot, my onions will be just about ready to harvest. Onions are easy to plant and grow, and depending on your growing zone, now is the time to plant. You want to aim for early spring, when the soil is no longer frozen and can be easily worked. We're talking a solid six weeks or so before you're plant your tomatoes and peppers, give or take. Onions require a pretty long growing season,…
Gardening at the End of the World

Gardening at the End of the World

Posted inGardening, Random Musings
Since fully immersing myself into the gardening hobby -- some would say obsession -- my primary focus has always been on growing food. Growing lots of stuff to eat. Producing. Not from any kind of necessity, but because good production is a nice, tangible result of your efforts. All that food, those jars of pickles, those hot sauces you share, the jars of salsa that are 17x better than store bought, all of that stuff is something you can see and touch and enjoy. To me, it's not much different than recording music at home or writing or painting. When…