Monthly Archives: September 2020

2020 Voting Information for Philadelphia

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The 2020 general election is less than 6 weeks away. This post is where I’m collecting information specifically to help Philadelphia voters. Some of this information may apply to other voters in Pennsylvania, but you should check with your local authorities. 

I’ll be updating this post as I get additional information. You can get additional information from the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Voting Guide.

Whether you’re a PA voter or not, you can register to vote at Vote.org. 

If you don’t want to read through this, here are some quick links.

The Census

First, if you haven’t filled out the Census, please do so. The Census is what helps determine how congressional districts are drawn. It’s part of what determines how you’re represented in Congress and who you may be eligible to vote for. It also helps determine how much federal aid a given area gets. 

You can fill out the Census online. The deadline was moved up this year, so you only have until September 30th. 

Important Dates for PA Voters

The following are the state deadlines for voting related activities. However, if you’re planning to vote by mail, please assume you have 2 fewer weeks than listed. I’ve provided links that will allow you to register to vote and request a mail-in or absentee ballot online. 

September 29, 2020 – First day of “early voting” in Philadelphia (See below for details).

October 19, 2020 – the last day to REGISTER before the November election. Pennsylvania residents can register online, but you’ll need your driver’s licence PennDOT ID number. If you’ve already registered, you may want to check your voter registration on or before this date just in case.

October 20, 2020 – I strongly suggest that you send in your mail-in or civilian absentee ballot by this date. 

October 27, 2020 – Technically this is the last day to apply for a mail-in or civilian absentee ballot for Pennsylvanians. If you do this, I strongly recommend that, rather than requesting your ballot online, you go to your local election office. 

November 3, 2020 – Election day. Your mail in or absentee ballot must be received by this date. (The PA Supreme Court extended the deadline so that ballots must now be postmarked by November 3rd and received by November 6th, but the Republican party is planning to appeal. To be safe, assume your ballet needs to be received by November 3rd.)

Ensuring* Your Mail-In Ballot is Counted

*as much as that’s possible

There are a few important things to keep in mind if you’re using a Mail-In Ballot. Not doing these things could mean your ballot won’t get counted:

  • Your ballot must be received by the deadline (assume it’s November 3rd). For that to happen, you should probably turn it in in-person or mail it by October 20th.
  • Your ballot needs 2 envelopes. There’s an inner secrecy envelope and an outer envelope. Make sure you use both.
  • You must sign the outer ballot envelope.
  • Your signature must match what’s on file with the elections office.

If you’ve already requested your mail-in ballot, you can check your mail-in ballot status online.

Early Voting and Election Offices in Philadelphia

In Philadelphia, you can vote early at one of 17 locations: 2 permanent elections offices and 15 temporary satellite offices. The Philadelphia Inquirer has information on their locations, hours and services. A few of the surrounding counties are also opening satellite elections offices, as well.

Here’s a brief list of what you can do at these satellite elections offices:

  • Register to vote (until October 19th)
  • Request, receive, fill out, and submit a mail ballot in one stop (until October 27th)
  • Request a mail ballot to take home and submit later (until October 27th)
  • Drop off a completed mail ballot (until November 3rd)

All 17 elections offices will be open 7 days a week from September 29th to November 3rd. Their hours are:
Monday through Thursday: 11:30 am to 6:30 pm
Friday through Sunday: 9:30 am to 4:30 pm.

Voting in Person

If you’re frustrated by the complications of mail-in ballots, you can vote in person. This year, Philly is using new voting systems. You can watch a video of how those work on the Philadelphia City Commissioners website.

Philadelphia Sample Ballots

I haven’t seen sample ballots yet. I’ll update when I do.

Pittmoss Review

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3 x 3 raised garden bed with Pittmoss mixed into the soil that was previously in the bed. Clockwise from the top left, the plants in this are culinary sage, rosemary Hardy Hill, lemon thyme, and French thyme.

This post is to document my experiences (to date) with a new-to-me planting/potting medium called Pittmoss. Before I get into details, I should state up front that I purchased the Pittmoss and all of the plants I’ll be talking about, and there are no affiliate links in this post.

To be honest, my decision to try it really came down to the fact that, while the cost per cubic foot of the Pittmoss was relatively high, shipping costs for my other choices would have been prohibitively expensive, and I was really looking for something that would just show up on my doorstep. (I’m lazy, remember?)

I’m not sure where I first heard about Pittmoss, but it’s basically made from recycled paper with other stuff (eg, bark, compost, microorganisms from bovine compost, etc) added to it. I was interested initially because it’s peat-free, but then also because it uses recycled paper. (Their website says upcycled.) I believe it’s called Pittmoss as a play on peat and because the company is based in the Pittsburgh area.

I ordered several 2-cubic-foot bags of the stuff, and they arrived at my doorstep, as expected. They were packed in cardboard boxes, which I stacked up. Leo decided that the stack was his new perch and he greatly enjoyed lounging there for a few days until my fall plants arrived.

Amsonia Blue Ice.

The Pittmoss smells… essentially like what it is: old paper. It’s a bit musty but the smell doesn’t bother me. If you’re into that old paper smell, you may even enjoy it.

Once my fall plants arrived, I took them and the Pittmoss to the patio to begin planting. I have to say, Pittmoss is very lightweight. Usually, carrying 2 cubic feet of potting medium would have meant I need a break. (I’m not very strong. It’s probably related to my laziness.) But carrying 2 or even 4 cubic feet of Pittmoss is no big deal.

Once you open up the bag, it looks a bit like gray insulation. The texture is super fluffy. There were a few chunks of paper still stuck together. When you break them apart, you can see all the colorful bits of shredded paper. It’s a little like breaking up an owl pellet, I suppose. (I’ve never done that personally, just seen it done.)

Russian sage.

I used a bit over 2 cubic feet to top up my raised bed and mixed it in with the existing soil in the bed. I used about another cubic foot mixed with existing soil to fill 2 large round containers, a 1’x2’ rectangular container, and a window box.

The raised bed got sage, rosemary, and 2 types of thyme and will also be getting some yarrow later. The rectangular planter got oregano, the window box got chives, and the two round containers got russian sage and amsonia blue ice.

Oregano in a rectangular planter. The Pitmoss looks like gray fluff/mush here.

Pittmoss claims to have “improved water retention” and to require ⅔ less watering. I’m assuming this is compared to peat-based planting media. I’ve planted a whole variety of plants in this stuff, and their water needs range from ‘really liking dry’ to ‘really liking wet.’ I’m really curious how they do with the Pittmoss. My suspicion is the rosemary will be the least happy, but we’ll see.

I’m also curious about how much this stuff will compact, given how fluffy it started out. I don’t want my plant roots trapped in paper mache. Similarly, I’m curious how this will hold up over time, as everything I’ve planted in it so far is a perennial. I may just try some basil indoors to see how it does with an annual. (The basil on the patio has become a tasty snack for something that owes me a few bucks for seed and watering.)

So here’s a bullet point summary, if you didn’t read the above.

  • Good:
    • lightweight and easy to carry
    • fluffy texture is kind of neat
  • Neutral (for me):
    • smells like old paper
  • To be determined:
    • how much it compresses over time
    • how it does for perennials
    • how different plants like the water retention

It should also be noted that this is a purely observational, uncontrolled, non-blinded experiment. It has no scientific validity, but it’s fun. I’ll post updates.