where did the week go and white

I was going to write a post Thursday, and then yesterday and now here it is Saturday. I have no idea where the week has gone. I went to yoga on Monday and Wednesday evenings. I've not been very good about doing my daily routine in the morning the past two weeks, maybe I've managed about half the days. Maybe. Not today. But yes yesterday.

Wednesday CenterPoint sent a crew out and installed the meter so now we are getting estimates from electricians to hook the house up to the meter and hook the septic system up to the house. The first one from a local man and wife team who my sister and I have both used before but we thought their estimate was pretty high. I'm waiting to hear back from another individual, I have one more to call on Monday, and Pam is waiting to hear if the company in Rosenberg that did my daughter's house is going to show up on Tuesday for a look see as their crew was exposed to the virus by a customer and of course only the estimator tested positive but he feels fine and will wear a mask and I'll be standing far far away.

My ennui of the last couple of weeks seems to have dissipated somewhat. I did make the crostata out of the cherries but it didn't improve them at all however the addition of vanilla ice cream did. I spliced the last bad place on the hose with the kit my daughter picked up for me in the city. I finally glued my concrete naked lady back together (she's 33" tall) though she's got a serious crack around her ankles with some small chunks out which I'm going to fill in with the gorilla glue I used to put her back together. The glue is paintable so after it cures completely I'm going to touch it up. 

I finally got the rest of the house vacuumed but my house cleaning urge seems to have vanished now. I'm thinking I must have accomplished something else but I can't think what beside watering and a bit of cutting back some of the easter lilies gone to seed and turning brown. We did get a very minor amount of rain yesterday, very light, for about 20 minutes. I was out in it across the street while Rocky was gathering up tools and stuff being all but done with the deck 

and moving the stairs that came with the house around to the back door. It wasn't even raining enough to get my clothes completely wet before I came in and it felt good really to be out in it. Today it rained pretty good for less than 10 minutes while the sun was shining.

I think today I'll do a punch list on the porch/deck (needs the spindles on the stair handrail), plumbing (two hose bibs still need to be put in and the water pipe secured up under the floor of the house), shop room and half bath (minor things like the light switch in the half bath) and roof across the back of the shop that had gaping holes at one end that Rocky had his helper fill in but needs a patch as well. I had repaired a long length of that edge of the roof four or five years ago but it finally failed. Hopefully this new repair will last at least as long or longer. It will have to be inspected every year.

Or not. Maybe tomorrow.

On the national scene, Trump and Barr have deployed their Secret Police to Portland ostensibly to protect federal buildings and monuments, but in reality to instigate and inflame with more brutality the already dying out protests in a bid to improve Trump's sinking poll numbers. Trump keeps tweeting LAW AND ORDER and yet he refuses to abide by the laws of this country that restrain a president from becoming a dictator. These armed and unnamed men in battle gear are not going after looters or those engaged in violence but 'escorting' citizens off the streets into unmarked cars taking them to unknown locations with no Miranda and no charges leveled. This my friends is unadulterated fascism and Barr has already announced that he plans on deploying them all across the country violating our civil rights...our right to protest, our right to free speech, our right to protection from illegal search and seizure, our right to a free press.The governor of Oregon and the mayor of Portland did not ask for them, do not want them there. And not a peep out of the 'states' rights and small government' Republicans. And where are all the 2^nd amendment folks who claim that the whole purpose of the 2^nd amendment to allow an armed citizenry is to protect the nation from government imposed tyranny? Where are all these right wing militias protecting the citizenry from this governmental tyranny and illegal seizure of citizens?

So as not to end on such a depressing note...more pics from the yard, the white edition.

The white ginger is starting to bloom but no picture yet. The plants have really been suffering in this heat, can't water them enough, and the one or two flowers so far wilt quickly so I finally got out there today and put up the shade cloth which I can drape over them during the hours when they're in full sun.

The bridal bouquet plumeria is in full bloom. It's hard to take a good picture because the plant? tree? Is 7 1/2' tall.

This is our native passion flower vine. Pam gave me a piece and I planted it over at the shop on the dog pen fence (the previous owners had a german shepherd so there is a large hut/dog house and fenced area). She warned me but I didn't care...then. It is so invasive it's coming up all over the yard after it smothered the dog pen fence and now it's trying to colonize the fence I spent all those weeks clearing this spring. It rarely blooms but it is a larval food plant for fritillary butterflies.

Spider lilies. I brought these from the old city house.

The white orchid tree is still putting on blooms.

This althea or rose-of-sharon is just now starting to put on buds.

I tried for years to grow gardenias. Either they died outright or they just never grew and never bloomed until this one bush which has grown and bloomed profusely. It already did it's main full bloom a couple of weeks ago but now it's putting on a second less profuse set of blooms. I pick one in the morning and put it in a little vase next to where I sit and it perfumes the air all day.

Next covid update on Monday.