Monday, August 30, 2021

a post that isn't about work or art or food


We didn't get any rain last Wednesday after all, but we did get some Thursday night. I woke up to lots of rumbling out there but never heard the rain. Turns out it was barely enough to get the ground wet.

My neighbor and his son built a huge burn pile last Friday. He cuts my next door neighbor's yard and he finally got tired of ducking under all the low hanging branches and took his machete and started hacking away. The neighbor whose yard it is was out the next morning trying to torch it. Mostly all he got was a column of smoke because it's all still green and it quickly died out. Hard to tell from the picture but that pile is taller than an average sized man.

I think I've mentioned that I am not an early riser and this morning I slept even later than usual waking only when the pill alarm for my afib meds went off but I was up early enough the other morning to see the glass totems lit up by the red orange rising sun.

I had thought I would get outside and take care of some of the yard work this weekend that's been piling up, but Sunday I'm going with my daughter to Austin to pick up Autumn and taking her to San Antonio to stay with her sister Jade until Autumn leaves for Ecuador for her semester studying abroad and apparently all I'm doing on Saturday is this...

There was a little excitement leaving yoga class at Hesed House on Thursday. A trailer came unhitched from the truck pulling it and it rolled back and into a light pole breaking the pole. Fortunately, it was caught by some other lines and didn't come crashing to the ground breaking and whipping hot wires into the foliage around it.

As mentioned above, I joined my daughter on the road trip on Sunday to Austin and San Antonio and back home. Unknown to me until we got to Austin was that we were meeting up with my nephew and his wife and their toddler as well as my sister-in-law in town from Dallas and, of course, Autumn, for brunch/lunch, an unexpected pleasant surprise. And then we gathered the rest of Autumn's things and drove to San Antonio and had a nice long visit with Jade and we left both girls about 6:30 and headed home. Did I take a single picture? No, I did not. I did have a good time spending the day with Sarah, something that happens rarely, she is so busy with work and the continued building going on on their property and the management of her family. She and Mike had a year of an empty nest and now their youngest is back living with them as well as their oldest and his pregnant girlfriend and their two big dogs. So now they have 5 adults and a baby on the way, four dogs, and four cats living in their 3 bedroom house. Hence the plans for expansion.

My zinnias finally started blooming, the ones that survived anyway but the orange cosmos still has not beyond a handful of flowers. Here's a few random shots of what's blooming.



morning glory bush


yellow bells aka esperanza aka tecoma stans


milkweed


porterweed



phlox




14 comments:

  1. You got out in the world! Good for you! And it looks like things are blooming at home. Nice! The zinnias were obviously just waiting for their entrance. Is that phlox from some of the little rootlings I sent or did you already have them? Mine are slowing down now.
    Glad you got to spend some time with your daughter. Sounds like her life is overflowing right now.

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    1. these are the ones you sent me.

      Sarah is so busy right now and planning a baby shower for mid September as well.

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  2. That sounds like a lovely visit with family & I'm glad you had that time with your daughter. Zinnias are such cheerful flowers - but I love those yellow bells too!

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  3. All that family! Sounds like a great time. I'm glad you still feature flowers though.

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  4. We had rain all day and up until 7pm Wednesday. It cooled things off but the humidity was crazy. Expecting rain coming in from the north sometime today. Your idea for Saturday is also mine and it includes everyday I can get away with it.

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  5. Love seeing all the blossoming. How good for you to have a nice family visit.
    I feel bad now because I sleep through my afib med alarm regularly. As in: almost every day.

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  6. Sounds like you've had a whirlwind of socializing fun with family. It's so nice that you could all get together and enjoy each other's company. Love seeing all the flowers blooming there. So beautiful.

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  7. Oh my word, your flowers are gorgeous! And isn't it wonderful to be able to visit family again? Kudos to you for a safe trip and visit. (and for taking a well-earned day off!)

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  8. Your blooms are lovely, Ellen! So nice that you got to spend time with family!

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  9. I just came across a YouTube video of an artist who creates acrylic paintings through pouring the paint. Thought of you and thought you might enjoy watching. The technique kind of reminds me of your glass layering.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wimMbkNqdE

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  10. That Porterweed knocks me out. I have photos of orange and purple varieties that I've bumped into, but I've never seen multiple blooms on one stem. Beautiful! That trailer that turned loose is your neighborhood equivalent of the truck that loses its boat on one of our roads. To be honest, it usually happens on the Kemah-Seabrook bridge, which is more than the usual amount of fun.

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    1. unfortunately the porterweed isn't very hardy. I've managed to protect them from light freezes where it barely dips down but if it stays below freezing for any length of time, it's a goner. I'll have to cut it back this winter and maybe even have to dig it up and put it in a pot if I want it to survive. and two days later there wasn't a single little flower open.

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  11. That family road trip sounds like the kind of engagement I live for. I'm not even kidding.

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  12. That porterweed is a cool plant. I love the picture of the sun hitting your glass totems -- what a great effect!

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I opened my big mouth, now it's your turn.