Oops, Almost a Month!

I’m being cajoled for allowing too long of a period of time between blog posts. I often wonder why our lives must be so fascinating to others that they would miss updates on pieces of it, but there you have it: a very loyal, caring fan club! I understand; it is done under the guise of hoping we are doing okay but in fact, not all is bright in this portion of the world. I’ve had more health issues than I’d like to experience this summer; the ultimate result nothing that is earth shatteringly scary or precipitous, but enough to make me somewhat of a shut-in. Add in the heat and the idea of just taking it easy has not been that hard to do. 

With much of the west burning up it’s hard to believe, despite our heat, that we’ve remained so green this year. I do my fair share of watering nearly every day, but thankfully get Mother Nature’s help with that chore often enough to really be helpful. A few comparison shots in the garden, including the orphan tomatoes that started up in the compost and you can see that it is at its apex. We’re getting a good crop of tomatoes and waiting on the spaghetti squash to ripen.

On a couple nice days that weren’t too humid to work outside, after Marc completed the window caulking, I finally got all the trim boards painted. Another little niggling project that was good to have finished before the weather turns. I’d really like to see our front door painted but so far I haven’t been successful in convincing Marc as he’s still trying to finish up work on the Freightliner oil leak. He’s been out of town fairly frequently and even though much of it is in state travel, it still makes for very long days which often go to around 8-9 p.m. before he comes rolling in. His constant exhaustion is palpable. 

On the really good news front, my daughter and boyfriend just returned from an Eagle Cap Wilderness backpacking trip in the Wallowa Mountains of Eastern Oregon and they are now engaged! Marc and I both really think they are soul mates and that they will be exceedingly good for one another. Looking ahead in my schedule, I am about to start my marathon bread baking stint as the bake sale that the shelter participates in comes up about mid-September. Each loaf I make is put together one day then baked the next so to make 20 loaves is not a slight undertaking. I’ve also made a couple of my plate flowers which I will donate and see how they do as income-generators.