Close to Home

 It only seems fitting that I should title this one, "Close to Home" because all of the photos are either taken inside the house, or outside of it. And why, pray tell, might that be the case? It is certainly not because it has been all that pleasant around here of late, although, it was a most welcome surprise that after days of absolutely unbelievable noise, Friday, Saturday, AND Sunday were blessedly silent. It almost felt weird. Today there is activity but it is not of the destructive kind so we are fine with it. Actually, the sound barely registers with Bruce, however, your favorite blogger thinks otherwise!

Stop the car honey, I have been dying to get a photo of the blooming Plumeria tree!

I've seen some beauties around town, but none that rival this one at LPV. So not technically just outside of our home, but still on the property. Seems to me that this year the blooms have been plentiful on all of the trees that I have seen.

I am undecided whether or not I agree with the assessment that cold sores can be brought on by stress or not. Seemingly that is the case with my latest, what with the condo hullabaloo and the construction. I felt it coming on early in the week and by Saturday, it was so darn ugly that I stayed home from pickleball, continuing that theme into Sunday when we stayed home from church. I used Abreva the moment I felt it coming on, my upper right lip btw, but it was pretty much useless. Before you go telling me to get some oral medication for it next time, I've heard that advice and am now heeding it for the next time. Thankfully, the big fat scab (sorry to be so graphic), came off overnight allowing me to once again show my face in public.   

In the meantime, I've amused myself with my surroundings. So thrilled to see the otter again. There is a large ripple effect when one is swimming in the lake and when I saw it over the weekend, I grabbed my camera, watching from the shoreline. When it began coming closer I positioned myself to get the shot when he came onto shore to either run to the other lake, or as was the case on this day, rub around in the dirt before darting back into the water.

Have you missed seeing ducklings like I have? Our upstairs neighbor Julie used to put feed out which drew lots of ducks that were great about producing ducklings. She quit some months before moving away, thus our duck population has diminished. That said, we do have two fake swans on the lake, so there's that!

Sherry put up a bird feeder between our new patios and was lamenting the fact that not nearly as many birds have come as she'd expected. I took this one,  through the screen, to show her this pretty little Downey Woodpecker who was enjoying her offering.

That's out back and here is what is out front. 

Female cardinals don't get much love but I think that they are pretty in their own right, don't you? I imagine not many folks get too excited about House Finches but don't count me amongst them. Since they have only just begun showing up, after four years of having a feeder, I celebrate them each visit.

They are a bit camouflaged, however, since I have a bunch of very smart readers who surely can play "where's finches" with me, that should not be a problem. Now if that orchid behind the red finch decides to bloom we are in a bit of a quandary. I will say that this year the birds are making quite the mess, requiring nearly daily clean up. They seem to very much like that type of sunflower seed.

Let's visit the kitchen next. I am here to tell you that these are the best tater tots in the freezer case at Publix. Oh how crispy and yummy they are. Don't ask me why I chose them over Ore-Ida this time, but I am glad that I did.

Around our house, if I think I will have room in the freezer for a bag of tots, I buy them because one never knows when one will get a hankering for a nice, hot and crispy, tater tot!

Do you think prices have gone up? Here's a great visual.

Needing to open a new bag while making some chocolate chip cookies over the weekend, I was stunned at the percentage of this hike in the price of brown sugar. It is really something, isn't it? While .70cents does not seem like a whole bunch for one item, when you multiply it by loads of things in your grocery cart and it can make for some dramatic moments at the cashier. As in, "can you believe how much these groceries cost???", says Gail under her breath to Bruce? We always go back to our early days of marriage, as one is wont to do when one ages, and compare living costs. Our wages no doubt were way less, but it is an interesting, albeit worthless, exercise. 

Oh my heavens, the grinding has begun above my head again. :(  There is some good news on the remodeling front though and that is the upstairs condo, adjacent to the one being remodeled, was sold and now it is not. Something about probate. I am so breathing a sigh of relief over that happy news. 

Well look what Bruce did for us...

While I searched my blog for when he last did the seat cushions on our kitchen chairs, I was unsuccessful. I can't really say how many years ago it was, but I can say that it has been a bunch and it was time for a refresh. I was so delighted when I found the new fabric, pictured on the left, at Joanne's, as it was not only perfect for our needs, but the cashier gave me 40% off with an in-store coupon. We began the project together but really, I was only in the way. Now we should be good to go for another decade or so.

The dining room table has been covered with puzzle pieces for two weeks or so. You don't need me to tell you who sorted this batch out do you? Hint, the name begins with a B.

In our bedroom, on the very table I am sitting at right this moment, I made a new bag to carry my pickleball gear because the last one I made turned out to be a wee bit too small. I used some of my vintage stash of fabrics and in a new twist, quilted this bag.

Should you be wondering, those are the handles pictured above. The pattern I use from this blog, has a very clever and easy way of making handles. 

For far more months than she expected, Nancy has been out with a bicep injury. Finally her arm felt improved enough to give pickleball a go again. At the same time, Bill injured his calf and was sitting out as well. Both of them joined me at the courts to practice and it all went well until we could no longer stand the heat at midday. I kid you not, it was extreme.

Much print has been used to talk about pickleball injuries and while no one would deny that you can get hurt, the reports, in my opinion, have been exaggerated. Millions and millions of people are playing every day now and it is only a handful that are injured. Plus, what would anyone expect when a bunch of old folks go out and run around gleefully? Perhaps you have read that the participants are getting younger and younger and that is the absolute truth. Loads of twenty somethings play at Dover Shores in the evening and on Saturdays. As you may recall, when we began going to Dover Shores the crowds were minimal, however, and this is a big however, that was a year ago and since that time more and more people have learned of this fantastic game either from a friend or a family member. This past Saturday, according to photographic reports, all courts were full (24) and there were 28 paddles lined up for people waiting to play. Simply remarkable.

I cannot remember if I documented this yet, but if I did so before, please forgive me. Our friend Connie's brother is one of Mayor Dyer's best friends. This came from her brother: When Mayor Dyer was leading a seminar in Washington, DC at the annual mayor's conference about how cities can manage the demand for pickleball, it was standing room only. Sadly, the seminars addressing far more serious issues went lightly attended. 

There's just something about this game....

Did you know that at one time I set up an Etsy shop, this is like when it first began, and I called it Peck's Pics, using a woodpecker as my symbol? Something like that. Well, I am still interested in woodpeckers.

Thinking of that took me down a little rabbit hole. I rarely Google my name, but I did so today and found that my publisher has my work on more sites than I even knew existed. Seeing this one on Art. com made me happy. I took this when we were celebrating an anniversary, probably, ten years ago. Our hands have aged since them. And here we are on the cusp of our 50th anniversary. Nancy was over on Saturday afternoon and I brought out a few of our old yearbooks. Closer to our anniversary I might spend some time typing the sentiments people wrote back then. Lots about us staying together forever. They had no idea how prophetic they would turn out to be.

The weather has been tolerable for the most part although today was meant to be rainy. So far, not much. Sort of like the red in the sky this morning.

A new friend, Mary, invited me to join her for a street photography workshop and while it might be fun, my computer is groaning over the volume that now exists on this machine, along with two external hard drives. 

And yet, I can't stop myself because I love taking photographs so much, even if it is close to home. 

your friend,

Gail