2803 Troy Road, Springfield Ohio
The purpose of digging this backyard water catch basin was to alleviate the light flooding that exists in our immediate neighborhood.
It was dug in the hopes that the standing water would run to the lowest elevation of the property which is where the catch basin has been excavated.
Upon moving to this location in 2014, it was realized that the area around the German Township in Springfield Ohio becomes saturated quickly with standing water once or twice each year.
Image shows the flooded state of my neighbor's property.
Although standing water might not be entirely eliminated by the installation of a flood catch-basin, the installation of a catch-basin should diminish the standing water that affect myself as well as a few neighbors.
Catch-basin experiment image date: April 22, 2018.
Several years ago a neighbor expressed concern that my catch basin may become a breeding ground for mosquitos.
It never materialized that way though. There are no mosquitos during the daytime and almost no mosquitos around here at night.
But what else might my catch basin breed?
That's right, God blessed us with frogs and toads instead! And take a wild guess what they feed off of?
To avoid further conflict with the off-standish neighbor, it was decided to eliminate the catch basin entirely.
Truth be told, I raised my grade quite a bit throughout the years so it's not my property that received the flooding. The images posted to this page are the neighbors yard (another neighbor).
After backfilling the catch-basin, evolution occurred.
The area with standing water is about two or three foot across, however the depth is approximately five foot deep.
Catch-basin August 16, 2023
Remnant of the Catch Basin
After having filled in the catch basin, there were still frogs living there. I left this small area which is a really great area to be, here's why:
Firstly, the temperature is super-cooler over here due to the trees and bushes that offer this area cover from constant direct sunlight. Standing in this area induce a feeling that there ought to be a bench or picnic table over here somewhere.
It was noticed that while digging up some old bricks that I had buried in the catch-basin, that there appears to be an unexpected amount of activity in this area. The water moved and something else moved in the corner of my other eye. Birds and frogs and other life must love this private place where we humans rarely go. 
Remains of catch-basin August 16, 2023
The Catch-basin project was started late 2017. It's 2019. I'm waiting for a good drought to get to the depth I need.
Although there is a switch to turn the solar panel on and off manually, left in the ON position, the pump starts to push water as soon as the sun rises, and ceases automagically when the sun sets (so there's not really a need to ever turn it off unless servicing something, or not needing the water).
The simple 12v pump has a variance of about +/- 7volts which allows for the direct connection to a 12v solar panel (without the need for batteries).
The water coming from the hose shown below has been transferred through over 75 feet using the method mentioned above.
A couple of the area Springfield Masons, such as Wright Sons Masonry, as well as other contractors and residents, began bringing in truckloads of masonry and dirt debris which has been layered to allow for easier underground travel of the water to the location of the pump.
In retrospect, I should have just stockpiled the masonry in one pile and the dirt in another and kept digging for a lower depth when the opportunity was available.
Not to change the subject, but the bottom photos are the first stage photos of the small green house that was in the making. It was hoped that the greenhouse would aid in starting the seedlings for early planting of the more hearty vegetables such as Kale, onion, garlic, etc.
For each of the pvc uprights there are 3-foot steel stakes which the pvc pipes slide over. After the legs of the greenhouse were slipped over the steel stakes, the tops of both sides were pulled together and secured to allow a good pitch for the snow to fall.
There were also added four 10-foot sections of truss-steel driven into the ground.
Shortly after construction was underway it was realized that not only does the greenhouse block the sun to the garden, but as luck would have it, a wind storm took it away.
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On a cheerier note, Mom came for a visit.
She has a sweet tooth so this jam ought to hold her over.
Raspberry Jam
Start Jam by Stirring
the Raspberries
Then keep stirring
After hours of stirring, comes the arduous lick tests
nope
Not quite...
Pick this one 
After all that licking, Steam Sterilize jars and ...
Voila~! 
First Random Video of the Year!
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You have reached the end of your random video.
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