I’m not sure what came over me yesterday afternoon, but I FINALLY got upstairs to my art room and cleared off my drafting table so that I now have room to experiment with the new wood burning kit. I don’t know when I’ve been so intimidated by trying to learn a new skill. I guess the fact that the first tool I got was hard for me to use and made my hand arthritis act up badly put me off. I’m really hoping that this lighter, beginner’s tool kit will get me over the hump. I have lots of ideas of what I would like to try to accomplish with it.
Our high temperature today will be 94 WITHOUT an excessive heat warning needed, so that will be a very welcome change. I’ll get out this morning and see if we have some ripe tomatoes. My tomato suckers are looking extremely droopy, but are still alive, so I still have hope that I can transplant the roots soon to the garden planter.
I’ve been quite amused by the free downloads of books onto my Kindle lately. I’m in the Kindle Unlimited group which allows unlimited downloads, so I have lots of choices for things to read. I download one, read a bit and then many times ‘give it back’ to choose another. I’m CHOOSING to be amused, rather than disgusted or appalled, by the quality of many of the books. If I find TOO many spelling and grammatical errors (and I give people what I consider a LOT of leverage), I delete. If the main character is so stupid I would embarrassed to meet her or know her, I delete. If the language or content is simply too much (again, a lot of leverage) I delete.
Sometimes I find myself sighing in relief that I managed to find an author who writes something that keeps my interest. :0)
I hope this day finds you feeling good. Make it a fun one.
James Natoli from BossJunkArt on Etsy is a man after my husband’s and my hearts – creating critters who make you smile from tools, random parts, other found objects. I love these sweet critters.
These are the tomato suckers this morning. They are looking sad, as you can see, but they haven’t DIED. They are still green, so I THINK that means they are producing ROOTS, the thing I need in order to transplant them into the garden in another week or so – if they live. I can snip off some of the straggly tops and plant the important part down low in the garden planter and then keep my fingers crossed they grow and thrive.
I haven’t loss everything if this experiment is a bust. I can start again, making some tweaks in my techniques, or I can try to simply plant suckers immediately into the garden when I snip them off the main plants and see if that works. It’s exciting to try something new that MIGHT work!
This is #58 in J.D. Robb’s (Nora Roberts) “In Death” series. I pre-ordered the paperback in January and received it Tuesday. I dived into it as soon as I finished the book I was reading.
I was a bit disappointed this time, even though this is my favorite long term series and author, and I’ll continue to pre-order the paperback versions of each new book as I have the chance.
Usually there is some new ‘revelation’ that allows you to understand a character better, feel closer to them, or there is an event that brings tears to my eyes because someone is honored, someone is hurt and recovers, people find love, a situation or emotion with which you can identify, etc., making you feel even more tied to the series that you were before, if that were possible. :0)
This book had an interesting series of crimes and perpetrator Eve and company were trying to stop. The book, as always, held my interest. I started it the middle of the afternoon Tuesday and finished it Wednesday. It was good to be with the characters again, sharing their future world for a time. No special features this time, though. I fear that Nora may be tiring of the series – as I would imagine anyone might be after writing 58 books about the same group of people – but I hope I’m wrong.
The next book in the series # 59 –“Passions in Death” comes out in hardback in September of this year. “Bonded in Death” #60 comes out in hardback in February of 2025. I’m hoping I can pre-order “Passions” in paperback when it is announced for sale in September.
I will always be a huge fan of J.D. Robb (Nora Roberts) the author, and the incredible world and characters she has created in this “In Death” series.
draws_nn – Pinterest – (Sorry I can’t read the signature at the bottom right.)
Good morning. I hope you enjoyed a nice 4th of July celebration if you live in the U.S.A. (I’m reminded as I communicate with readers here, and also on X, that many of the people I treasure are from other countries, so yesterday was not a holiday for them.)
Our down-in-the-valley neighbors shot off some fireworks last night, since we missed the forecast thunderstorm. Sadly, our weed trees in the back made it almost impossible for us to see the display. :0( I wished we had a 2nd floor deck so we could have seen it better.
We’re in the process of a cool front moving through, so the awful heat indices we’ve been having won’t be a factor today. Right now the humidity is 82% according to my computer, so it may be the end of the day before we FEEL any relief, but the temperature is only supposed to be 91 this afternoon, so I’ll be grateful for that.
Since we’re inside, I’ve been trying to clean some areas that have needed attention for a while (a too-common condition around here). The days have been whizzing past my head while I clean and then relax and read in my chair or listen to music.
I’m hoping for a quiet day ahead. I hope that if you traveled, you get home safely and get a chance to rest before any return to work.
“Giraffes are fairytale animals, almost heraldic – as if from the land of fables. They have extremely beautiful faces, huge eyes, very sensitive nostrils and oh, blue tongues!” – Joanna Lumley
Instagram.com
“Well as giraffes say, you don’t get no leaves unless you stick your neck out.” – Sid Waddell
Izaskun-Pinterest
“The place I most missed my husband and family was when I stayed at Giraffe Manor, which is a crazy hotel in Kenya where giraffes wander around sticking their necks in through the top-floor windows for snacks.” – Monica Galetti
Lisa S. Baker via Michelle Johnson-Pinterest
“Giraffes are completely tranquil – they have no predators as adults because there’s not an animal in the jungle stupid enough to go for them.” – Joanna Lumley
Christie Desrosiers-Pinterest
“If I could adopt any zoo animal, it would be a giraffe. I have always loved giraffes. They are so graceful and beautiful to watch.” -Torrey DeVitto
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“My neighbors are crocodiles and tigers and giraffes.” – Bindi Irwin
Happy Independence Day! I hope you have a wonderful day with family and friends.
We’re having a quiet celebration here. Due to the excessive heat warning and then the threat of thunderstorms later this evening and into the overnight, we’ll cook our cheeseburgers inside. We still hope our wonderful neighbors down in the valley behind our house will give us a beautiful show as they make their own festivities.
I just went out to gather ripe tomatoes. We didn’t have many, though the plants themselves are still looking okay. The minute I walked out, sweat started spurting out on my forehead. And that’s at 9am, BEFORE the excessive heat warning that starts around noon and lasts until around 9pm this evening! I’m hoping that if we can get past all the dangerous heat, the tomato plants will be happier and more tomatoes will ripen. The suckers I started inside are still not perky, but they’re still alive at this point. One day at a time on this experiment. I’m hoping to move the survivors to the garden planter mid July.
Although in OUR eyes, our driveway is a delight to behold now – after scraping and shaping and spreading of good gravel that is used on the roads around here, plus the huge trimming of branches that were threatening to grow together across the driveway and make it impossible for us to drive down – some people are still having some traction problems.
Yesterday I drove down to get a package that UPS had ‘delivered’ – putting it on the ground behind the trash can that lives in a spot almost at the bottom. I had noticed someone had trouble the day before, leaving a hole in the driveway gravel where a tire spun. I put the smaller shovel we have in the truck and took a few minutes to pull the gravel back into the hole as best I could, given my strength and the heat. I did a reasonable job.
PBS-Shutterstock
Michael Remillard, of Tangles Hair Studio in Greenwood, performed a miracle once again, transforming this women who looked like a gone-to-seed dandelion into ‘someone-who-had-a-plan.’ We enjoyed visiting and catching up, and it was time for lunch by the time I returned home. I got our mail and dragged the trash can back up to where it lives to the side of the driveway.
This morning my husband was in his recliner in the living room when I came downstairs. He had already been out working in the shop on the drink holder he’s making for me on the lathe. I again thanked him for thinking that this would be a good thing to help protect my cold drinks from Jet, our cat, but more than that – I thanked him for doing a ‘doable’ chunk on the project, which is quite labor-intensive, AND coming in before it got too hot in the shop. I don’t care if it takes him a year to make it. I just don’t want him to risk a heat stroke.
Women’s Health
Shout Out to ML, my SIL, who suggested a squirt bottle of water as added ‘Jet control.’ This, and my rolled-up newspaper, are gentle attention-getters for the cat, and she hasn’t bitten me or sampled a drink on my table in a couple of days now. :0)
I’m down 31.2 pounds as of this morning, so I seem to have found a workable combination for my ‘losing-of-the-lard’ project. Tonight we’ll celebrate the 4th with cheeseburgers – with bun for my husband, chips and baked beans; Mission Net Zero Carb tortillas and no beans or chips for me; deviled eggs and some ripe tomatoes for both of us.
It’s going on two months since we adopted Jet from the Fort Smith Animal Haven. We were heartbroken when we lost Abby, our cat of around 13 years and were delighted when we found this beauty was ready to be adopted. Our lives are now forever changed.
We don’t know what Jet’s life was like before we adopted her, except that she had a litter of kittens in the past, and was spayed by the adoption facility vets. She was really shy and was going to have to adapt not only to my husband and me, but also our 95 pound yellow lab, Amber.
I set her up in the half bath beyond our utility room, with food, water, her kitty litter box, a bed, etc. Now we have a door latch that allows her to go in and out at will, but doesn’t allow Amber to go in. This has been wonderful. We also got a loud bell for her collar so she can’t hide from us unless she remains motionless for a long period of time – something that is almost impossible for her.
We put her in the bathroom with the door shut when either we are eating or Amber is, to avoid any problems. She and Amber have now reached a stage of disdainful detente, mostly allowing each other to live and let live. They will probably never pal around or be affectionate with each other, but this is enough.
She can be quite affectionate and companionable, but has a quirky, weird side where she almost bounces off the walls at times for seemingly no reason. You can also pet her and suddenly she bites you or scratches you. She does give clues, though, and I am learning to pay attention and modify my behavior. My husband – the bull in the china shop – not so much.
She is gaining confidence, exploring and showing more and more of her personality. She wants to drink my drinks on my table beside my chair in the living room or the office. My coffee cups are usually on a warmer, so she sniffs, but doesn’t go farther. My cold drinks, however, are a problem. I have some heavy coasters, and I’ve been putting one on top of the glass to keep her from sampling. A couple of days ago, we had an altercation where the glass was bobbled, causing a spill.
My husband made a wonderful glass holder for his table tray, since he was dumping a drink on a regular basis. It is made completely of metal, fashioned on his lathe. It’s a thing of beauty and he hasn’t dumped a drink since he has been using it, though I have to remind him to USE it occasionally.
Here it is. He’s going to make another one for me. It’s quite a laborious process. He promised me he will only work on it first thing in the morning and will quit and come back into the house when it starts getting too warm in the shop. This is the third day. So far, he’s keeping his promise. I told him I don’t care if it takes him all summer to finish it, praising him for coming in when he should.
I have a rolled-up newspaper to defend myself when Jet decides to bite me after leaping up into my lap. I start to pet her. Sometimes it goes well. Other times she bites me. She is getting the idea that biting results in a loud noise and quiet tap if she does this, so that’s good. My SIL suggested a squirt bottle of water might also be useful, so I now have that sitting on the table beside me and will keep it with me when I move to the living room. “Armed and dangerous….” :0)
Jet is rapidly changing from a shy, quiet cat to a demanding, meowing, intensely curious, quirky one. It’s really interesting, but challenging.
She discovered a bag of cat food sitting on the floor in the pantry. She ate a hole in the bag and ate quite a bit of food before we discovered it. Now the food is in a plastic bucket with a lid. She goes into the pantry several times daily to see if the cat food bag has magically reappeared.
I got some shoes a couple of days ago (I ordered purple sneakers with the wide toe box and ‘barefoot’ feel like the ones I discovered recently.) When the box hit the floor, Jet immediately jumped into it. She looked out, big-eyed and full of mischief. She jumped in and out, rolled it over and over, danced around it. We have decided that is one of her toys now, and will let it live there until she tires of it. :0)
The old folks around here are adapting pretty well to Monster Cat, and life is full.
As I sit here at my computer, I’m hot even THINKING of our heat index of up to 112 from around noon until 9pm this evening. I really hope we won’t be this way all summer, though my husband is pleased he hasn’t had to mow the grass.
I’ll get out when I get back from my haircut and a couple of other things to see if we have ripe tomatoes to bring in. The tomato suckers that are sitting on my dining area table are still alive, though really droopy. If they continue to live, I’m scheduled to transplant them to the outdoor planter around July 15th. If I have to start over, it’s well worth the effort, though I’ll try a bit different technique.
Vecteezy
Since we are basically staying inside these days, I’m trying to tackle some cleaning and reorganizing issues. Yesterday I spent about an hour reorganizing a couple of areas in the master bath, getting things put away and cleaned up for the first time in a while. I also vacuumed the tiled areas on the first floor (pantry, kitchen, dining area, two half baths, ‘foyer’ to the living room) and later vacuumed the carpeted areas of the first floor (living room, office, foyer), getting a whole canister full of Amber hair. Honestly, I’m amazed this dog isn’t completely bald with all the hair she sheds. My husband thinks I’m a fanatic about vacuuming, but is amazed/appalled when I show him the trash can after I’ve cleaned out the canister each time I vacuum.
I read this morning where a bunch of people here were without power from around 8pm until about 12:30am yesterday after someone hit an electric pole with their car. All electricity was restored by 6am this morning, thank goodness. The news didn’t say anything about the person who hit the pole, but I hope they are all right. We were lucky that we weren’t affected by the outage.
I hope that you have a wonderful day ahead, and that you enjoy our glorious 4th of July holiday tomorrow. Stay safe and cool.
Today has been a busy morning already. I discovered that the heat index for this afternoon and evening is forecast to be 113. GACK! We MAY get some rain Friday, as well as MAYBE a bit of relief from the heat warnings. That would be nice.
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We’ve been getting a recurring charge on a credit card resulting from my husband signing up for a free trial and then neglecting to cancel. We don’t use the service, so I decided to close the account.
To make the story shorter – we don’t have an account so I can’t cancel through their website, customer service, etc. I finally called our credit card supplier who told me the only way to stop a recurring charge is to cancel the card and replace it. They can’t charge the cancelled card, so that will solve the problem. We only do one other charge on that card, so I got on their website, changed the credit card we use for that, but then couldn’t find a way to cancel the old card or confirmation that the new information was received. I got on chat – with an automated response that it would take two billing cycles for them to ‘recognize’ the change. I couldn’t get an answer on whether I would receive a paper bill for the two cycles.
I’m now absolutely bald from tearing my hair out. I may lose my teeth from grinding them. I don’t think I’m equipped any longer to deal with stuff like this. :0(
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My tomato sucker plants are looking pretty sad. I may need to start over with a different technique. I’ll give them another day or two to perk up before giving up.
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The rest of today almost HAS to be better than it began.
This is the first part of the experiment to try to get tomato suckers going in order to extend the ‘ripe tomatoes’ luxury we’re now enjoying. My sweet cousin/friend Murray suggested that I wait on trying to do this outside, since our weather has been insane (example – today will be 95 with a heat index of up to 109). I found an article that suggested planting the suckers in small pots indoors and then transplanting them outside to the planter in two weeks.
Right now the suckers are looking sad. I don’t know if that’s because of the shock of being cut off from their plant, brought inside where it’s air conditioned, plonked into a pot and watered, or what. If they don’t survive (I’ll give them another day or so to perk up), I’ll end this effort and try it again outside when Mother Nature decides to give us REGULAR too hot weather without all this dangerous heat warning nonsense.
We’re running a bunch of errands today since our generator guy hasn’t contacted me. That will clear the decks for most of the rest of the week so someone will be here if he can come.
I hope that this is a good month for you. Stay cool.
Rebekah Krieger of Penny Bird Boutique on Etsy creates digital art prints that are unique. One caught my eye on Pinterest yesterday and I went to her site to find some really nice things –
We’re having a quiet start to our Sunday. We MIGHT get some rain this afternoon, but the heat index is STILL forecast to be 107 even so. Mother Nature is feeling relentless.
Our irrigation system is finally working as it should. We have a couple of kinks in hoses, but they can wait, particularly if we have rain today.
Murray, my ‘cousin-in-law,’ (I think), but more importantly, a FRIEND I love to pieces, texted me yesterday, suggesting I might want to wait to try to replant suckers directly in the planter until this super-hot weather fades to ‘regular’ hot summer here. I think that’s wise, since new plants are stressed by any transplant – not even having to take in account the heat advisories we’re getting daily – so I’ll sure take her suggestion.
I did find some information on planting tomato suckers INDOORS – source: sarabackmo.com
Planting tomato suckers:
Fill a pot with soil, regular potting soil is fine.
Find the suckers along the stalk. They’re located where the leaves meet the stalk and are easy to find. Pick a larger one that has already developed flowers (if possible).
Cut the side shoot from the plant.
Remove the bottom leaves.
Use a stick to make a hole in the soil and plant the sucker. Make sure that it’s standing steadily in the soil.
You can put several suckers in the same pot if you want.
Water.
It only takes a few days before the sucker starts to develop new roots. You can plant your new tomato plant (either in the garden bed or a large pot) after about two weeks.
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I’m thinking about getting a few small pots ready, trying it – keeping the pots on a tray on the table where they get light and sun – and see what happens. Hopefully, my tomato plants won’t croak in this heat and I can try both ideas. :0)
If I can get our bills paid and the filing done, I’m thinking of working more on clearing off the drafting table upstairs so I can experiment with my wood burning tool. (I know I’ve been SAYING this and not DOING it. I’m having to watch my husband more closely lately, and the day whizzes past my head, blowing my hair as it goes.)
Whew. My husband came out to help with the irrigation system shortly after I went out. The unit for the back yard planters came on and we soon found we had a spewing leak in the hose. I finally managed to turn off the system so we could fix it. It turned out to be simply a blown connection, rather than a break in the hose, so it was quickly fixed. It took me quite a bit of time to get the unit on again, running it on ‘manual.’
Soon after, the 2nd unit, the one for the front planters, came on. All was good except for a kink in the hose going to one of the planters beside the front porch. My husband was able to make it workable while I checked the rest of the planters. He says he still needs to work on that, but I insisted we come in, get something cool to drink, and rest. We were both wringing wet.
I did turn on the part that will water the tomato suckers when I find and replant them, hopefully tomorrow morning early.
The temperature is 97 right now with a heat index of ONLY 106, rather than the 115 they were predicting. I feel as if I should feel cold…
Our heat index is supposed to be up to 115 today. UGH. I’m going to attempt to get the equipment I need outside today by the planter I’m going to use to try to get tomato suckers to grow, but probably won’t try to actually find and replant the suckers until tomorrow. I really don’t know how people survived heat like this (if they actually did) before air conditioning. I find I whine a lot about the weather, but a little more moderation would be greatly appreciated…
Pinterest
I hate to brag, but I’m getting really good at ignoring my ‘to-do’ list lately. I’ve had the same stuff on it for several days now (some have even been on it for longer!) I only feel guilty for short periods, then I read, listen to music, play on my computer, or take a nap instead of accomplishing any of it.
Independent Living Aids
I smiled when I realized that my watch was more messed up than I am this morning. For some unknown reason, my watch said it was ‘1’ for the date. Looking further, I found that my watch thought it was March 1st. It’s been correct until this morning, so I have no clue. I reset it, but it’s a mystery why it went bonkers all of a sudden.
We lost power for just a few seconds yesterday. The public power came right back on, thankfully, but it keeps the fact that we have called for a technician to come look at our generator and the electrical hookups that cause it to turn on automatically when we lose power, and then turn off again when the public power comes back on. He was supposed to come Thursday. When I finally texted him Friday, he apologized and said he got hung up on a big project and would get to us next week. That’ll have to be good enough.
We have finally been without significant rain for long enough that my husband is grinning that he doesn’t have to mow. We have the irrigation system going now (we’re still trying to make sure all the planters are getting water) – but the systems only cover the planters – not the grass. My husband lives for “brown and crunchy grass” so it isn’t growing a foot as you watch.
Ontario Science Centre
We have a CHANCE for some rain tomorrow. I’m not sure what to hope for as far as rain goes with the 4th of July coming up. I love fireworks, and we enjoy the neighbors’ displays each year, but the fire danger is high right now. Hoping we can all celebrate and stay safe.
WEATHER – Heat index of 106 today, starting at around lunch time. That may be our normal forecast this summer. I can tell you I’m NOT a fan! hahahahaha – (pun inadvertent, but enjoyed.) :0)
HELP NEEDED – The man who had us on his schedule to come yesterday to look at our generator and the electricity associated with it didn’t come or call. I’m hoping we’re still on his schedule – hopefully today.
LAZIES – I’m trying to fight the lazies. I’m hoping that I’ll adapt to the weather, having to get chores done outside in the early (for me) morning or right before dark, and actually getting things done inside when it’s too hot outside. It’s definitely going to be a work in progress.
Wolff’s Apple House
GARDEN – The first thing on the list (other than ‘have-to’s,’) is gathering and planting suckers from my tomato plants in an attempt to lengthen our ripe tomatoes season. We’ve had a really nice crop this year. The plants themselves don’t look that great, but they’re producing really delicious tomatoes we’ve been devouring for lunch and dinner daily. I want to get the planting done by the end of the weekend. I’ll also set my alarm for 3pm today so I remember to get out and check the irrigation watering of the planters.
Unknown
ART ROOM – The second thing on my ‘stop-procrastinating-list’ is to clear off my drafting table in my art room so I can start experimenting with the new wood burning kit. So far, I start into the room and am immediately overwhelmed by all the STUFF on my drafting table that has to be moved before I can even THINK about working in there. I am trying to promise myself to at least spend 15 minutes each day in the attempt to move the mountain…
DEBATE – Kudos to CNN for the debate last night. It was the best handled presidential debate I personally have ever seen. Whoever came up with the idea of the microphone turn -off when it wasn’t one of the candidate’s turn to speak was inspired. Also, the lack of an audience. It was professionally done, with what I thought were good, fair questions and follow-up. The listener was able to see and hear the difference in policies and plans for the future, even though there was the regular blame game that is always a part of things. People have a clear choice in who they would like to lead them now. Kudos, CNN, and moderators.
I hope you have a nice Friday and an even better weekend ahead.
creativeartworksblog 