Farewell summer...

 It is a poignant time of year for me. We always came home from the cottage the week before school started. Mom would do a massive house clean while playing Christmas music at full blast. She didn't start work until September. Dad escaped to the office!

We haven't gone anywhere or done anything, since we've been so ill. Joe has been great about figuring out meals. We've a couple of things coming up and I will look forward to getting out of the house. The Perth Fair (the heavy horses), the Sundance Artisan Show, are two things we shall try for. 

The garden is wearing down. I am very behind in weeding. I filled a large garbage can yesterday. Once the seeds disperse one is doomed. My one pumpkin and one zucchini look good 😣, thankfully we've lots and lots of cherry tomatoes. 

It is joyful reading about all the people preparing preserves for winter. 

The thunder storms will stop. I figured out how to do a live screen capture of the recent August storm on LightningMaps.org.

 

 The hummingbirds were still here as of Friday, visiting the petunias and various wildflowers. Soon they will be gone. I spotted one the other day on the petunias.

The Woodland Sunflowers are still in bloom, but some are losing leaves and petals. I'm not ready! The butterflies are disappearing. The large ones don't last too long. The season is so short.

Bees, wasps...

Our Ottawa kids are canoe camping in Algonquin Park this week. They rent a canoe, and have it dropped off at their launching point. Then they canoe along the lake, portage, and find their camp site. 

Then school begins. 

Caitlin bought a canoe on Kijiji for less that the cost of renting a second canoe. They tried it out at the beach! Aster and Jo sure are growing.

Saturday was a let down! We'd watched the DNC speeches. VP Harris is amazing. Driven, positive, determined to improve the lives of all Americans in terms of housing, healthcare, human rights. It's a lot to hope for, but all the people around her have changed the tone of the election. 

The dawn has arrived.

The garden is out of control!

I am 5'4" (was? I know we shrink as we age), so you can see how tall these are!

Do you like Tiger Lilies? Normally, I put up a few stakes with string to hold them back. Ain't gonna happen this year.

The plants are eye level to me. Their pollen is quite something. It is blood red. 

The pumpkin, or maybe it is squash. Anyone recognize it? I planted both here and I'm that kind of gardener. The banana is for scale!

The woodland sunflowers have to be 6' tall. They are native.

And my precious second lily plant is in bloom.

I ordered myself a new sprinkler. I am tired of losing plants to dry spells! It saves me standing there, and gives it a good, long soak, for which I've little patience. Cinnamon helped. I mixed up the settings for the trip pin. I had to change out of soaking wet jammies. 

August is normally dry. I hate seeing the crackly plants as they wilt. This makes me happy. I haven't bought a sprinkler since we moved here (2010) so I feel justified! 

 

The Tiger Lilies host lots of critters. I photographed a Bumble Bee, and a Katydid. Also, hummingbirds like it.

 

😷 COVID UPDATE – Tuesday/Wednesday, July 30/31

Thanks for your support during our health issues. I hope none of you get this. We are slowly getting better, but giving ourselves permission to be couch potatoes. It is difficult, as you know. Today I shall venture down to the trailcams. That is my goal. The doctor said he couldn't do anything for me, so I'm treating symptoms. Otrivin at bedtime, saline nasal spray for sinusitis, Ventolin puffer, Subicort puffer, cough drops, orange juice. I slept from 12:30 until 5:45. This is good.

The coughing during the day is like a bad cold I used to have in the old days. Colds such as I haven't had a serious one since I retired (2006). I have a bit of a voice back, but it is clearly an Alto voice. Kinda weird. 

The best thing is to clear my lungs to avoid pneumonia, but sleep is such a blessing, dontcha know.