the concords are here!

They grew much better down in Los Angeles, but we'll take what we can get. Yay for homegrown grapes! 
 

park date

 

Yes, I know it is August, but August on the coast can be chilly! Once it warms up around noon, you forget you even were chilly in the morning.

I now have a park date basket in the trunk of the car. In my basket I have reusable plates, cloth napkins, water for washing, utensils, soap, and a washcloth. The camp chairs also seem to have moved into the vehicle.

Park dates with good friends are great and are only made better when those good friends bring you home grown veggies! 

the august bed

daily pretties

august bed linens

grapevine portal

 

slow mornings

 

colors outside the window

it takes me forever to finish my coffee

waffles for lunch

sandbox tomatoes, firecracker lilies, and frugal shopping

 

The sandbox tomato plant I pulled from my old classroom produced the pretties! Looks like we'll add them to tonight's salad! Yay for home grown goodness. 

Like clockwork every year, these firecracker lilies make an appearance near the end of August. Aren't they pretty? It;'s still smokey outside, and it's still hot and muggy inside, but we're doing our best to remain hydrated and cool. Sleep however, has been elusive. 

Confession time. Our most recent grocery haul comes from the 99 Cent store. Yep, you read that right, the 99 cent store. here we have ground turkey, and ground beef (from a distributor that also provides organic meat to Whole Foods market), yellow cauliflower, green onions, crescent rounds, a bunch fo herbs, not pictured. Grand total $15! 

the return of the masks

Elastic was sold out everywhere and I found it irritated the ears more often than not. I cut up t-shirts to make t-shirt yarn but I cut the strips too thin. Finally gave in and bought some yarn and I am so happy with how it feels. If ya gotta wear a mask to help keep others protected, comfort is key. I have also found that the basic pleated masks work best for me as a wearer of eyeglasses. While the wired masks seal better, they also knock my glasses off-center, and sometimes off my face. The pleated masks can be pulled up just under yer ol' eyeballs and still cover your chin. If I have to, I can also wear a paper mask underneath for added protection. 

It also helps that my fabric choices are fun. 

fire season

 

Our summers are relatively cool compared to much of the country. We tend to have June gloom as early as May and as late as August. The heat begins to creep in at the end of August and settles down for a nap throughout September and October. It seems the heat is here a little early this year, and today it brought it's ugly cousin, fire. 

Usually we know there is a fire somewhere in the state when the sky lurks murky and the air smells of campfire. Sometimes, even when there is no smoke, I know a fire is nearby by the instant asthma attack that decides to visit and party down in my chest. 

This Complex Fire is a helluva doozy. It is devastating in a year when we really do not need any more devastation. The weird like might be pretty, but when the sky looks like this, and the air feels so still, and you cannot even hear your local birds twit-twittering away, it is time to head back inside, close all the windows and keep yourself hydrated. 

Here, at the casa, we live in an area that is known for a temperate climate. It doesn't tend to get too hot, and it doesn't tend to get too cold. Many of the homes were never built with air conditioning. The casa here has no neat, and no air. There are two ceiling fans in the house, and two gas fireplaces that radiate a little warmth in the rooms they are in, otherwise, we are grateful for the double paned windows. We have had the windows closed now for two days and while it is much cooler inside, it is still around 80 degrees with the evenings warming up even more. The mister and I have been keeping cool with our water soaked bandanas on our person all day and all night long. While it is not ideal, we are very lucky to be able to be indoors, and away from the flames that are ravaging the land not too far north of us. 

Stay safe, hydrated, and as cool as you can. Leave water out for the birds, bees, neighborhood pets that may be stuck outside, and the wild animals looking for a cool place to rest. Follow your local fired departments on Twitter and sign up for alerts if you can. 

masks r us

 

a little of this, a little of tha

solar powered tea

 

feeling a smidge crumpled

 

If I have to walk one more loop around my neighborhood I’m gonna crumple to the ground and just lie there. When we first received the safer at home order, we took it in stride and began daily walks around our neighborhood. Whether we turned right, or left at the end of the driveway didn’t matter, there were hills to be tackled, fences to be mocked, and Little Free Libraries to explore. From March to May we walked almost daily, enjoying the gardens of our distant neighbors, the handmade signs “We’re All in This Together”, the bears and the eggs, and the hellos and the waves. It was cool. There was rain, and wind, and magic hour sunsets, there were cats, and cats, and more cats to not pet (except Joe, I would pet Joe for a solid ten minutes.) We watched the leaves appear on the trees, the birds gathering nesting materials, the gardens appearing in front yards, and so much heartfelt curb appeal going on. There was an influx of Rufous Hummingbirds, the Kite family hatched four babes, and the occasional Western Bluebird would make a pitstop at our yard. 

We enjoyed the walks, masks and all, and we could do this and we did, for two and a half months. I’ve now seen all the things I can see in the neighborhood. The new stupid horizontal fences, the landscaping, the non-masked people huffing past in groups of three or more. It’s hot and not even too hot yet, but I’m cranky. I’m cranky with the people not wearing their masks, I’m cranky with the stupid horizontal fences (clearly I wasn’t the only one to binge watch Fip or Flop), and I’m cranky with the hills that fake me out. I’ve lost my Pollyanna vibe and it’s bugging me, but rather than do anything about it, here I am, looking up another muffin recipe on Pinterest because I’m now in the frame of mind of “Meh, screw it, gimme all the muffins and let’s watch Hallmark Christmas movies.” 

I still have library books I picked up IN MARCH that I have not read, nor can I read, feeling too troubled to read so instead I watch horror movies or Gilmore Girls for the ninety billionth time, and reread lame romance novels because things are just too scary right now but if I admit it, I’m living in fear, or overreacting. So instead, I bake muffins and post them on social media so all everyone thinks of me is “she sure eats a lot of sugar that one.” and I nap. I’ve now napped so much, I’m all napped out, tapped out, apped out, At the same time, I’m so freaking lucky. We are. There is a roof over our heads, food in the fridge, and mr. a-go-go is still employed and working from home. We laugh, and listen to music, and vent about the current political climate. We cook dinners without sugar and make plans to walk that we ditch for cat videos instead. We eat fresh berries from the garden, and herbs from my herb pots, and homemade scones every other week or so. We have soap to wash our hands, and fabric to make our own masks, and enough affection and gooey love for each other to get through whatever this chaos is. We’re so dang lucky I could just crumple to the ground because the view from there is all blue skies and happy clouds. 

Hang in there everyone. Covid-19 is no joke. Racism is real. Black Lives Matter. Wash your hands, and be kind to yourself and each other.

the june bed

 

sneak peek: june bed

 

first of the season

 

uncanny

 

last day of zoom teaching

 

when life gives you bad apples...

 

daily walk: june 7

 

replanting

 

I found black nasturtium seeds! the sprouts are looking happy so I'm going to move them from their tiny little pot to the nasturtium bed in the backyard. Crossing fingers they make it! 

**edited to add...they did not make it. Drats. 

making something from almost nothing

 

then I prettied them up

 

A little washi tape here, a little bit of scrappy scraps there and voila! Pretty jars of plants to be. It's both pretty and it protects the roots from too much sunlight! I miss making things. These last few years have been spent creating bits for the classroom but now I have to think outside the crafty box and figure out how to get my mojo back. 

herbs and seeds and seeds and herbs