Watering "Lucky Bamboo" and a pop(u)lar pen.

A friend recently gave me a "Lucky Bamboo" plant. Did you know that they aren't really bamboo, even though they look like it? Anyway, I have always liked these, but never bought one. They grow in just water. I looked them up online and found that you shouldn't use tap water because municipalities add fluoride, and that causes the leaves to brown. So what to do? Go to the store and BUY distilled water? Not on my dime. I figured out a FREE alternative.

In my basement I have a dehumidifier. About every week or so I pour out the water that is collected from the air around me. I figured that is pretty clean water that hasn't been chemically treated. So I simply filled up a couple of glass jars cleaned out from store bought spaghetti sauce. Voila! Free clean water. It got me to thinking that if I had a fishtank (and I don't want one) it would be good for that too. Just throwing that out there for you fishtank lovers.


The dust collector still hasn't been wired up, but I made another pen. This one is poplar from my neighbor's back yard. I cut the tree down and air dried it for a few years. In fact, it is the same tree as the chess pieces. It finishes up a little green, but will oxidize to brown with time. All the other pens are "green" with envy because this one is so pop(u)lar. Har har.

Compare it to the pens below. This one has a max diameter of 28/64ths (yes, I use a caliper to check) and the ones below have a max diameter of 32/64ths. Not sure which I like better, but the slimmer one seems more graceful.