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Learn what soda ash does in tie dye and why it helps cotton shirts absorb color evenly. Includes a photo of the soda-ash presoak process. What does soda ash do before dyeing? It makes the fabric ready to grab color. The soda ash raises the pH so the dye will chemically bond to cotton instead of just washing out later. I soaked this lavender work shirt in soda ash water and wrung it out by hand. It’s 100% cotton with white screen print graphics that I’m planning to overdye. The white ink stays white because it’s a synthetic material. The soda ash step doesn’t look dramatic, but it makes a huge difference in how permanent the color will be. It’s called sodium carbonate, but in the tie dye world, people refer to it as soda ash. I usually mix one cup of soda ash per gallon of water and let the shirt get fully wet before squeezing it out. Some people like to spin out the excess soda ash and pour it back into the main soaking bucket. Corky Lorenz October 7, 2025

Photos from the 2025 Tinley Park NARBC Reptile Expo featuring lizards, snakes, frogs, and other reptiles. Includes candid shots of displays and animals from vendors and attendees. Lizards, snakes, & frogs at the Tinley Reptile Expo There was so much variety to see among vendor booths! I was also impressed by the number of vendors I recognized from the previous two visits to this NARBC expo location. Corky Lorenz October 14, 2025

Known for its Olive burgers and standard fast food menu, this location in Sturgis Michigan is the last remaining Hot n’ Now restaurant. Is Hot n’ Now still open? There was one remaining Hot n' Now location in Sturgis, MI, but recently a second location has been opened, in Wayland, MI. A few months ago, a friend asked me if I’d ever been to Hot n’ Now. I said no, and he was appalled. So we immediately drove from Elkhart to Sturgis Michigan. He got the famous Olive burger, which is in the picture above and I got a normal cheeseburger. We also got fries and onion rings to share. The crispy fried foods were exactly as you would expect and lifted my mood as intended. It seems like they stayed consistent with the branding and menu, even though they now operate independently. I noticed in the drive-through they had Hot n’ Now merch that they were selling. This is a very nostalgic fast food place for a lot of people because when I posted about it on Facebook, it went kind of viral locally. Corky Lorenz October 5, 2025

Geode tie dye is made by wrapping sinew tightly around fabric to form rings and lines that look like a sliced geode. Works well with ice-dye or the cold mist method. What is geode tie dye? It’s a style of tie dye that ends up resembling a sliced agate or geode. Artificial sinew is wrapped around fabric and pulled tight to resist dye and create lines. I first saw this style of tie dye from a creator who was dyeing fabric to sew reusable pads and cloth diapers. She was tying multiple concentric lines with sinew on bamboo sherpa fabric, and I thought it was really beautiful and wanted to try it myself. At first, it’s difficult to get a feel for how tight the ties need to be if you want the lines to stay crisp without blotchiness between them. The tied item ends up looking like an octopus with a bunch of tentacles poking out everywhere. It’s a time consuming method, but a lot of people enjoy the results and the ways the colors will split when it’s ice dyed or when someone uses the cold mist method. I usually ice dye geodes, and I get the best results when I apply ice and dye to one side, let it melt, then flip it over and apply more ice and dye to the other side. The results end up being more even across the whole item, especially if it’s a shirt. The parts of the shirt that face up and get the most contact with the ice and dye usually look the best, so doing two applications helps even that out. There’s also a lot of benefit to the cold mist method in how fast you can flip the item and apply dye from different directions. Corky Lorenz October 8, 2025

Learn how the flowy, polyester fleece tie dye method was invented. By layering thin fabric over polyester fleece, the dye flows across the surface instead of soaking through, creating smooth, watercolor-style lines instead of jagged ones. What is the flowy poly fleece method in tie dye? This is a technique meant to produce a smooth watercolor look on thin fabrics. It’s done by placing polyester fleece behind the thin fabric before bunching. This is a technique I call the poly fleece method, for ice dye. It's a trick I developed while chasing the watercolor look on thinner fabrics. I first noticed that thick sweatshirts hold their folds with structure, creating smoother dye flow, while light shirts crinkled and broke the color lines. I tried foil supports, but the sharp points disrupted the flow. Then I stacked multiple cotton shirts, hoping they’d mimic sweatshirt weight, but each layer absorbed instead of channeling the dye. Eventually I used a layer of polyester fleece beneath the thin shirt. It repelled just enough moisture to keep the dye traveling across the surface instead of through it, while still allowing gentle drainage. The result is what I now call flowy ice dye. Long, smooth gradients that behave more like watercolor art than traditional tie-dye. Corky Lorenz October 6, 2025

The farmer’s market held its first ever evening event which featured live music and a variety of vendors present for shopping under the string lights. Mishawaka Market Under The Lights For the first time, The Mishawaka Farmers Market was held at night. Vendors and guests enjoyed the overhead string lights along the riverwalk. The Mishawaka farmers market is a very popular event on Sundays throughout the summer season. When they posted on Facebook that they were holding an evening market under the lights, I was intrigued. I just happen to be available that evening so I headed over and hoped to get some pretty pictures with the sun setting and the string lights overhead. Parking was kind of chaotic because there were so many people trying to park at one time. I told my friend that it felt like there was a swarm of cars trying to find parking spots. If you’re going to the farmer’s market, you need to make sure that you don’t park in one of the residential lots that is marked only for those residents. I ended up parking on the street a few blocks away and didn’t mind the walk back to the Riverwalk. It seemed like the two hour event was very popular and people were really enjoying themselves. There were a ton of dogs, which is always fun to see, and there was a live music performance that people enjoyed listening to while watching the sunset. Corky Lorenz October 5, 2025

Admission is $12 for adults, $9 for seniors, and $7 for children at Fernwood Botanical Garden. Members visit free all year. Includes membership and event pricing info. What is the cost of admission at Fernwood Botanical Garden? Tickets to Fernwood Botanical Garden cost $12 for adults, $9 for seniors, and $7 for children. Kids under 4 get in free. Members visit free all year, and some events or photography sessions may have extra fees. Fernwood memberships are available for individuals, couples, and families. A membership includes free daily admission and reciprocal access to many other gardens across the country. Locally, that includes Wellfield Botanic Gardens and Potawatomi Conservatories, both excellent companion destinations if you enjoy plants, trails, and calm spaces. Special events like LIGHTS at Fernwood may have separate admission pricing. For the latest discounts and details, visit Fernwood’s official website . Corky Lorenz November 3, 2025

The box includes the outdoor air conditioner, plenum parts, filters, and all screws and brackets required for installation. Some models also include a remote or wall controller as optional accessories. What comes with a ducted air conditioning unit? The ducted air conditioning system comes with the outdoor unit, plenum assembly, filters, and all the hardware needed for installation. Optional accessories like a remote or wall controller may also be included depending on the setup. Ducted Air-Conditioning System Installation Parts List Main parts: BELAIRE air-conditioner outdoor unit ×1 Outlet gasket ×1(In A3501/A3800 modes, the outlet gasket is fixed to the outdoor unit) Air flow separation baffle ×1 Plenum mounting bracket ×1 Return air filters ×2 Plenum assembly ×1 M8 × 180mm hex head bolts ×4 Metal clamping bars ×4 Large M8 washers ×4 Plenum screw – ST4.2×19 pan head screws ×4 Countersunk head self-tapping screw – ST4.2×16 ×6 Remote controller ×1 (Optional accessory) Wall pad controller ×1 (Optional accessory) Corky Lorenz November 4, 2025

Inside the box you’ll find the outdoor air conditioner unit, the interior plenum, and all required hardware, filters, and gaskets. It’s a complete installation kit with nothing extra needed. What comes in the box with an AC heat pump unit? The box includes the main outdoor air-conditioning unit, the plenum assembly for inside the RV, and all necessary mounting hardware and filters. Everything needed for a standard installation, bolts, brackets, gaskets, and screws, is included. Standard System Installation Parts List Main parts: BELAIRE air-conditioner outdoor unit ×1 Outlet gasket ×1(In A3501/A3800 modes, the outlet gasket is fixed to the outdoor unit) Outlet air duct ×1 Plenum mounting bracket ×1 Return air filters ×2 Plenum assembly ×1 M8 × 120mm hex head bolts ×4 (T3500)M8 × 180mm hex head bolts ×4 (A3501/A3800) Metal clamping bars ×4 Large M8 washers ×4 Truss head tapping screws ST4×10 ×8 Plenum screw – ST4.2×19 pan head screws ×4 Countersunk head self tapping screws ST4.2×16 ×6 Corky Lorenz November 4, 2025

A small patch of stuck shed on a hognose snake’s head or eyes is common and usually clears up on its own. A simple moist hide with damp moss helps loosen it safely. What should you do if your hognose snake has stuck shed on its head? Sometimes a hognose snake will finish shedding its body but still have old skin left on the head or eyes. This is normal and usually clears up on its own once the snake has access to a little extra humidity. In the main image, you can see that the snake has some shed sticking up on its head. The rest of its body had already finished shedding cleanly. My friend said the only other spot that can sometimes hold onto shed is the very tip of the tail, but this snake just had it over the eyes and forehead area. When a snake has a bit of stuck shed, my friend said he’ll just put some moist sphagnum moss under a hide in their enclosure. The snake can go in and out as it wants, and that extra humidity helps loosen the shed naturally. It’s not something you really need to worry about. Just make sure they have a humidity option so they can take care of it themselves. Corky Lorenz November 2, 2025