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Debbie Ridpath Ohi reads, writes and illustrates for young people.

**PLEASE PARDON THE CONSTRUCTION DUST. My website is in the process of being completely revamped, and my brand new site will be unveiled later in 2021! Stay tuned! ** 

Every once in a while, Debbie shares new art, writing and resources; subscribe below. Browse the archives here.

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***Please note: You are browsing Debbie's personal blog. For her kidlit/YA writing & illustrating blog, see Inkygirl.com.

You can browse by date or entry title in my Blatherings archives here:

 1997 - 1998 - 1999 - 2000 - 2001 - 2002 - 2003 - 2004 - 2005 - 2006 2007 - 2008 - 2009 - 2010+ (current archives)

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Wednesday
Aug312005

handwritten entry: tea and more tea

To Mac tech-types out there: Do any of you know of an easy way to convert .wav to MP3 files? Any help appreciated (by me as well as Urban Tapestry)! (Update: Thanks to Mike Whitaker, Peter, Merav and Phillip; I think I've got it now. :-))

Meanwhile, here's another Blatherdoodle. Click the image for a larger version:

Handwritten entry: tea and more tea




Aug/Sept 2005 comments:
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Tuesday
Aug302005

dehumidifiers and handwritten Blatherings

050830lizard


(Click on image above for a bigger version)

Yay, I have a dehumidifer in my basement office! This may not sound all that exciting to some of you, but it makes a big difference in the coziness factor; I love my new office but lately it's been feeling a bit damp (esp. first thing in the morning), and some of my paperback covers have started curling. My dad helped us get a new Kenmore dehumidifier as a housewarming gift, and it's now sitting under my office tree beside my keyboard.

Up to recently, I had zero knowledge about (and frankly, interest in) dehumidifiers. Here are a few things I learned during my recent research, in case any of you are dying to know as well:

- Musty basement smells are often caused by too much humidity (which encourages mold growth; see below).

- When humidity is over 50 per cent, mold is more likely to grow indoors. Also, dust mites prefer relative humidity of 50 per cent and higher. Both can cause respiratory problems.

- If someone in the household is asthmatic, you should consider keeping the humidity level in the bedroom at 40 per cent or less.

- Here's how a dehumidifier works.

- This page has a useful table with typical symptoms and long-term effects of humidity problems (too much and too little). Recommended home relative humidity (RH) levels:

  • Recommended indoor RH: 30% to 50%

  • When it is below -10 deg C outdoors, recommended indoor RH: 30%

    Hm. I wonder if I could sell a magazine article about home humidity? I've already started working on queries about selling and buying a house and moving. Home ownership is certainly inspiring me to venture into knowledge areas I had only vague awareness of before. Like gardening, for instance; I just found out that a plant I quite liked in our garden is actually a weed.

    So many articles and books I want to write, so little time...

    Aug/Sept 2005 comments:
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  • Tuesday
    Aug302005

    blue man group and postcards

    Postcard from Joey


    Saw the Blue Man Group with Jeff and one of our nieces last night. I've seen the performance before (in New York and Las Vegas) but our niece hadn't yet; we took her as a birthday gift. We sat in the poncho section where, as the section name indicates, we were issued plastic ponchos because of the risk of interesting materials landing in our area of the audience. I won't go into details for fear of spoilers except that we had great fun and that I got banana pudding in my hair.

    :-D

    THANKS again to those who sent postcards to my P.O. box for my collection! You can see my collection so far in Flickr. Here are the latest additions...

    Description of postcard at the top of the page:

    Postcard from Joey



    CALIFORNIA FIXER UPPER: 3 bedroom, 2 baths, mature landscaping, great neighborhood, roof needs work. YOURS as is for $999,995.00! Photo by Ken Glaser, Jr.

    "Hi Debbie! Congratulations to you and Jeff - yay for new house!

    Love and chocolates,
    Joey

    P.S. I'm still saving up for my dream home here - like it?"




    Postcard from Kate



    Postcard from Kate


    #10946 Bobcat (Felis rufus). The bobcat is secretive as well as curious. it has keen eyesight and hearing that enable it to ambush its prey. It is a small cat, weighing approximately 20 pounds and its 6-inch tail accounts for its name. Its tufts of hair rising from its ears are used as a form of communication with other bobcats. Photographer-Tom Stack & Associates / Robert Winslow.

    "Hi!

    This is for your postcard collection - I finally remembered at a time when I was near some postcards. I bought this at the Alpine Lodge in Rocky Mountain Nat. Park. Over 12,000 feet above sea level. Vastly different from PA. I got to have a snowball fight. :)

    I'm Kate - Kyleri on LJ. Enjoy the postcard, and have fun at the new house!

    Kate."




    Postcard from Sandro



    Postcard from Sandro


    SBB Lebensstationen, 1 von 7 Sujets.

    "Dear Deb! I'm a huge fan of your comic strips! I've read in your 'Blatherings' that you love to receive postcards so I thought you might like to receive a letter from a total stranger!

    My name's Sandro and I come from the Principality of xxxx, Europe.
    I found your comic coincidentally by googling the web for a 'cooking comic' and found your comic about tv dinners in front of the fridge. First I thought you might like to receive a postcard with the view of Lieditenstein (From Debbie: I may have mis-transcribed here, apologies), but I decided to take one from the 'sbb' the Swiss train company.

    I hope you enjoy new house. We just moved too, and we had to renovate a lot. Wow, it's stressful. I hope you like the new Harry Potter.

    Lots of love, Sandro."




    Postcard from Mary



    Postcard from Mary


    Hummingbird and Ginger Flower, Costa Rica.

    "Look! I made it to a bookstore, finally! I hope you're enjoying the new house - leaks from drains and all - and congratulations on both house and your wonderful garden.

    Are you planning to put out feeders to attract hummingbirds? They drink sugar water, apparently. It's been fun reading your moving-in reports. Welcome to your new home!

    Mary."




    Postcards from Dave W.



    Postcard from Dave


    JONES BEACH: Early morning view of Jones Beach State Park. Jones Beach Water Tower can be seen in the background.

    "I spent (and still spend) a lot of time on this beach - it's only an 8 mile bike ride from my front door! (of course, it's usually not so empty)... - Dave W."

    Letter from Dave


    FIRE ISLAND LIGHTHOUSE: Located on Fire Island, just east of Robert Moses State Park. The lighthouse overlooks Great South Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. Construction began in 1857 and the lighthouse was in operation by November of 1858. The lighthouse was decommission in 1974. Ten years later, after much deterioration, The Fire Island Lighthouse Preservation Society was formed to restore the lighthouse. In 1986, the beacon in the lighthouse was relighted. The Fire Island Lighthouse was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981.

    "The picture doesn't actually do it justice. This is a lovely bit of beach, with deer all around in the dunes. - Dave W."

    Thanks again for the postcards! If you're inspired to send me one: Debbie Ridpath Ohi, 34 Eglinton Ave. W., P.O. Box 189, Toronto, ON Canada M4R 2H6. I usually check my mailbox once a week when I'm in the city (and not in the midst of moving chaos and canoe/cottage trips; apologies for the delay in checking the mailbox recently).

    Aug/Sept 2005 comments:
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    Sunday
    Aug282005

    Happy birthday, Dad!

    Cottage hummingbirds


    HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY DAD! (see Blatherdoodle below)

    I took the above photo at the cottage a couple of weeks ago, before we left on our canoe trip. At one point there were at least SIX hummingbirds hovering around, jostling for position. Geez, for such fragile-looking creatures, they sure are nasty to each other.

    Anyway, here's a Blatherdoodle, in honour of my Dad (click image for a bigger version)....

    Handwritten entry: happy birthday, dad!




    You can see my other handwritten Blatherings entries in this Flickr set.

    Aug/Sept 2005 comments:
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    Saturday
    Aug272005

    Quillows and postcards

    Apologies for not checking my P.O. Box sooner, but I was at the cottage and then a canoe trip over a period of about two weeks.

    Click for larger version:

    Handwritten entry: quillows and postcards




    You can see my other handwritten Blatherings entries in this Flickr set.

    Aug/Sept 2005 comments:
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