I’m enjoying house plants being back in the apartment again. I missed them. Since it’s too hot to do much outside, they lift my spirits.
Above them the tinkling chimes wave slightly being near the ceiling fan and vent, making their own soft music.
This morning I’m too bleary-eyed to be very coherent. Lack of sleep is making me dull-headed and slow.
It’s too bad I’ve never been able to sleep during the day. Even after I’ve had morning surgery and come home anesthetized, I still have never fallen asleep until after dark.
Poor Charlie. He can’t help it. He has good days and bad days. And I cherish the good ones. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to how things go.
My garden is limping along. I’m thinking about tearing out the annuals that are looking less than happy and planting the seeds I ordered. Some are zinnias and they seem to hold up well to the heat. I hope anyway.
Yet I hate to even be out there long in the crushing heat.
Even the mint and lemon balm aren’t looking too great. But they’re right out in the sun in that blue raised garden bed, and they famously don’t like a lot of sun.
The hostas there don’t look too great either.
My top pepper on my pepper plant is burned. I have yet to have a tomato or cucumber.
The ornamental grasses are standing up well to the heat so far.
But my lemon grass, that is at least four feet tall now, has been put behind my settee next to Jade the butterfly tree completely out of the sun because it looked so terribly unhappy.
Yet the insects keep buzzing and the grasshoppers keep hopping and occasionally I see a dragonfly or some member of the dragonfly family.
Every day around five o’clock Ivy hops up to my desk and then up to the tall craft cabinet waiting for the shadows to appear on the front door. This seems to really excite her.
Earlier I was in the bathroom and my shadow moved over the bathtub, where she was inside playing with a toy, and she kind of went berserk hopping around and flipping over.
Who knew something as simple as a shadow could so entertain a cat?
My daughter and Andrew are stopping by after church. I’ll ask them if they want grilled cheese sandwiches while they’re here. It’s one of Andrew’s favorites.
And I have banana popsicles. I’ve always loved banana popsicles and was glad to see them in the grocery store recently.
I also have baked beans that have been in the refrigerator for a few days. They seem to hold up well for awhile. Often in the evenings I’ll pull them out to have with an egg salad sandwich or a veggie burger.
Before we know it children will be headed back to school.
I remember when I was little summer vacation seemed so fleeting. And as I grow older, it seems to pass even more quickly.
I like the simple idea of egg salad sandwiches or veggie burgers with baked beans for a light summer supper. This week I have been on a veggie-filled baked potato kick, which is an idea I also got from you so thank you!
I too love banana popsicles but they are very hard to find.
Carol and Gabby
We went to a family reunion in the Cincinnati area on Saturday. Instead of cooking something to take, we filled up a cooler with ice and many flavors of popsicles. It was a big hit with kids and adults! It sure beat fixing a casserole. We didn’t have banana popsicles but they sound good. My favorite on Saturday was the lime popsicles.
Never had the lime. Sounds good though.
I wish you could put a small doggie door in for Charlie. We’re in our middle 60’s and have 2older dogs that have to go out in the middle of the night, we love it. But you have Ivy and she’s pretty smart, she might figure it out. I look forward every day to reading your blog looking at your pics of your fur baby’s and home.
Pulled some cukes this week almost enough to start my yearly pickeling richual.
Have a gallon frozen bag of wild blackberries i picked over a 4 day period, cant wait to make jam with them.
Its been a tough weekend for the people here in mass, so imagine how the plants feel, give the all a nice cool drink to keep them hydrated and happy, and they will surely give thanks back in the following weeks.
That is a pretty pic of sweet little Charlie!
Grilled cheese….my favorite!
Brenda
I know you have mentioned this before but can I ask what kind of veggie burgers are your favorite? Thank you so much! Everyday I learn something from you. We have a cat with a personality like Ivy’s. : )
I like Morning Star brand, original.
The heat has been unbearable in so many places, even here where I live and it didn’t used to be too much of an issue. I read an article recently that stated for my area we can expect to gradually add up to 21 more days of 90 degrees or above. I know for some folks this will sound “cool” but for our prior average annual temperatures, not so much. Having five days of 90 or above temps here used to be above normal. The times are a-changing, for sure.
I know you had looked into shade sails for your patio area but are very concerned because of the strong sudden winds and the rain that can suddenly pop up. I found this website that I thought was informative about the best kinds of shade sails and good installation techniques. There is a section right at the end (number 5) on “tension mounting” which specifically addresses the issue that a lot of people have with extreme winds and the proper mounting to use in such circumstances. You may find it of use. If your building will allow you to attach the shade sail to the building and perhaps you could hire Nathan to reinforce a portion or portions of the fence with good strong wood where you could install the proper hardware to “tension mount,” then you wouldn’t have to worry about the wind tearing off and destroying your shade sail. http://canopykingpin.com/shade-sails/dos-and-donts-for-patio-shade-sails/ The other important things I got from this article were to not buy a canvas shade sail (far too heavy) and to angle any shade sail at installation so that rain can run off. It should also not be left up year round if you get snow.
Thanks Jan, for finding this. I actually ran across it yesterday. There is so much to factor in when you live where there are often high winds.
My apartment neighbors hung wind chimes. It annoyed me a bit at first, but now I kind of enjoy them. It’s a fairly gentle tinkle, and when I hear them, I know some air is moving outside.
So happy you got some house plants. They will help you out in the winter when you can’t get outside to garden. And they are great for indoor air.
mmm… banana popsicles! Haven’t had one of these in maybe 50 or 60 years. They were my favorite! It’s stifling here in Massachusetts, even near the coast. It’s hard to get anything accomplished. Happy Sunday to you, Ivy, and Charlie.
Fall will be here before we know it. I am thinking of planting some new veggies in my little garden. I have pulled up the cucumber and squash plants and the tomatoes have all been stolen. It’s always a learning experience to see what will do well. Xo Laura