Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Life in our little cottage in the country

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Sheltering From The Heat

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Greetings from the Heat Dome. Yikes, it’s hot out there! We watered everything twice yesterday. We’ll do the same today. With temps reaching 97 degrees here with a heat index of over 107 degrees, we are happily inside the house for the day. Well, until about 3 pm, when we have to get on the road. We’re going to a concert in NJ, not far from Manhattan. Yes, we’re driving in these temps! But it’s a one-night only appearance. So off we’ll go. (It’s a concert by Australian Tommy Emmanuel, an incredible guitar player. His mentor was Chet Atkins. He’s charming and funny and it will be a lot of fun, especially for Don who is a huge fan.)

Thankfully, all this heat will be gone by tomorrow. The high will be 77.

I watched this monarch go from coneflower to coneflower yesterday. Since there are about 100 blooms on the property, he hung around for a long time!

My dear friend Donna messaged me on FB today. She was a member of the cast of what she reminds me was “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” the musical we were doing scenes from 50 years ago yesterday. She remembers “running over to the TVs on every break from the stage to see how they were doing and finally seeing Neil Armstrong step on the surface.” I was assistant director on that production. Donna, by the way, has a gorgeous singing voice and is beautiful inside and out. We were in plays and musicals together, both in the summer and in high school. We also were in choir and vocal ensemble together. She was and is a good friend. So good to hear her thoughts! I read them and was immediately back there at Camp Dearborn with her and the rest of the cast.

I’m still waiting for the newest Kate Atkinson to arrive in my local library. I finished Case Histories  last night, and I’ve started on Chris Pavone’s latest, The Paris Diversion. You get a lot of reading done in weather like this.

Happy Sunday.

Potpourri on Tuesday

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• That’s a pesky Japanese beetle on top of that coneflower. Every year, like clockwork, they descend upon the gardens. Oh, garden pests, you are on my last nerve!

• I did a double take when I saw 98 degrees as the high for this coming Saturday. I sure hope that number changes for the better. It’s going to be 91 here today and very hot for the rest of the week, though it’s supposed to storm tomorrow. We’re in the dog days of summer, that’s for sure.

• We went over to Rick and Doug’s to let Sam out and we spent some time throwing his ball for him. That boy can run fast – just like Scoutie could – and he will keep going forever. But we were mindful of the heat, so when he started to slow down, it was back in the air conditioned house for Sam. He’s such a great dog. We gave him lots of water and some treats and sat and petted him.

Here’s how he looked post-run:

I’m betting someone went right to sleep after we left.

• I want to recommend a series on Netflix: Charité. It’s a German series, so there are subtitles, but my heavens, is it excellent in every way! There are two seasons.

Charité is a famous hospital in Berlin. The first season is set in 1888 and it centers on the hospital, using both fictional and nonfictional characters. Set in the days when there was no cure for tuberculosis and diphtheria, it follows the struggles of doctors to find a cure, at a time when the word antibiotic was not in the lexicon. Charité was a famous teaching hospital with future Nobel Prize winning doctors on staff. At least four of the characters were real doctors who did indeed go on to win the Nobel Prize.

The second season, Charité at War, takes place in the last days of WWII, when the Russian army was advancing. The staff is divided in their allegiances; some are supportive of Hitler, others aren’t. Again – a mix of nonfictional characters and fictional characters, with the chilling specter of the Reich’s policy on euthanasia very much a part of the story.

We watched the second season first, and just finished watching the first season last night. The actors are simply stellar in their roles, the set design and cinematography excellent. In fact, it’s impeccably done. After a short while, you’ll forget there are subtitles because you’ll be completely immersed in the story. Best thing I’ve seen in a long, long time.

The hospital, by the way, is still in existence and is consistently ranked as one of the best hospitals in Europe.

• I’m just about to finish Started Early, Took My Dog  by Kate Atkinson. I’m hoping the books I recently put a hold on will be delivered to my library today. I don’t want to break my Kate Atkinson rhythm!

Happy Tuesday.

Coneflowers, the Porch & Scout

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From my seat on the porch this morning. I slept longer than usual and Don had to leave early to catch the bus to NYC for an audition, so all we had time for was hello and goodbye. Normally, we sit in the Adirondack chairs for our second cup of coffee, but I chose the glider this morning.

I took it easy yesterday, turned the A/C on by mid-morning and, though it was hard for me to stay indoors, I did. I listened to one of my favorite radio programs, read, putzed around the house, checked Instagram, read some more, and had lunch. I’m thinking I’ll do the same today, after I finish watering the seedlings, which I had to do twice yesterday because it’s so damn hot!

Grace’s beautiful capture of Scout arrived in the mail last week. We will be framing this eventually, but it’s currently propped up on the piano’s music rack. (It has a protective covering at the moment, which is why it’s a bit blurry.) This Scout is ‘old Scout’ and we love that because it captures her at a time when she was starting to have real trouble getting around, but could still run from the back of the corral, down the little hill and, with a big jump, land on the elevated threshold of the house.

Gosh, we miss her. Thank you so much, Grace!

The coneflowers – mostly purple, but we also have white and yellow coneflowers – are popping out everywhere in the gardens. I think they may be my favorite flowers. I love peonies, of course, but they’re short lived. Coneflowers last a long time in the garden.

Thank you for all of the incredibly supportive comments on yesterday’s post. I am so grateful for all of you.

Have to go over to Rick and Doug’s mid-afternoon, to let Sam out. They’re gone for the day and won’t be back until this evening. I love that boy, so I’m looking forward to it.

Happy Monday.

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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