This week - hot and hotter!

I long for the ending of this year's Summer season. It has been nothing but endless days of breathtaking dry heat. Carrying a water bottle is sensible. I usually forget mine, so end up with throat issues as I become dehydrated after just a short time outdoors. Yesterday we ran some errands in 102F, not smart. The heat shimmered across the concrete parking lots, getting back into the car was like plunging into a furnace. I was thankful for my air conditioned leather seats. We ended the afternoon in a favorite wine bar before heading to the house for supper. I ordered a crystal clear glass of icy cold rosé and requested a glass of water - he brought me a large chilled bottle.

The house is cool and walking in refreshing. Meals are quick with no long prep. Roasting, boiling, frying, not in the cards lately. Even a tomato sandwich with a slice of fresh mozzarella and a bright green salad is satisfying on a hot night.

I've done little around the house this summer. Need to downsize stuff. Editing knick knacks will be a winter project, again! That said I have a few new to me items on the walls!  My wonderful neighbor has moved. He and his kitty Ms. Nala, whom you may recall I often cared for when he traveled, have a new home. We will miss him being next door, but he'll be around a lot as he's keeping the house and renting it to a family member.  He gifted me with this beautiful antique mirror and two winter landscape paintings. He knew I always loved these when they hung in his house. He's kind and thoughtful and has always been there for us in the last ten years.

Meanwhile, I'm pulling out autumn/winter weight clothes for the upcoming trip across the pond. It will be cooler there for certain. I will love that. The collapsible rack is at the ready. I hang things there daily while deciding what I will pack later. Each day different items appear as others disappear back into drawers and closets. Decisions as to what to take - and fit into one suitcase - is the hardest part of a journey for me, and it never gets any easier!  Going home soon.
  

When I dig back through memory cells, I get one particularly distinctive feeling - and that's one of warmth, comfort and well-being. For whatever else I may have had, or lost, or will find - I've still got a hometown. This, nobody's gonna take away from me. 

Rod Serling

Not myself. . . . . . . .

Celeste fig tree coming along great - even tiny fruits galore already!

This past week was a really hard one. 
Just two days after my dear next door neighbor and friend of 12 years passed away, 
another close neighbor, two houses away, lost his elderly father from head injuries
 from a fall, followed by a stroke.  

These sad losses, along with the terrible growing numbers of deaths from the 
corona virus, and a frightening worldwide situation, has made me want to scream. . . . 
and I did, into my thick Pottery Barn bath towel after taking a shower yesterday! 
I just wrapped it around my face and screamed - luckily the bathroom fan muffles
 noise and Bob's hearing is not as good as it used to be! 
Yes, I admit, I'm not myself by any means - going to bed early, sleep disturbed 
several times a night. . . . . and tired, 
oh so tired in the mornings.

BUT, before you think I'm falling apart, really I'm not!

I'm staying busy because, thankfully, I do have my garden which is probably
 saving me. . . . . . as well as Bob and our great nearby neighbors.  
We are all working outside in perfect conditions this week - brilliant sunshine 
under cobalt skies, perfect temperatures, no humidity, even the pollen 
slowing down, and best of all, for me, very few mosquitoes yet! 

 Staying in our gardens we are much more than six feet apart but still able to chat, 
share garden tips and, now and again, update one another regarding happenings
in this scary pandemic world.

The birds are singing nonstop now - this male towhee sits in an oak above my

 garden bench for 20 minutes at a time serenading his lady, paying no attention to me.

Mama finch is still sitting on her three eggs.

Within a few days I think the eggs will start to hatch.

So we have been staying busy, the garden taking up several hours each day.

 A very early run to the garden center (with only a couple of other customers at that

 ungodly shopping time) at Lowe's one morning for potting soil, tomato plants, 

petunias and geranium plants, the pre-potted display (above) for the large urn, hanging

 Boston ferns, herbs/moonflower/morning glory seeds etc. All items to keep me happy

in the weeks ahead.

Note my glorious now red maple tree in the background - it will gradually turn green

 and then red again in autumn!

A second early morning trip, armed with washable cloth shopping bags, a mask 

and gloves (above), was to Costco at the specified senior time 8-9 AM. 

On arrival we immediately changed our plan as the invisible end of the line

 somewhere around the back of the huge building, plus many people who

were obviously NOT 60 or older (naughty!), turned us off. Instead we quickly

 drove across the street to Trader Joe's where we were greeted at the door by

 cheery men who wiped down a cart for us, ushered us inside immediately - and 

being early there were not too many customers so safe distance was no problem.

Deciding on perishable foods/produce etc. to buy these days is rather hard - things

 that last as long as possible are important.  I have peppers, tomatoes, cauliflower, 
leeks, squash potatoes etc. as I make loads of vegetarian soups - only problem 
now is I'm running out of freezer space to store the soups!

Don't forget some fruits!

We started using the gazebo for supper this week as it was still warm in the evenings.

It's like having a little nearby 'restaurant' and makes a change of scenery.

I've also taken my laptop out there where birdsong, blooming azaleas, and an iced

 coffee make it a comforting retreat.

I hope this Sunday, Palm Sunday, is a special day for you. 

Perhaps you won't be able to be with your loved ones this year but still

 make it a good day.  

We need to stay safe, we need to do what is necessary. . . . . . and by now we all

 know what that entails, so let's do it!

Despite the troubled world and so much sadness, I hope we can still do our usual

Easter time blog posts. Please display decor around your homes (my Easter bunnies

 are ready), beauty in your gardens, or just a few kind words which are needed more

 than ever at this special time.

Stay well dear friends.

Other people's furry friends. . . . . . . . . .

For a few days I'm cat-sitting again.

Nala knows me well now. . . . . . . . but it still takes several days before she

 allows a cuddle. In fact, this time around, before I have to leave town myself, 

I may not even be able to entice her into my lap with a treat, time will tell.

Cats definitely have personalities. 

Here's more about Nala.

Unwanted visitor!

Never discuss cheese with rats, talk bread with birds

 or make moves with snakes.

                                                               ~ Author unknown ~

Love birds, will share my cheese with a rat teeny tiny

 mouse . . . . . . but snakes terrify me!

OMG, thankful again for yet another great neighbor, this time Dale, two doors down.

He's my go to nature guy as he's a hunter (I forgive him), and will save me

from the not so nice critters who visit the cottage.

Picture this - me sitting on the front porch after supper last evening - light drizzle
 falling as dusk fell. Bob upstairs on phone making travel arrangements.

Finch parents making a last check on their babies in the hanging basket overhead,

(I think they'll fledge any day now), cardinals singing in the fig tree, no mosquitoes,

  life was good. . . . . . 

. . . . . UNTIL I went in the house to get a paper towel to wipe a spider web off the

 carriage lamp and on my return this gigantic 5 foot black snake was silently
 slithering across the chair seat cushion and my reading glasses, WHERE I WAS
 JUST SITTING, down onto the porch and over the doormat.

I could have died right then and there as I'm terrified of snakes - and this was
the biggest I've ever seen at the cottage!!!
Calling for Bob to come downstairs (how I didn't scream I don't know) and at the
 same time calling Dale who was the only person I knew could help me - he was
 having dinner in a restaurant but promised to come home soon. 
Bob couldn't believe his eyes when he saw the size of this creature. I went into
 the dining room and immediately saw it looking at me through 
the window as it climbed up the frame and then I realized where it was planning
to go. . . . . . . . to get my baby finches in the hanging basket, help!!!!!!!!
Dale pulled up - grabbed a shovel from his truck - Mary ran out the back door and
 down the driveway (camera in hand of course!), Bob followed and we all 
headed to the front porch.

Dale: "Oh yeah, that's really a big one"
Bob: "Thanks for coming Dale, is it poisonous?" 
Mary: "How can you get it off the window and save my baby birds?"

As you can see in the photos, it was a huge, but not venomous, black rat snake.
 Dale was brave, Bob was relieved he didn't have to capture and dispose of it
 as even non-venomous snakes bite and one can get a nasty infection, and
 Mary's hands were shaking - and heart pounding.
What a night!

The finch babies are safe and enjoyed what could be their last night on the
  porch prior to fledging - they really look ready to fly. Little do they or their
parents know what a close call they had.

Gotta run now. We're off to the coast - it's drizzly and so humid this morning.
More later. . . . . . . . 

Homes for Birds . . . . . . . .

It was one of those weekends when great weather enabled me to get

 outdoors and work on jobs awaiting around the exterior of the cottage. 

 This required assistance from our great next-door neighbor - another Bob. 

 Working with two 'Bobs' was a lot of fun, especially when it came

to heavy lifting, working with drills and other tools etc.

Removed the old birdhouse which although a bit messy, was donated to

 neighbor Bob who will fix it up and set on a new pole in his side garden

 between our houses and we can both enjoy it a bit longer.  Plus his cat,

 Ms. Nala, whom I take care of when he travels, may get to 

watch birds come and go from her perch in the window.

The removal of the roof (it was screwed on) prove interesting as it had not been

 opened in several years - one of those jobs requiring a ladder, a drill, so one

 seems to keep putting it off and it never gets done! 

"Honey, let's try to get the roof off the birdhouse and clean

 it out today".

"Not today there are bluebirds in it." or

"Not today, I just saw nuthatches taking in nesting materials.

"Oops, there are babies in there and we can't disturb them now." 

On removing the roof we were overwhelmed by the contents - 

several nests on top of each other constructed of assorted materials

 including, twigs (the bluebirds), soft woven grasses, pine straw, dried skeleton

 leaves, pieces of thread, even a length of plastic. . . . . . 

. . . . . . and in the roof a hornet's nest!

I think the underside of the roof mimics a sunflower - quite stunning.

Nature's art.

We then mounted the new birdhouse on a new post - former one was warped. . . . . . 

. . . . . . . a new six unit 'apartment building' which hopefully,

 next year, will bring new birds looking for a nesting site.

I'm working on another outdoor project, started yesterday and will complete

today - more on that later as I'm heading out to paint right now. . . . . . 

and the chimney sweep will be here this morning so Spring Cleaning

is in the near future.

Gazpacho by any other name. . . . . . . .

This is what I made yesterday. . . . . . . . .  . the really delicious 

Cucumber Gazpacho from Barbara Kafka's amazing cook book,

SOUP ~ A Way of Life, one of my favorites.

I've made it before during the summer months when cukes are coming in 

fast and furious from the garden (I used to grow my own). These are 

from my neighbor's garden. Whilst he's on vacation, and I'm cat-sitting for 

him, I'm permitted to pick his veggies, "thank you very much", and along

with the giant cukes calling out to be harvested, I also took a couple

of jalapeño peppers - the red ones are from the grocery store.

  His cherry tomatoes are just starting to ripen, the larger slicing ones will take longer,

 but this recipe does not require them - this is a green gazpacho and is really delicious.

Do you enjoy chilled soups in hot weather?

Vichyssoise is another soup I love - and of course the original

 style of Gazpacho made with tomatoes is hard to beat.

The blender and food processor will be staying busy here

 on these hot summer days!

 

ICE~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It's not what I'd hoped for!  No softly falling flakes outside the window. 

No sitting, watching drifts pile up and counting inches.  

No fluffy, powdery snow to play in.  

No snow people being constructed or snowballs being tossed this morning, 

but neighbor April and her daughter Raya are sliding down the driveway on 

a plastic saucer, brave girls - but then they're from New Jersey!

Instead, last evening, I listened to the scratching at the glass as the sleet rained down. 

I huddled at the hearth wrapped in my Antarctic fleece and SmartWool leggings, 

nursing a mug of hot liquid, just praying the power would stay on and that our aging 

heating system doesn't quit any day soon.

Everyone was waiting for snow yesterday afternoon.

It was an ice storm. 

Over quickly, no languishing about with thoughts of making 

the landscape beautiful.  Just long enough to coat most of the state in a 

glittering white iron blanket.  Roads are treacherous, most places are closed. 

Northerners call us wimps here in the south when we groan over this type of weather.

I've lived up there and know it's hard in Winter, but at least they are prepared with 

equipment and manpower to deal with the transportation problems. Here we hesitate

to spend money on things we may only use once in a blue moon - or a huge Winter storm.

So here goes~~~~~~~this is what I'm doing today.

Taking photos through the windows as I look out at the icy scene.

Our neighbor came by before we were even up, scraped our front steps, 

put down salt, and tossed Bob's newspaper right by the front door. How thankful 

we are for people such as Dale

My physiotherapy session is canceled. We have enough food and plenty

to drink. We have logs for the hearth tonight, a big pot of soup, another of chili.

We have even colder temperatures coming later this week. Voices hum from the TV

with talk of breaking weather records ahead.

Hope you enjoy the wildlife in my garden - as we're stuck here you just may be seeing more later as the birds are very hungry and flying in non-stop.

Let me know if you want the name of any particular bird you're not familiar with.