Modern Home

New Plants in Old Containers

[16 May, 2026]

Every year, I buy flowering, if not colorful, annuals that I plant in several old containers in my Japanese-inspired rear courtyard. This year was no different, except that I bought a bunch of perennials instead. I guess I got tired of pulling out old plants and replacing them with new ones every year. In addition to saving money, it also gives me back a lot of time that I can spend on another “favorite” task every spring — pulling weeds and errant grass amongst the permanent ground cover in the courtyard.

Additionally, I also re-built a 4-year old succulent pot that’s been adorning my indoor dining table. Easy-maintenance and quite resilient, these succulents should be good for another 4-5 years, I reckon.

New Clock

Just recently got this new two-sided classic-style analog wall clock from Dulton, a well-known Japanese homewares manufacturer and seller. It would be the latest addition to my growing collection of iconic and interesting timepieces. In case you couldn’t tell, I am fascinated with unique and oversized clocks. Big time!

Rocking the Landscape

[18 May, 2024]

The rock beds along the house’s front walk have settled and I spent the afternoon ferrying literally over a ton of ‘Alabama Sunset’ stones and raking them in level with the concrete walk. It was quite a workout, but I think worth the effort in the end.

Christmas Trees Are Up!

It’s that time of year - Christmas trees went up the day after Thanksgiving!

Fall at the Homestead

Fall is one of my favorite times of the year, and for me, provides the best light and colors to take photos of the house and its surroundings. Here are some from a cloudy day in late October.

Buff, Polish, Shine

It’s that time of year: a total clean up treatment of my concrete floor. First, a buff with the Oreck orbiter. followed by a thorough vacuum, and finally, 2 coats of Zep’s High Traffic Floor Polish. For that shiny, glass-like finish!

Another K BBQ Weekend

Another Korean BBQ this past weekend, this time, with Jeremy, who, back in his JBAD days, was part of the awesome design team that worked on my house. He and his wife also brought over everything needed for an evening’s worth of old-fashioneds.