The Last Day of June

My stove top and I did not get along very well yesterday, and while I'd love to blame it on the appliance, unfortunately, I have no one to blame but myself. To begin with, while cleaning the glass top with the fantastic cleaner Nancy bought for me, apparently, I locked the cooktop. Now that may not sound like a big deal to you, but it is a way big deal to me as I use the range multiple times daily. In fact, the oven was still warm from a batch of some seriously yummy Banana Nut Muffins I'd made first thing in the morning. No matter how many times I tapped the pad, nothing would respond, so I did what we all do, (or so I thought), turned off the breaker to reset the digital display. After there was no change, I called Whirlpool, holding for nearly 40 minutes before I was able to speak with someone. As an aside, we still have our house phone and this instance is one reason why. It is so much easier to hold a larger phone on your shoulder while performing other tasks! Anyway, after putting on the clean sheets and other chores while waiting, a "representative" finally came on the phone. Except she was no help at all. Summoning all of the Christian charity I possess, I did not lose my temper, although I will admit it was a struggle. I called another number I had and this time there was very little wait and the woman proved helpful. Here is where my stupidity comes into play. A few days ago the microwave went a little haywire and Bruce flipped the breaker for a reset, mentioning it was breaker #5. Clever readers will have already deduced that breaker #5 does control the microwave but it has no bearing on the range whatsoever. Need I say more?

Later on, after using said cooktop for dinner, and making a slight mess of it, like a complete idiot I ran my hand over the HOT burner!!! I wish I know what I was thinking! The result was three fingers feeling as if they were on fire! "Bruce, ask Siri what to do for a burn quick!" In the meantime I'd remembered that butter was supposed to help, and since there was some melted butter in Bruce's corn on the cob holder waiting to be washed, I slathered my fingers in butter. No relief. Another idea was toothpaste, so I ran to the bathroom, squirting some on my fingers and giving them a good rub in. Don't try that one as it was messy, and did nothing. Eventually he came to the part of the list which mentioned black tea. Well, on that same counter with the corn holder, there happened to be about a half cup of my breakfast tea, so I jammed my fingers in that. Ahhh...after adding another tea bag, I kept my hand in there for some time and if you can imagine, not only did it bring some relief, my fingers are fit as a fiddle today! I even walked down to the mailbox after my soaking, coming out of the door I found the sky to be a balm for the soul.

Speaking of the sky, the whole promise of amazing sunrises and sets being fantastic with the dust storm. was a bust. Mostly, for the past four days or so, not counting today when the sky turned blue again, the sky was what I can only describe as a blank, neither blue, nor gray. Temperatures soared to 97 degrees! I did go out that first morning for sunrise, and it was pretty interesting that I could stare at the rising sun, maybe as if I were wearing sunglasses when I was not?

Before long the clouds began to obscure the view, but it still felt pretty neat seeing it as a ball.

Am I ever grateful to have such easy access to both the daily celestial activity.!

Sunday morning, about 7:30, while Bruce went fishing, catching one on his second cast I might add, I bit the bullet and went to Publix for a serious grocery shop. Thankfully, very few other folks decided to do the same, so most of the time there was no one in my aisle. Normally I use the closet in our tiny "hallway" as an overflow pantry and the pickings were getting mighty slim. So, like in days of yore, I shopped every aisle and we are now good.  

With so few cars, I even got my favorite parking spot! Years ago I decided to park on the last row of spaces every time, so I would never have to leave the store and wonder where my car was. Imagine when I get really old! Will I even remember this easy info? Let us hope so.

Rarely do I buy produce at Publix, in part because I like to pick out my own, and while they have more like that then before, it still does not measure up to Clemons. Recently we learned from them that farmers planted less due to the excess they had in the early days of the pandemic, thus there will be shortages and higher prices. Count everyone unsurprised because this is 2020 after all! This morning I was so delighted to find some Rainier cherries in stock, and while at $4.99 a pound they are expensive, in this instance, they are so good I did not even mind.

Because it has been so blasted hot, staying inside is the order of the day, affording me plenty of time to work on a puzzle. Don't judge me when I say I spent countless hours working on this one! I'm finding them somewhat addictive if you want to know the truth. Even though I could never figure out what I had wrong on the sky portion,  I'm one of those folks that is oftentimes happy with "good enough." I'm married to a perfectionist, so one in the family is plenty sufficient.

I saved the umbrellas for last thinking it was the hardest part, but those hillside villas sure gave them a run for their money!

I have no idea what the beautiful blooming trees, jam packed with bright yellow flowers are, but while driving home from Clemons, seeing this scene, I had to pull over for a shot. I wonder what it is like walking on that yellow driveway?

Which reminds me, we watched, Rocketman the other night and was it ever a strange, and somewhat wonderful film. We so loved Elton John when we were young that we named a Siamese kitten, Bennie! My takeaway from that film? I'm super glad I am not a superstar and am happy as a clam as a nobody.

My owl has not come around for the last few days, so let's have some owl love in this post, using one of last week's photos you have not seen.

This morning, in spite of the heat, we went to the courts to practice a little pickleball where we saw two things of note. I'd brought along my camera because on several occasions I'd seen the American Kestral on the power pole and I was hoping the same would happen today. Indeed, it did, and as soon as I spotted it, I put my paddle down to get a shot. For me actually, because if it is in this space, it will be easier for me to find again. So small it is hard to believe it is in the same family as Mr. Plump Owl above.

While hitting the ball back and forth, sweating profusely I might add, I saw some stalking going on. Stalking? Indeed, but it was not what you might think. Instead of something entirely sinister, it was only mildly so, because really, who knows what a cat would do to a turtle anyway?

My apologies for the broom obscuring the turtle but you get the idea. We stopped play, watching and wondering until such time as the cat caught up with the turtle, looking somewhat disinterested, or so it seems, but isn't that what we've come to expect from cats?

Mr. Turtle was not buying it, continuing on his way but what he did not know his escape route was a dead end! Meanwhile, the man who is my life partner, commonly known as Bruce, was making his way around the court, and snatched up the turtle at mentioned dead end.

Your favorite blogger, known far and wide for her keen eye, immediately began hollering....."Move it away from you, it is peeing!!" And I'm not talking a dribble mind you. As a matter of fact, according to the rescuer, it peed all the way through the bushes, the gate, and stopped just as he put it gently along the pond, on the other side of that block wall! Upon his return, we decided to call it a day on the courts. In part because we were sweltering, and in part because yesterday, Mr. Peck took on another role and that was as a carpenter, making a new gate for Bill in the blazing sun for ten hours! Well, ten hours of work, probably five before they decided to put up a tent for shade!

The reason I know this, and have the photo to prove it, is because Bill called, requesting I bring his Dad's bathing suit over so that he might cool off in the pool before passing out from the heat. Good plan son! And while I wish it were going to be cooler tomorrow when he returns, it is unlikely. Tomorrow marks the day Fallon will begin her shift on the Covid-19 unit and quarantine will ensue for them. 

Really, can you believe it is June 30? The saying goes, time stops for no one, or more accurately, time and tide wait for no man, and doesn't this time in history perfectly illustrate that phrase? We keep turning the calendar and for the most part, days remain the same. That is, unless you run into a cat chasing a turtle. That sort of thing doesn't come around very often.

your friend,

Gail

Mystery Solved!

Before I reveal the mystery that was solved, let's all just bask in the total cuteness of the card Bill and Fallon gave to Bruce for his birthday, shall we?

Talk about a feel good way to begin, I can think of nothing more fitting than Snoopy and Woodstock. We are the kind of folks who save cards for ages, loving to come across a fine stack to reminisce; this one will surely be enjoyed many times in the future.

Okay, so here is the mystery. There have been no field trips this week meaning lots of staying around here, including one afternoon when Bruce and I went to the pool to cool off and read. And yes, it's been killer hot, with temperatures climbing to 96 yesterday and today. Plus all the dust in the atmosphere! Anyway, we came home and found a white mailing bag on the front porch. With my memory, I thought, did I order something and forget? Heavy, there was not a smidgen of paperwork in the bag or any clue on the outside as to the contents, or sender. Opening it, I burst into laughter, wondering who in the world could have sent me a box of Arborio rice?

Nancy happened to call about this time and I asked if she was responsible. No, she was not. I was seriously flummoxed, that is until about three hours later, Jonathan sent a text "should be a package out front if you haven't seen it yet." Indeed. Having read about my search he did what young people, and increasingly older people do, he found it on Amazon.  Wasn't that sweet? Generally I don't think he reads the blog so he must have been bored!

Because we have been home so much I was thinking I didn't have a bunch to write about, but turns out, once I checked my camera cards, I have more than I thought. In fact, maybe too much! Let's begin with something exciting as far as I'm concerned. I'd been told by the front gardeners about an  interesting new plant there so I went to check it out. For the life of me I can't think what the plant is called, but while there I heard a loud bird and began focusing on that. (no pun intended)

Not much of a photo, but it is kind of fun to see the lit up wing. I was shooting into the sun and in real time I had no idea what kind of bird it was. The only thing I did know was that it flew into a nearby tree, where I kept tracking it when much to my surprise, looking up, this guy was sitting on a nearby branch.

This would be a Red Tailed Hawk, but the bird I eventually identified is one I rarely see, as in maybe two or three times before, and that bird would be a Northern Flicker from the Woodpecker family.

Isn't it interesting with the spotted belly and the little black ascot? So, there is something exciting for the week.

That said, once I see an owl again, as in a few posts ago, I go hunting, searching in all the big trees nearby. Well, lo and behold, I was walking near the canal and there it was, not ten feet from me, perched on a fence. Thrilled and actually even more so when it flew onto a tree branch where the light was somewhat better for picture time!

Cute, cute, cute! This morning I did not have to go hunting because I spotted it out my bedroom window, chatting up with a neighbor about how neat it is to see an owl, and dragging Bruce out back to watch. Generally the only thing that bothers an owl is the dive bombing from Crows and Blue Jays and even that is sometimes not enough to get them to move so it is not hard to get fairly close. Anyway, eventually it flew into the tree and Bruce left to work over at Bill's house, something he will not be able to do after July 1st when the unit Fallon works on becomes a full Covid Unit to care for the increasing cases. Naturally we are all nervous about that. For now though, once I'd wished B a goodbye, coming back inside what should I spot, but the owl in the lake!

Earlier it had looked as if it were panting from the heat so it was not terribly surprising to find him there having a drink before flying away.

Switching gears to another nature family, Bruce called me over to his car to show me a moth he'd never seen before. Neither had I. Doesn't it look as if it is made of wood? Apparently others have noticed the same as it was easy to find on the web using those very same search words.

Pretty cool, huh? I think it was the same day that the rice came, in fact as I was putting it on the counter, as I recall, I noticed some action on the front porch that gave me pause. Yes, Black Racer snakes are not dangerous, but who likes to watch one come sliding out from under your porch chair? Not this woman for one! Yikes.

In the kitchen, while I've not made any of the risotto yet, I did make some dried cherry scones that, while good, may have needed a bit more time in the oven? They were tasty enough but I think a bit more browning would have looked better.

Although I can enter only three photos for the contest, I printed five to examine them more closely before submitting the entrants. Hopefully there are some winners in this group. I remember the year that my photo was on the cover and I was so excited until such time as I realized that it would be viewed once, unlike when it is chosen for a month. Ha ha...be careful what you wish for!

For sure we stayed home yesterday while dog sitting Grace.  Bruce spent most of the day reading a thriller given to him by Connie,

while I spent an inordinate amount of time trying to figure out that mountainside. Seriously, aside from our meals and making some chocolate chip cookies, I did nothing else and I still have a long way to go! Thank gosh Sue told me about using a magnifying glass!

 Another unreal sunset although this time it is the sunset reflected in the Eastern sky.

And they say that this dust cloud will make the sunrise and sunset even better? How can this be?

That was quite the sunset in Vancouver, wasn't it? Because I am still struggling with this new Blogger format, I've had to see all the photos I've posted in this space for the last few years, each time I wanted to upload a new one. Because of that, I came across the above so why not relive it??

I hope everyone reading is safe and sound, staying at home as much as possible even though, I for one, am dying to do more stuff, as I imagine you are as well. Remember the words of wise Mothers everywhere, "it is better to be safe than sorry."

Continuing my quest to make the ordinary, extraordinary...

your friend,

Gail

Pandemic Fatigue

I don't know about you, but I think I am beginning to suffer from "pandemic fatigue." Yup, another new term to add to the already full language of this crazy time in history. Living here in Florida, we've also got the upcoming hurricane season to endure, hopefully unscathed, but there are no guarantees. To make matters even crazier, a neighbor told me last night, as I was returning from a sunset watch, that there is a large dust storm coming from the Sahara Desert.  Make that massive. What next?

By now we all know that the cases are going up in Florida, as well as other places around the world that are letting folks out. The Orange County Mayor has issued a mandatory mask order which does not include exercising outdoors, thank goodness. Who knows if they help, but one thing I do know is that they cannot hurt, so of course we are complying. That is pretty easy for me because I go so few places, if you do not include the beach or a mostly deserted park. I had to go to Publix today and I nearly forgot the one way shopping because it has been maybe two weeks since my last visit. That said, I do continue to go to Clemons for produce where it is pretty easy because at any one time there might be maybe 15 people in the store. For four weeks now I've been trying to buy some Arborio rice to make risotto with no success. The same goes for our beloved refrigerated Clausen pickles. Empty shelves in both instances. I just don't get it.

Speaking of pickles and Clemons, I found some tiny cukes there and made them myself, using the brine from the Clausens. And now, thanks to the man of the house, I cannot only find the jars, but the shelves are spotless!

Here's a little behind the scenes info regarding this blog. Before Google forcing me to change my ways, I would scan through my photos, pick some I thought might either document our lives, or that are maybe interesting, then upload them to a folder. From there I would import them into yet another folder on Blogger (blog site), and choose them one by one to fit a narrative. Now, however, should I do it that same way, all photos end up in this space in the order I uploaded them, not necessarily how I want them to be. Thus, I am going a tiny bit crazy until such time as I either figure it out or call it quits! Just kidding, there will be no quitting until I can no longer either type or take photos or a version of the two.

Thursday, or so I think, we went to check out what turned out to be just as a described, a hidden gem in the Orange County park system, Trimble Park. 

Off 441, almost to Mt. Dora, the closest town being Tangerine, it began when Sadie and R.J. Trimble donated the original 27.5 acres to Orange County in 1926. In the ensuing years, more acres were acquired and the park now has 71 acres set between two outstanding lakes. There's a bunch more to the story, however, you really don't care, so I will leave it at that. The trees are magnificent, tall Cypress and Pines, along with spreading Oak trees, some with so much moss you wonder it doesn't weight it down more. Nothing says the South like Sphagnum Moss.

There are scads of picnic tables, as well as temporarily closed playground equipment, grills, and several fishing docks and boat ramps.

While hot (what else is new?), the tree canopy was so dense that we hardly felt it, unlike our visit to Moss Park the previous week. While we were parking the car, I saw a yellow Swallowtail flitting about which tickled me pink as I've not seen one for awhile. Luckily, later on I caught one while resting on a bush. 

It's been a good long while since last  I saw a pink dragonfly,

and probably just as long ago that I saw a green one.

While I like seeing beautiful insects, what I really like.....you guessed it, the birds to be found in a lovely park!

I have no idea if this male cardinal is molting already, or a youngster getting new feathers. The female was nearly as scruffy.

You may have already guessed the reason for our visit and if you guessed camping, you would be correct. There is a small, 15 space campground with about six sites directly lakeside that we were checking out. Count us very impressed, although whether we can actually camp in this heat is another story. At least now we know for the future if nothing else. Seriously we could find not a bad word to say about the park. 

And yes, there is even a cute little library. 😀

The pickleball playing continues as the number of interested folks grows. One evening a sun shower helped keep the players cool.

Unrelated to pickleball, I've got a kitchen tip for you that in all likelihood you already know about, but it was new to me. Getting the stem out of a strawberry when you want to slice them has proved problematic  for years. For some reason, I finally thought about using my potato peeler!

Have you tried this before? In my case, it worked like a charm.

Maybe it does look as if life is going on fairly normally, but there is just an underlying current of uneasiness for most people. Father's Day came, which meant all the boys (men), called their Dad. While talking to Matt, we discussed his upcoming birthday and what we were hoping to get him. Except, the store is currently closed in London, and this morning when I called the local one, I got that familiar message about unexpected high call volume and the wait time would be one hour. NOT. Remember how we were thinking of re-doing our master bathroom when the weather became too hot for camping? Not happening. It's those kinds of things, which I realize are super minor compared to others pandemic problems, but it is our reality and I can only write about what I know. On the other hand, there have most definitely been some silver linings for most of us. Yesterday ours came in the form of listening to a radio show that Matt hosts occasionally for his college alma mater, V89 at Florida State.  In order to keep the radio station going, alumni have helped fill the programming gap and that is where Matt comes into the story. While a student there he hosted a 3 hour show, part of what they call Legacies, devoted to singer/songwriters. Imagine that in today's radio landscape, a real dj that picks all of the music! I worked on a crazy hard puzzle while listening. Just as the show ended, David and Bill came over to feed Papa. Actually, David cooked an incredible steak while I made a few sides. While waiting on the food, we watched a super silly and fun show on Netflix called "The Floor is Lava." If you are looking for something to put a smile on your face, seriously, this would be the show. Jonathan called earlier in the day to visit with Bruce too. 

So with blessings such as the above, not to mention recurring gorgeous sunsets most nights, I really have not a thing to complain about. We all still remain healthy which is the most important thing, even though the ongoing challenges are inconvenient. 

I continue to remind myself, that "this too shall pass", as it always does.

your friend,

Gail

p.s. If you missed my last post, you can find it here.

Back to Life

I am beginning this post at the ending because, for the life of me, I am getting used to a new interface for my blog, being thrust on me by Google, and while I was putting the next to last photo up, I could go no further. Allegedly this will help those users who read this on a mobile device and are often missing the first line or two. My phone shows it all but Bruce often has trouble. At any rate, thanks for reading and don't be surprised if in the coming posts, things aren't quite what you are used to! 

Now, let's all find something that will help them feel as if they are getting "back to life!"

your friend,

Gail

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"Back to life, back to reality, back to the here and now", are not mine, but part of the chorus to an energetic song by Soul 11 Soul from a bunch of years ago. I loved that song then, and it came to mind yesterday when we took a trip over to Jetty Park for a day of fun in the sun.

My friends, it was glorious! Although the pandemic and subsequent lockdown has been far easier on us than for many others, it has still taken a toll on our spirits, as has more recent events. Day after day, one bad thing after another is in the news, enough to take anyone down. And yet, at the beach, it was as if the last, nearly four months, were but a bad dream. We saw folks engaging in life, doing all manner of things and for the most part, maintaining social distancing. I have no idea what that thing the fellow is riding along on, but it sure looked neat, that is if you have good balance!

Not everyone was following the guidelines, but mainly it was the young and healthy doing whatever they pleased. These fellows were playing a game where they bounced that red ball off the mat, what they told me is called spikeball, and having a fun time doing so.

One of the greatest pleasures in life is throwing yourself into crashing waves, or at least that is how I see it. On the other hand, perhaps I am easy to please?

Arriving around 10 in the morning, usually the sun is so blazing hot that after about three hours we have had enough fun, however, on this day, under two umbrellas, we revelled in our time, enjoying the sights and sounds of people of every color and political persuasion enjoying God's gifts to us. Not a single person on that beach cared one whit about anyone else's opinion, which in these days is saying a lot. 

The breeze was so cool that this lady, who never goes to the beach without going into the water, waited nearly three hours to do so, not because the water was cold because it was not, but because I would be chilly walking back to my chair. Eventually that just seemed silly, so in I plunged. At one point a big tanker came through the canal heading out to sea and boy, the size really stood out against the small people having a good time.

Some folks like to sit in the shallow water, digging their feet into the squishy, wet sand.

Earlier a bunch of young people were involved in a surfing camp, either glad because the waves were small enough for their skill level, or just the opposite, wishing they were bigger.

When we arrived, there were only a handful of people, however, as the day wore on, the crowds continued growing which really surprised me for a Tuesday.

What you might notice is the Disney cruise ship parked out to sea, along with another small boat. It is hard to imagine most folks wanting to get on a cruise ship anytime soon, but then again, there are all kinds of folks who like doing all manner of things that I might not do. Heck, I've never wanted to go on a cruise even when no one had even heard of Covid-19, already making me an anomaly.

I can't begin to put into words what the day meant to me, but one thing came to my mind while diving head first into the crashing waves...a favorite gospel song of mine with the lyrics, "beneath the cleansing flood". That's what it felt like, washing away all the months of uncertainty. Of course, getting back into the car on the drive home, they began discussing disturbing political things and I asked Bruce to please change the channel. I want to just bask in goodness for a little while, letting the "great world spin" without me taking note. One thing my Mother used to tell me is there is a reason it is called "the news" and that is because it is out of the ordinary. We often tend to forget that, don't you think?

Another exciting happening around here was, that an owl came to visit early the other morning!! Somehow I noticed out the bedroom window what I thought was an owl on the ground, and sure enough, by the time I grabbed my camera and got outside, she was in one of the trees!

I had begun to think I would never see one again! If not for a noisy crow harassing the owl, I would have had longer to gaze at her beauty. Certainly every time that happens I am amazed that smaller birds can bother the bigger ones.

In other great news, we had a gorgeous rainbow again, this time I think maybe Saturday night? Seriously, you, or I, for that matter, could care less what day it was, just that it happened and it was a beauty. While I would love to show you the entire arc, it was far too large for my lens to contain in one photo.

Woo hoo...I finished another puzzle! While that doesn't sound so amazing, I'm choosing to think otherwise because at my age, learning new skills is good for me and this one qualifies. Feeling pretty good about learning how to do a 500 piece jigsaw puzzle and learning to play pickleball at the same time. What next, pray tell? 

Something I've been doing almost my entire life still has room for improvement though. While taking these oatmeal/almond/dried cherry cookies off the sheet, it still amazes me that I cannot seem to make cookies a consistent size. While I used to have a cookie scoop, it died in short order, so it is back to using two tablespoons.

There has been consistent rain, along with beautiful sunsets for a few weeks now, so much rain that the water that was once about six or seven inches below the boat slips, is, well not at all the case now.

Fried okra, where were you for most of my life? It took my darling husband many, many years before he could get me to try it, and now I could probably eat it every day of the week. Broccoli too-- man I love that vegetable. 

The clean up continues on Fern Creek with most buildings under bright blue tarps.

More of the above folks belongings are piled next to the street. While so much of it is sad, that tutu affair really gets me, as does the little blue and orange crochet thing that might be a hat?