Step by step we climb the foothill.

Before the winds really came up yesterday, I got a bunch of oak branches burnt down to ash. I did it in the Weber, thank goodness, so I could shut all the hatches and not have a patio covered in it today. The used up coco mats from the hanging planters made excellent firestarter, by the way. A little of that goes a long way.

Today, I found a ceramic pot to steep the lye in. I lined it with rocks, put in another coco mat (to act as a filter), poured the ashes in on top of the mat, and then filled it up with water. I covered it and then put it up where it should be undisturbed. I'll check the concentration on Friday.

I also found my pH strips. They work, despite their age (they were given to me as a kid). Listerine, my test fluid, is pH 4, which is frightening. Don't put that in your mouth!

I've been shopping for straw hats for my A&S class. The wholesale sites I've found have insufficient information on the hats. Fortunately, retail sites are a little more forthcoming and have better pictures of the same hats. Retail markup appears to be about 4x. I did find a site that will let me pay wholesale prices. The hats are sold by the dozen. When it gets here, I'll test out one hat to see if it'll work for the class. Hopefully, I won't be left with eleven lemons.