Yes, well … if you are a long time follower, you KNOW that I am not a fan of Summer. I am a heat wimp. As have been all of my dogs and Emmett is no exception.
So far, we have had just 2 days of real heat, as in upper 80’s … 90F. But the forecast for the weekend and first of next week is 90-94F. Blech. Behemoth A/C time probably.
BUT.
Until it happens, we enjoy the current lovely weather … and if you are Emmett, you enjoy your BIG stick…
And also if you are Emmett, you are enjoying the garden hose…
Wherever you are, whoever you are, I do hope that you are enjoying your spot!!
That saying … “If you can’t say something nice, say nothing at all.” Right.
I think about that often when I am tempted to leave a critical comment on youTube or wherever.
BUT.
Two weeks ago, watching a cooking video, that I felt was just awful in method and timing, I left a critical comment. And I received a reply/explanation from the host and another commenter. But, not leaving well enough alone and being further irritated by those replies, I rebutted again. GAH.
It was then suggested that I make my own video, illustrating my way.
At first, I was a little horrified, but then I thought … NO, that is a great idea and I need a video project that I MUST do to further my videography and video editing.
Last Saturday (6/12), I shot the video. Sunday (6/13), I edited … giving myself a headache AND realizing that I shot my intro in portrait and the remainder in landscape and at the end of Sunday, I was unsure if I could fix it or would have to reshoot. I had some test video that I did early on Saturday to test lighting and camera angle so quickly edited that.
In the process of uploading that short (relatively) video, I realized my internet upload speed had slowed to nearly unusable. After nearly 24 hours the short video uploaded.
Since the short video was less than 4 minutes and my full video was nearly 14 minutes … I did a Scarlett O’Hara “I’ll think about it tomorrow”. And then there was how am I going to work with my internet like it is and all of the calls, emails, chats, etc. during the work week.
Cutting to the chase, on Friday, my internet suddenly became nearly normal. So … did something break and was fixed or new capacity added??? I don’t know. Today, I felt able to look at the darn long video again. I was able to edit my intro so no reshoot was necessary … and it uploaded in 6 hours.
Good grief! I hope that I learned my lesson and will do what I usually do if I take exception to a video or post … move on!
However, I did learn a lot in the process of doing this and so ultimately, despite the angst, it was a good thing.
Above, my full video and below, my short test video for the buns.
Well, the photos are from Friday morning and I am writing Friday morning, but …
some internet uploading issues!!
Summer visitors … sending selfies :) and other stuff … at any rate, my “upload” capacity is dismal.
Yesterday, I did the normal Thursday work group meeting from the Jeep, parked in a spot which affords me enough speed for a meeting as my home set up does not :(
As traffic (road and internet) increased from the holiday weekend and beyond, I spoke to/emailed/chatted, etc., etc. with many experts as well as my work group team.
RATS!! We have a kind of work around and will see how that goes. I am SO grateful for the support of the work group!
So.
T.G.I.F. I mean really!! I hope to regroup over the weekend work-wise as well as yard mowing wise (blech!!)
Meanwhile …
Coffee/
Lookout by Emmett!
I watched Rick Martinez make an Enchiladas recipe.
I LOVED watching him chop for pico de gallo.
Seriously relaxing.
And the recipe … as all of Rick’s … beautiful and happening in my kitchen for Sunday dinner!!!
Back to my kitchen: bread dough and starter.
Emmett waiting for me …
Yes, a hanging screen, but not velcro. There is a tension rod and that is all. The screen hangs loosely. I am only using it early morning when I am wanting to cool the house before shutting things up against the “heat”.
To work …
And to view the beauty…
I thinned the fuchsia a bit and brought some cuttings inside.
When I bought my little house, it had a HUGE garden with 3 large raised beds, 9 fruit trees and a 6 foot electric fence to keep the deer out. I was excited at first, but soon discovered that I would be spending my weekends weeding. And 1/2 of the fruit trees had tent caterpillars and so … gave all of the fencing to my neighbor in return for them removing it.
Most of you know only the side yard where Emmett and I play. I am happy.
But.
I wouldn’t mind growing a bit of my own food. The trick being a balance of time and also a method that allows me to catch sunshine as well as protect all from the deer.
The last years, I have had herbs in containers on the front porch. The deer do not like herbs.
After my past months success with microgreens, I am all gardening confident and so …
I bought this tiered planter on wheels with the idea that I could roll it around and catch the sunshine, but it will live on the front porch and hopefully be deer safe.
Last Sunday, I visited the nursery and bought: kale (top), spinach, basil … which are in the planter. At the moment, I am planning to grow microgreens in the bottom 2 containers.
Oregano, mint and chives are in containers on the other corner.
I speak encouraging words to the fuchsia every day: “Bloom !!!” LOTS and lots of buds that look ready to pop.
When I bought the 2 planters some weeks ago, they were the only 2 that were pink and white vs the dark pink and purple … but Sunday, there was another pink and white …
I bought it and with the benefit of a few more weeks in the greenhouse, it DOES have some blooms – beautiful!!
I also bought two impatiens and a variegated oregano plant for my mini-rock garden that also has succulents…
I have some 5 gallon fabric containers with handles on the way from Amazon. I’m going to try some tomatoes, peppers, maybe even zucchini. I have been reading how to do this in a way that I can move things into the sun through the day. I figure this will be a combination of gardening and a workout … win-win :)
Front porch gardening!! And yes, the new red door, the new red cushions, fresh trim paint … I am very happy with how the front porch looks!
This past week saw our first heat wave … thankfully shortlived, but we did hit 90F (32C) on Thursday. And with long day/short night of nearly Summer Solstice … semi-miserable for me (heat wimp) and Emmett (black, long haired doggo).
But … Emmett LOVES playing in the hose and sprinkler so we subbed that for afternoon long walks and both of us got our exercise and cooled off!
And the fans came out.
Mornings are us … especially when it starts to get hot…
Running through the lupins!
The lupins!
They are blooming all throughout the woods.
But, YIKES … even with last week’s rain, it is a bit scary dry…
On the food front …
Time to harvest the microgreens!
Pea shoots! Incredible … the aroma when cutting is of fresh peas and the shoots taste like fresh peas. I love them!
Pea shoots on the left, broccoli shoots on the right … delicious and crunchy greens for sandwiches and salads this week … home grown :)
Emmett says: “Ok, but now it is time to play outside!”
****EXTRAS!!!
A new favorite youTube channel:
Bob and Brad …. physical therapists. Great info for various issues in short, concise videos. And in something like the above, they demonstrate for beginners … and how to work up to more challenging versions of the exercise. Great resource!!
AND … a new sailing race!
The title is a bit misleading. This particular video … starting at about the 8 minute mark is the finish of a coastal race. The Ocean Race Europe is a series of Leg races (3-5 days) with some coastal day races. It is a COVID adaptation of The Ocean Race (formerly Volvo Ocean Race, formerly Whitbread Ocean Race).
Today’s coastal race, following an exciting Leg 1, was a VERY exciting race with near “photo finish” in both classes. Tomorrow is the start of Leg 2: Cascais, Portugal to Alicante, Spain.
