First Day of Fall

 

I had the most yummy salad today for lunch.  It was chopped lettuce and greens with an egg, cold salmon, cherry tomatoes and a sprinkle of edemame and toasted pumpkin seeds.  Plus I crushed up a handful of tortilla chips and a tiny sprinkle of crunchy jalepeno crisps.  Now I need a nap.

We turned off our AC finally this week.  I have a new fountain (I will post pictures next week).  So, now we can enjoy the fountain sounds even from inside our house.  But I keep thinking that either it is raining or that I left some water running somewhere, LOL.  It is in the high 70's during the day, maybe just into the low 80's and in the 50's at night.  Nice weather!  I opened all the windows and ran around and cleaned all the window sills, they get so yucky.  Dirt and flies.  Ew, too much information.  Esp on the north side of the house, the moisture.  The north side of our house now looks really nice since I scrubbed off the mildew this summer.  We are also getting a nice steady rain today and the humidity is 93%.  I scrubbed the range hood really good this morning and worked up quite a good sweat.  Speaking of sweat, I sat in my office all afternoon yesterday and was comfortable without even opening a window, but when i did yoga last night in the sitting room and the door closed to keep out the dogs, I was really sweating and started shaking, thinking what is wrong with me - then i realized - we turned off the AC Sunday!

I have been having so much trouble with my right knee!  Then I lowered my desk chair - it is already better.  It has been so bad for a couple of weeks i was thinking of making a doctor's appointment.  Now that I am working and back to sitting up to 8 - 10 hours a day, it really makes a huge difference!

We finally got our new bed.  We are loving all the room we have now, going from queen to king.  It isn't as crowed as i had feared.  I really want to get rid of the side tables and attach lamps over the headboard on the wall, but DH thinks he needs his drawers for storage.  Maybe next spring i will work on convincing him.  For now, i am just enjoying having essentially my own bed - we went for the twin base, and we can move the head or the foot up.  I love watching tv in bed, so i LOVE our new bed.  

I caught a cute picture of my 2 chi's sitting on my lap yesterday.  It is rare to catch them close to each other.  They like the 2 big dogs more than they like each other.  Chihuahuas are sort of temperamental...shoking huh?  I had to just look up how to spell temperamental, I had no idea the first A was in there!

The other evening, we went for a ride in the convertible to enjoy the pretty weather.  We were a little late getting back, after dog feeding time.  DH says, well Penny (the big pup) will be chewing on something by now!  Sure enough, we get home and she got into my yard and there was a single strand of yard going from the living room, out the back doggie door, through the patio area, out the fence and strewn all around our back yard!

Sure am loving this bit of rain.  Save me from watering this week before i have to drive up to the city.  I worked Sunday so that i could take off Friday to go up and help my aunt move my grandmother.  She is moving into an apartment right next door to my aunt, so my aunt can take care of her.  At 101 she still insists on living alone, so i hope this works out.  It will still be a lot on my aunt making sure her mother eats.  But, it is what they have decided and i am being supportive.  I am helping pack/move Friday, then picking apples at my former colleague's farm, then Sunday my sister will join us to help organize/unpack after.  The movers are moving big stuff Saturday - not much just a few chairs and bed/dressers.  I will be happy to get it over with - not nearly as happy at grandmother and aunt!

This is a picture of our weeping blue atlas cedar that we planted where we took out the huge crepe myrtle.  

before

after

Well, enjoy your first day of Fall!  See you next week.

Summer is Waning?

The other evening we were sitting outside our house (our only home now thank goodness).  We were listening to the cicadas and watching the flag not move.  No breeze.  Just stifling heat and I was wishing for the summer heat lightening and clouds.  It seems like at both our city and our country place, we have seen lots of clouds this year, but we are in the grip of a weird spotty drought.  Areas close by have received regular rain this year, but not the immed vicinity. 

The next morning (Sunday), we were again sitting at our picnic table drinking coffee.  Right now, my favorite times to be outside are first thing in the morming (I wish I was early enough riser to say sunrise) and sunset - it is just too hot.  Has been over 95 degrees a lot - since May!  The cicadas seem to have diff sound in the early versus late in the afternoon.  They are loud.  They remind me of summer so much.  More so of the last part of summer, as I have aged and noticed subtle seasonal things more.  I remember being a kid and coming to visit my grandparents in the city and I remember going to bed when it was still light outside and having such a hard time sleeping because of all the sounds.  At our rural home, we did not have all the sounds of traffic, other people outside, etc.  I remember wanting to go out and play with the kids I could hear outside while I lay there and tried to sleep in the city.  I remember the window being open and a fan in it.  I hardly remember not having AC as a child.  So, did my grandmother and grandfather not have AC?  Maybe they just had a window unit?  I cannot remember.  I can't ask my mom, but I can ask what my aunts remember.
I also remark about how soon the sunset times accelerate as soon as summer solstice comes and goes.  I hate doing that!  Feel like I need to be grateful for everyday and not wish it by.  But I noticed last night it was pitch black at 9:10pm.

For everything there is a season,
 and a time for every matter under heaven:
 a time to be born,
 and a time to die;
 a time to plant,
 and a time to pluck up what is planted;
 a time to kill,
 and a time to heal;
 a time to break down,
 and a time to build up;
 a time to weep,
 and a time to laugh;
 a time to mourn,
 and a time to dance;
 a time to throw away stones,
 and a time to gather stones together;
 a time to embrace,
 and a time to refrain from embracing;
 a time to seek,
 and a time to lose;
 a time to keep,
 and a time to throw away;
 a time to tear,
 and a time to sew;
 a time to keep silence,
 and a time to speak;
 a time to love,
 and a time to hate;
 a time for war,
 and a time for peace.
 [Ecclesiastes 3:1-18; NRSV]

Anyway, those moments also serve as my stop and smell the roses consciousness this past weekend.  DH and I lingered and took our time getting the house shut down and all our tasks we do before we leave to drive back to the city.  It was nice.  We hated coming back.  Not much longer though, just over 2 months.  It was cloudy and cooler last night, so we took a walk.  I really enjoyed it.  I love being outside as much as I can.  Always have.

What makes you think of summer?  Do you have cicadas where you are?  What makes you thinking of seasons passing?  Summer waning?