A Mixed Bag

I've got some good news to share about Cris, which, btw, is how he spells his name. It's short for Crispen, a Latin name meaning curly haired, or so I just learned. Unfortunately I never did ask my in laws how they came up with that name for their firstborn. Two things, his first name is Joel, but he goes by Cris, and no, he has anything but curly hair! More importantly, he is improving as he enters his second month of hospitalization. He's eating better and has even sat in a chair which is huge. Today he received both a second dose of Convalescent Plasma, and a new Covid test. Should that come back negative, he most likely will be moved to another unit and here's the real biggie....visitors may be permitted!! Cris and Judy are coming up on their 48th wedding anniversary and the hope is that even before that big date, Judy will be allowed to see him again for the first time since she dropped him off at the emergency room!! Hallelujah!

For us, this week has been much the same except, get this, I've actually gone a few places and they were not Publix or Clemons! Before we delve into those exciting places, when last we met, a storm was heading towards Central Florida. It did not. We were on the pickleball court when it began raining, enough so we all scrambled to our cars, however, once we were all home out of our wet clothes, it stopped and never started again. While I'm glad for that, I am gladder still because the name, Isais was so difficult to pronounce, I was hoping we wouldn't have to use it for more than a day. Sadly it did hit in North Carolina with some damage, but nothing super major.

Yes to playing pickleball most mornings, and no to any field trips. We had loads of rain in the afternoons, keeping us inside to work on puzzles. Plural because, one of my little afternoon trips was to visit, as it turns out, my fairy Godmother, Ann. We were slated to just do a puzzle swap, but she ended up inviting me in and we had a marvelous visit, socially distanced, of course.

I'd finished this during the alleged storm and was having withdrawals, so I got in touch with Ann. Before I go further, this puzzle, while a neat image was interesting in that there was less puzzle than the image portrayed. I know weird, but once that frame was done, it was pretty darn fun. While doing the frame, I kept looking for more of that lobster on the right to no avail. Puzzled, I looked at some online reviews where I was alerted to this problem. Now when I loan it out I will pass that along. I left her place with not one, but two fantastic puzzles, two novels and a small bottle of some homemade Limoncello which is in the freezer as I type. She began the process near the beginning of the time of Corona, probably never imagining that it would still be raging on after the something like the 80 days of fermentation. Gosh it was nice to see her.

Early on I wrote a post about all of the new language associated with this unprecedented time and over time more phrases or words have emerged that are new to me. Have you heard the term "security theater"? It means safety measures that are done somewhat for show. Then there is "cancel culture", "Karen", and "woke". Some enlightened readers may have already known these terms, but they are new to me. I would be lying if I told you that any of them are very appealing to me, especially Karen as I know plenty of Karens that are good people.

Because of all the rain the quilt has been back in the picture. Friends, I am nearing the finish line on the top and the time that it has taken me is nothing to be proud of, that's for sure. Having, once again, used up all of my cut fabric, I just could not face using more of the same so.......I took a trip to Hobby Lobby for something different. Their supplies were diminished and the woman who cut my fabric told me that not only are they not having their usual sales but they can't keep enough fabric or elastic in stock. Apparently mask making is still going on.

The new fabric was cut, more couples were put together,

and it still wasn't enough!! I have 34 more duos to join,  then they all get put together, and then the rows which I'm hoping will all blend together and the new stuff won't show up like a sore thumb! Whew, sorry for that run on sentence! Seriously, it is going to be so busy, it will be a blur. All the while I listened to Lost in Alaska, finally finishing it yesterday afternoon. The bottom line is that even after nine years of digging into this story, the plane has still not been found. For those who listen to NPR, I did learn that it was Cokie Roberts father who went down in the plane. If for no other reason, I suggest you click on that link and see what her real name was. Amazing. I am thinking of sending it out to be quilted because, Lord knows, it is huge and will probably take me more time than I can imagine. Then again, what else do I have right now but time?

Dated 6/23/2020, I finally drove over to the bank to deposit the check my publisher sent me all that time ago. Sadly it was small, but is that any surprise? No, it is not. Yesterday's headline was that Disney lost $2 billion in the last quarter!!! Where, oh where, is all this leading us? What pray tell is the photo below all about? You tell me. Why would make someone take off their sandals in a bank parking lot? It is as if she stepped out of them and got in her car. Perhaps there is a short story in this?

A couple of posts ago, one that most people apparently did not see according to my stats, I showed a Mother Mallard on some eggs in a planter on the pool deck. Well, here's some exciting news. The eggs have hatched!

While riding my bike around this morning my friends told me they had seen the new ducklings on their walk, even telling me where they had seen them. Music to my ears friends, music to my ears. The first photos I took were terrible due to poor lighting, however, after an hour of practicing pickleball in the horrible heat, I was bushed so on my ride home I swung by again to see if I could get some better photos. Done and done! They came quite close, and while I've got some good ones, this one is super cute because they are close to shore in very clear water.

Aren't they just adorable?? From talking to folks, it seems as if they are about four days old. I wish they were on our little lake where there are more hiding places, but time will tell how many survive on the big lake.

I know the very best way to cool off when it is blazing hot....yup, the swimming pool where I swam and began one of the books Ann lent me. It was super great in the shade.

As you can see, there is not a social distancing problem at all. In fact, while I was there, only a handful of people came and went. Thinking about the ducklings, Mama was in the ivory planter on the right side of the dock. We are all mystified as to how the ducklings survived the jump down and then into the lake which is many feet below the pool. Nature is amazing is all I can say. The water lilies are looking lovely, especially when the sky is reflecting so beautifully on the water.

Oh snap...there's a dragonfly on that water lily! While not nearly as impressive as the Victoria water lilies in my last post, they are lovely, nonetheless.

So, there is one short story prompt in this post, and here's another. What printer would not alert the customer to the misspellings on this car I saw parked today? They paid for this sign?

Closely cropped to leave out the phone number, I'm mystified. While on the topic of mysteries, we began watching Breaking Bad and while it was good, the violence was a bit much for us. Ann and I talked about British television mysteries and she recommended one that I could not find on Amazon or Netflix, however I did stumble upon a series that has turned out to be nothing short of excellent, Endeavour. Holy Cow, is is good.

One fascinating thing about living on water is how you notice the movement of the Earth through the sunrise, sunset, and moonrise. I love walking into our not-yet-updated bathroom and seeing the day begin.

With all of the stormy weather, both the sunrise and sunset are much more dramatic than when the weather is calm. Taken this morning, will the red sky mean anything? So far, not, but the day is not over yet.

 Finally, the once a year blooms on a Giant Schefflera are something to behold.

We used to have one of these trees at our home and the yearly show was dramatic,  plus the bees had a heyday with them.

The kitchen is calling dear ones. Stay safe, wear your masks, social distance, and for heaven's sake, love one another because this virus is no joke as Cris's story clearly demonstrates. Don't let petty political differences alter that because you just never know what tomorrow will bring. Heck, Jessica is still not 100% and she's young and healthy!

your friend,

Gail

What Day is Today?

I'll tell you what day it is....your lucky day. Why so, you ask? At Marshalls one day I came across a lemon squeezer from OXO that looked interesting. Over the years I've purchased many a squeezer that seemed promising, but ultimately fell short of my expectations. While this one is not perfect, it's the very best I've tried. Unless you have a huge lemon, it is perfect.

Because it is so flexible, it is infinitely easier to get a lot of juice, minus those pesky seeds. Should you, like me, come across one, I'd say go for it!

Seriously though, "what is today" has been a constant refrain around here. The days slide by, and before you know it, Saturday arrives and it is time to change the sheets again. Are you experiencing the same situation, or is it just us because we are retired?

Many mornings Bruce and I practice pickleball together for as long as the heat and humidity will allow. I have never sweat so much in my life! Another morning I rode my bicycle out of the complex, something I rarely do because of the busy street we are on. As I was coming back, riding on Mills Ave. near Boone, I noticed a bird on a wire overhead. Surprise, surprise. This morning I took a look at the photograph and much to my delight, it appears to be a Starling, although I could very well be wrong. Anyway, what looked like just a dark bird turned out to be one full of jewel tones.

I so wish I were closer to better appreciate the beauty of those feathers!

On Monday, the downtown library was open for business, or so I thought. You might recall that we checked out books on the day before the library closed, March 17, to be exact. For all this time we've held onto those books and I was very excited to turn them in for others. We parked along Rosalind, walking the two blocks or so to the library. Sadly, along the way we saw the new downtown Dolllar General all boarded up, prepared in case of looting.

Arriving we realized that Bruce had forgotten his required mask, so I turned the books in and waited for his return. The lobby looks like this.

My waiting was for naught. We discovered that you can not actually go to the books shelves yourself, instead the two posted librarians would get them for you which would be fine and dandy if you know what you want. Because my method of finding novels is through browsing, we went home empty handed.

Last Saturday afternoon, with favorable weather we anxiously awaited the SpaceX launch, hoping to see it from the lakeshore which other residents claimed had been successful in the past. Multiple folks were ringing the lakeside hoping for the same, but with cloud cover that looked like this, it was not possible to see it at all, much to our disappointment.

The lake has been filling fast because we've had nearly five inches of rain in the last week or so. The Wood Ducks are beginning to show their adult colors.

Still on the lake topic, it does my heart good to see young people using the lake, reminding me of our youth when lakes were how most folks in Orlando kept cool during the steamy summer months.

Although we grew up with a swimming pool in our backyard, we were an anomaly, rather than the norm of today. That did not stop us from swimming in the nearby lakes, including Lake Arnold that our son Bill's house now faces. Very much simpler times in Orlando.

It turns out jigsaw puzzles are an excellent way to spend rainy afternoons, something I'm only now learning at my advanced age. Sue gave me the excellent tip about using a magnifying glass on the one I was working on, helping somewhat. What also helped was dragging Bruce into it because with his patience I was certain we could get it done. Except we did not. The trees just would not go together, probably because other green pieces were wrong, but I decided to throw in the towel. It's supposed to be fun right?

Susan and I traded puzzles, and the one I got in return, well, this one was super fun! No magnifying glass required.

Too funny that the photo includes one of my ponytail holders which are a constant these days as my hair is far too long, making me way too hot. I've got an appointment set for next week with a new stylist Michelle recommended, so we'll see what happens.

Yesterday morning I called Costco just after 8:00 in the morning to see if they had toilet paper and the answer was yes. We were lucky enough to get some, even though we arrived about a half an hour into senior hour. It was shocking to see this line forming in front of the store as we were leaving.

It was even more shocking to see the boarded up Ulta and Nordstrom Rack at Millenia that were looted over the weekend.

While I don't pretend to have all of the answers, in my opinion, looting is not one of them. With so many unemployed, food shortages, a deadly virus, instances of police brutality, and now riots. It's all beginning to feel overwhelming, isn't it?

In an effort to do something normal from my past, I've decided to enter the Historical Society calendar contest again, going out on Sunday afternoon to see what I could see. In the past it has been focused on specific historic neighborhoods, but in an effort to maintain social distancing, the parameters have been expanded. I did not go far, beginning in nearby Lancaster Park.

I won't be entering the above, but it gives you an idea of what they are after. Black and white, something I rarely do. From there I went over to Lake Cherokee where I found this on the sidewalk, accomplished with a power washer.

Most definitely a sign of the times. Nearby I took a few photographs of the Ultimate I-4 project and the new exit ramp onto Delaney from the SR 408.

It has been nearly two years now since we returned from Vancouver and not once have I used I-4, as it is far too dangerous for the likes of me.

I needn't tell you that these are some perilous days we are living through. I can only hope that when I look back on these days through the words and photographs of this blog that some progress to our current health and political problems will have been addressed successfully. At the moment, it feels as if those solutions are a long way away. In the meantime, we just keep putting one foot in front of another.

your friend,

Gail