Wicked hot weekend!

 

The weekend was another one of dealing with overpowering heat and not a drop of rain. Other than grabbing some needed grocery items on Friday afternoon, which was a scorcher, meeting up with daughter and her partner on Saturday at a wine bar to celebrate his birthday over a chilled glass of Portuguese Rosé - which was great - we stayed close to home. 

Watering is tiring at the best of times, dragging heavy hoses while batting off mosquitoes and bees (I've yet to find a bug repellent that truly works!) in triple digit temperatures is stupid. . . . . . .but sometimes has to be done for the greater good.

Neighbor is away, the vegetable patch is mine for a while, and I'm not going to allow these gorgeous tomatoes to suffer - he told me to pick them and use them which of course I'm doing. 

The weekend harvest!

These 'Beefmaster' tomatoes are excellent - and we actually made old

 fashioned sandwiches with sourdough bread, mayo, salt and

 pepper - delicious! The flour was out as I also plan to bake some

 whole wheat cheese scones this week - on a cooler day of 

course - as they go well with tomato dishes.

Early Sunday morning prior to another hot day, Bob fired up the grill. 

We cooked corn and red peppers for future recipes and grilled thick

 slices of leftover bread to use in Panzanella (below).  

With a bowl of 'green soup' (spinach, potato and zucchini), also made 

early morning, we had supper ready without having to heat up the kitchen.

Sunflowers are on their last legs. Picked a few smaller heads for indoors

 but they too are going over now.  Two of the really huge heads, still

 on their sky-high stems, I've enclosed in net bags and hope to gather

 seeds for planting/eating - must save them prior to nibbling visitors

 such as this. . . . .

. . . . who showed up Saturday evening to enjoy a dessert of ripe figs! 

A murder of crows visit the top of the fig tree daily now, noisy but fun

 to watch. Robins really love the figs and come non-stop all day long, 

along with many other birds, and of course the bothersome squirrels.

What's happening in your garden?

Today it's a wee bit cooler so I plan to slow-roast some tomatoes for 

sauce and soups - always a tasty treat on a cold winter's day. . . . . .which

 can't come soon enough for me!

Oh deer!

. . . . . . . . you really shouldn't be eating breakfast here!

As you know, I was invited to harvest my neighbor's veggies whilst he took

 a vacation and I was cat-sitting his sweet Ms. Nala the past couple of weeks. 

 He's home now and still so generous sharing cukes, peppers and tomatoes with me.
 I'm giving back to him by way of a nice chilled bowl of cucumber gazpacho, 
after chopping and whizzing those fresh-picked veggies in the food processor.

She arrived yesterday morning just before 8 AM. The sun was already 

brilliant, the air heavy and steamy from the humidity of another 

typical southern summer day.

Heading to pick up the newspaper on the driveway I made a quick return

 to the house to grab the camera. Yes, the crazy lady in her robe was out in

 the garden again and taking more photos.

She was calm, watched me between nibbles, and when I said "no, you must

 go to another restaurant" she looked at me and slowly walked away to the next
 house down the street. . . . . . where there are no veggies, but they 

do have lovely hostas if deer enjoy munching on them!

I love this photo with the sun shining through the ears and
illuminating the whiskers. I know she (at least I believe it's a female) has
 apparently made a home in the small wooded area across the street, but
 I wonder where her family are - haven't seen a second deer yet. 

Nature never ceases to amaze. 
There's always some animal, bird, insect or reptile (I don't like the latter, 
especially the dangerous copperhead snakes!) visiting the garden, despite
 the fact we are not in the country and just a block off a main thoroughfare
 north of the city.

Have you had any unexpected visitors - from the animal world -
in your garden this summer?

Don't complain about the heat. . . . . . . .

Hotel garden in Broome, Australia - 2012

The temperature/heat index here yesterday when I checked around 2 PM, 
was again 100F. The entire week ahead will remain

in the high 90's with little if any rain.

 It's complicated, the way the weather guys give temperature readings these

 days!  But of course nothing stays the same anymore - there's always a new

 way to do everything. Even my long gone parents used to say that, so I guess it's 

just something that occurs with each decade.

Oh yes, about the heat. Thinking back, I felt the most uncomfortable and overheated
 in two particular places in the world - Singapore and Western Australia. 

Singapore, amazing in many ways, but probably the most hot and humid place 

I've ever experienced - go HERE for a glimpse of my all too brief visit.

Flying across Australia - Sydney to Broome - 2012 

Western Australia? Talk about hot, hotter than hot, the driest

 hot ever. . . . . . . I thought I was going to die in the Northern Territory, especially
 on the days spent adventuring in Kakadu National Park and Arnhem Land. 

But, wouldn't have missed visiting such an interesting place and

learning so much about the landscape and the Aborigines, Australia's 
indigenous people who have lived there over 30,000 years.

Edited:  I see it's 107F in Death Valley, California today, but will reach 114F on Monday.
The hottest place in the USA. Yes, I was also very hot there on a visit some years back.

Early morning in Summertime . . . . . . . . . .

Early sunless Summer mornings, following the thunderstorms and rain

of evening and through the nighttime hours, bring heavy clinging

air and windows blurred by outdoor condensation. The porch was

almost invisible today when I raised the blinds just after dawn.

The dining room stayed dark and dreary for quite a while. 

Now living without my thyroid I have to take a new lifetime medicine

on arising, with no food for two hours, which for me is OK. . . . . . but

 worst of all, no coffee either.  Let me tell you, that is hard!

Note I'm already drying some of the hydrangeas which are fading fast in the 

hot, humid garden. I also cut a few hosta seed pods and a tall gone to seed 

stem of parsley to add some height, and because it's pretty.

That's it for today dear readers. I have to take the car to my great repair guys

 and see if they can fix my high beams which seem to have died.

Then we are heading out to do a little necessary shopping in those always

 over-cooled stores.  I'll definitely be throwing on a light sweater once I leave the

 almost heart-stopping heat of the parking lots. This is just not a healthy way to 

spend the Summer, grrrrrrr!!!

Keeping house in Summer. . . . . . .

It's SO hot here this week - just checked the local weather and the temperature 

is 90 at noon and climbing steadily to 96 in the late afternoon hours.     

Horrible, sweltering heat. It almost dismisses any thought of leaving the 
air conditioned house, getting in the air conditioned car, 

to get to the air conditioned shops!

Staying home and keeping house seems the best policy on days such as these.

A little time moving things about, dusting here and there, Swiffering the floors,

refreshing the damp towels, creating a big cool salad bowl, whizzing a fresh fruit 

smoothie (with a little kale tossed in of course) for a cool snack.
Well I've done all that. Now I have to move about a bit so have made a nail
appointment for late in the afternoon, yes I know that means sitting, but first I'll run 
a couple of shopping errands which will give me a little walking inside where it's
cool hopefully.

How are you handling the heat of Summer?
If you tell me you're chilling in your pool, dipping your toes in the ocean,
collecting seashells along the shore, or boating on the lake, I'll be envious, 
but I hope you have wonderful time!