Another of those hot, humid, almost sunless days. The sun rose with a
watery countenance then disappeared. The air was thick and sticky, tiny bugs
hovering, biting and stinging if given half a chance. Why do they always manage
to bite no matter how much you cover up and spray what have to be near-lethal
chemicals? They always find a spot to attack!
Sometimes they cling to your tee shirt (which we all seem to wear these days),
and come into the house. If you sit still they make that awful buzz in your ear.
You scream "mosquito" knowing you'll never squish it before it finds a spot and
takes your blood!
This is the best type of food for August in these parts. Little cooking (grilling
outside preferable), plenty of tomatoes around, olives and goat cheese in the fridge,
oil on the shelf. . . . . just pick up a deep purple eggplant (aubergine), and grill,
add a crusty artisan loaf.
With a glass of chilled rosé - this weekend I'm enjoying a bottle of an old California
standby, Dark Horse, just $8.00 - hard to beat. . . . . .
. . . . . . though I may toss together a simple pasta also.
Surroundings can change. Mine have these past weeks.
No longer circled by long time friends, my neighborhood is different now . . . .
. . . . . . . and this particular weekend, sooooo quiet!
Seven houses make up our cul-de-sac. Our immediate neighbors to the left
are brand new owners with plans to raze this now empty house (above) and
build a bigger house which will use much more of the lot . . . . . some old
trees will have to go.
The house directly across the street is empty and up for sale.
Three current neighbors are away traveling leaving just one
neighbor, the newest homeowner, plus Bob and I, the only people
here. . . . . . at least for this weekend!
It seems odd, strange, almost otherworldly, the quietness of the street.
Even the birds seem fewer in the fig tree - perhaps even they are
sick of eating figs now the insects have taken over.
The house next door - sadly soon to be gone at less than 40 years old.
Weekend reading - my first Anna Quindlen novel which
I'm enjoying.
"Quindlen's astute observations. . . are the sorts
of details every writer and reader lives for."
---Chicago Tribune
"A wise tale about second chances, starting over, and going after
what is most important in life."
---Minneapolis Star Tribune
Someone did find a new neighbor for the nest! Now who could that have been.
Note: I just came back after a break to complete this post.
If you're trying to create a new post this afternoon you may, like me,
suddenly find everything is double spacing and photos are posting in
a very large format.
A lot of fiddling is going on - please Blogger cut to the chase and get the problems sorted!
Make sizing, centering, line spacing, adding labels etc., simple again.
Bring back spellcheck - and definitely do something ASAP to rid us of the
disgusting comments being left on our posts by a person(s) despite our settings
supposedly denying them access!
Something is horribly wrong here.
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Mary, I adored reading about your bout with the mosquito. The buzzing in the ear is awful! I, too, am trying to get used to blogger's new set-up. Not being a tech person, I wish everyone would just leave things alone. "If it is not broken don't fix it." I hope you are having a good weekend. Hugs!
ReplyDeleteThings are just getting more difficult with Blogger, so frustrating!
DeleteYour food always looks so delicious, Mary. I'm having to stay away from pasta and bread again though as it's been bloating me terribly again. Question about grilling eggplant (if you could email me at melriley62@gmail.com)...how do you slice it & then prepare it for grilling? Thank you so much.
ReplyDeleteI've been having a glass of rose or white at dinner this summer, too. Perfect for a hot evening with a light meal. I save the heavier reds for fall and winter.
Your neighborhood looks beautiful. It'll be interesting to see what happens in your cul de sac.
I read that Anna Quindlen novel years ago. I'll have to be honest: it wasn't one of my favorites of all her books.
Happy Sunday - I hope you get some relief soon from the heat and bugs!
I'll email you later Melanie!
DeleteI don't usually read light(romantic)fiction like that but must say it's been a change, and she does write well.
You meal sounds perfect for a summer day. Even though we live in the woods, we rarely have mosquitos here! We had a beautiful day here. Sunny, low humidity for a change and a light breeze.
ReplyDeleteTrying to get Bob to move to your woods then!!!!!
DeleteThey really are awful this year Penny.
How horrid for you to have nasty comments. I went back to the old Blogger but within a day they had changed me back. I dont like it.
ReplyDeleteNow I've noticed when looking back at old posts, the photos are all showing up in a HUGE format, what the h--- are they doing?
DeleteAlso today when working on a new post it keeps double spacing!
Wordpress may be in my future!
It is so sad when people cut down perfectly good houses to build something more to their liking. So much waste! All the labor and love that went into the place dishonored. I know this sort of thing is going on everywhere, all the time - but!
ReplyDeleteI have felt the same about productive fruit orchards that are pulled out to plant something else. But what can farmers do, when they have to adjust to the global market and find what they can sell? It's all sad, and I guess those small, personal examples that cause me sorrow help keep me in touch with the larger worldwide reality.
Your neighborhood still looks lovely. It's interesting to live in the same neighborhood for decades and see how things change. My own neighborhood seems better in many ways than when we first moved here -- except for the one big loss, that the rest of my family no longer live here!
Yes, changes are so hard to accept. I know that's a sign of our aging, we are thinking of the past which we loved, and can't come to grips with this very different future.
DeleteIt will be very interesting to see how things go next door, and in the neighborhood in general which is changing very fast!
Dear Mary - don't like the sound of your mosquitos, but do like your August menus, lots of delicious tasty colourful food. You can get spell checker if you click on the control tab, hold it down and then click on the word that is underlined in red - the correct spelling will appear along with other options too.
ReplyDeleteThank for the heads up re: spell checker Rosemary.
DeleteToday it's crazy - I'm finding Blogger wants us to double space in new posts!
Have you looked back at your old posts and noticed they have changed the size of your photos? Mine are all showing in a huge format, grrrrrr!!!
How sad to see your sweet little neighborhood changing like that. We hate seeing that happen in our neighborhood too. Your veggies look delicious! And yes! Blogger is a booger right now. I need to go check my last post and comments. If they don't get it straightened out I know many are thinking of migrating to WordPress.
ReplyDeleteI may have to go the Wordpress route too Marilyn if Blogger doesn't fix things!
DeleteYour description of the mosquito made me shudder! And looking at that sweet home knowing that it is being taken out gave me a pang. You tell'em Mary!
ReplyDeleteThis year's mozzies are very small we notice - almost invisible - and I hate them so much! Other than being food for other creatures (whom I know have to eat), what good are they? They bring illness and death to so many, mostly in other countries, however we are becoming more at risk here without blanket spraying as many species carry diseases!
Delete