Lots of bees dining on the milkweed blossoms yesterday!
I have to say a little something about the mechanics we encountered yesterday. If you don’t know, Don tried to start my car yesterday to make a run to the grocery store and it wouldn’t start. I went outside and tried it, too, and it was clear the battery was dead. Since I just got a new battery about 2 1/2 years ago, I knew something was up. We have insurance through Geico, so we called roadside assistance and they had someone here within 30 minutes. The guy, who wore a mask (Yay!) was the most positive, lovely, salt-of-the-earth kind of guy. He got out, brought his battery charger with him, Don got in the car and tried to start it and it started. The gentleman immediately told Don to roll down the window and he looked in the car and noticed that the dome light – the one you can read by – was on. That’s what drained the battery. Don had last used the car Wednesday morning to recycle and we’re pretty sure that while taking the bins out from their position on the passenger seat, one of them hit the on switch and that darned light remained on for two days – or until the battery died. We are so grateful for a guy who gave us advice about what to do next, all with a twinkle in his eye and a smile – even though he had a mask on, he had a smile on his face. I could tell.
His advice was to let it run for about 30 minutes and then take a drive to let the alternator continue to charge the battery. In the meantime, we called a tire center which is just about a mile away and they told us to swing by after the drive and they would check to see it the battery could hold a charge. (I bought my current battery from them and it is still under warranty.) They were incredibly helpful. We asked what their COVID protocol was. They wear masks. Good. So we stopped by, Don went in (masked) and talked to the guy at the counter (masked) a young guy (masked) came out and checked the battery. It was good, so we didn’t have to buy a new battery. Then he replaced the windshield wipers, because we figured we should take advantage of the opportunity.
And then we went home. Everyone was so helpful, so kind and they weren’t disregarding the rules about masks. Bravo. We felt safe.
All of this happened early in the morning and as I’m not a morning person, I never felt fully awake the rest of the day. But I’m grateful it all worked out.
Late in the afternoon, we also gathered some smaller rocks to fill in some of the bare spaces in the rock garden.
We’re due for rain today. We are thrilled as it is very, very dry here, approaching drought conditions. Much of it will be in the form of thunderstorms, but we’ll take it. More is due tomorrow, so we’re going to take advantage of being indoors and relax.
I’m currently reading Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. I’m late to this one. I like it. I’m not crazy about it. But it’s early on, so I’ll share my final thoughts when I finish. I will say that Owens writes beautifully.
I’ve started another Van Gogh puzzle. It will be slow going, but that’s just fine.
By the way, I made a video of a walk in our woods and uploaded it to IGTV. This is my first video and it’s a bit long, but what the heck! I’m not sure how to make an IGTV section in my highlights; I’ll figure that out later, but you can see it via my latest post on Instagram.
Stay safe.
Happy Saturday.
Oh goodness, I loved your video! Your property is so big and your woods so lovely! And I was so happy to hear your voice! That was all just amazing to me. What a nice job Don is doing on those paths – a beautiful, peaceful retreat you both have created. That was a well done tour and I appreciate your taking the time to share it! Thanks so much!
I will see if I can find the video. I did see a picture of a path you posted on IG. Looks like Don must have worked very hard and it looks so peaceful.
I read that in Japan you can get a prescription for forest therapy, or nature therapy..something like that. And they take groups on excursions into the forest. Getting back to nature is good for our health. Aren’t we blessed that we have gardens to dig in and woods to walk in.
Stay safe
Yes we are. We’re very blessed. Thank you, Marilyn. Stay safe!
Thank you so much, Ellen. I’m glad you enjoyed it! It was my pleasure. Stay safe!
Loved your walk. What a perfect place for meditation you and Don have helped Mother Nature to make. The benches look like just the place to listen to the birds and contemplate the dappled light of the woods—heavenly.
We have noticed many more masks being worn since we got to NY. It’s encouraging to know that there are reasonable people about.
Yes. NY has got it together for the most part, thanks to a strong governor and a population that is mostly sane…
Stay safe!
Thanks Claudia for the lovely walk ! I too was pleased to hear you narrate our journey.. It was so nice to put a voice to a face. You have a lovely piece of property and all your hard work shows. You haven’t ruined the peaceful and tranquil feel of your woods. I can see how you would love it too much. Again thanks for sharing.
I was happy to share this with you, Janet. I’ve been trying to do it all week long and finally got to it this morning
(I was wearing my pajamas and muck boots as I did the tour!)
Stay safe!
glad the car battery didn’t need to be replaced and that people around you were wearing masks. whew!
thanks for the lovely video tour of your property. you and don have done a great job adding more special spaces to enjoy and it was fun to see “live” and larger takes on areas you’ve mentioned before. and your voice is so kind, friendly (also strong and clear … perfect for your work)! thanks for taking time to make the video and sharing it with us.
hope you get the rain you need and have a happy saturday!
slow start here to balance the stress that is grocery shopping (for three households this morning). always glad and grateful to do that for people i love … but there are too many people at the store … and too many of them not wearing masks or paying attention to how close they get or not covering their coughs and sneezes (ugh). while most of them are probably feeling like me … tired, worried and just want to get the shopping done as fast as possible … there are many who seem to not care about the virus and other people at all or treat the store as a party place (woo hoo?). the delivery part … when i can see and talk with family members (from a super-safe distance) … thankfully makes up for all the tension and grossness of grocery shopping.
stay safe and enjoy the van gogh puzzle, reading and my favorite weather (thunderstorms).
kathy in iowa
Thanks so much, Kathy! It’s been raining all day long – just stopped. Thunderstorms tomorrow. I was so happy to see a steady rain most of the day.
I will never understand those who choose to ignore basic safety rules.
Stay safe!
I enjoyed the walk in the woods. It’s too hot to go out here. Thank you for posting it!
You’re very welcome, Christy! Thanks for watching. Stay safe!
Oh that walk was great! I felt so relaxed by the time the tour was finished…could have watched more. Thank you. It was also nice to see the secret garden, and it’s relationship to your cottage. I had pictured it farther away.
Glad all went well with the battery. Hope you get your rain. We had storms yesterday…nothing severe, but, the rain gauge said and inch and a half! I’ll take that. No watering today. Enjoy your day! ;)
No it’s hidden away behind the kitchen. We call it ‘secret’ because you can’t really see it from the front of the house or the street and it’s tucked into this tree-lined patch of grass. It’s a nice escape.
We’ve had rain all day long and it’s been wonderful. Stay safe, Donna!
Glad they were nice…and no new battery. Am astounded to hear that the numbers are rising so quickly esp since half of my family lives in Florida. My daughter and I were discussing masks and we remembered when seat belts became mandatory and how others balked at that. Well…masks save lives also…glad you are wearing yours and Don is also. I have stopped reading blogs where people continue to whine and complain about such a simple life saving measure. stay safe…I did not love the book you are reading despite the great reviews…good luck on your puzzle. brendab
Yes, my sister and her family live in Florida. My nearest and dearest. So it concerns me a great deal.
Anyone who whines about wearing a mask is blocked on IG or Twitter. I’ve no patience for them.
Stay safe, Brenda.
I have stopped reading blogs-I don’t do any social media other than blogs…that whine about masks…and are so pro T right now. I can’t handle the stress…you know, of course, that I absolutely love this blog. brendab
Thank you, dear Brenda! xo
Glad you’re getting the car problems solved! I LOVED Where the Crawdads Sing! I so hope you do too.
Have a safe, rainy??!! weekend. Beautiful, but dry, as always, here in OB
It’s rained all day, just stopped. Storms tomorrow. We need the rain so we’re happy.
Stay safe, Priscilla.
Oh Claudia, I’m like the others we finally get to hear your lovely voice. I really liked the walk in your woods. Tell Don he is doing a great job on the paths. The book your reading “Where the Crawdads Sing” was a page turner for me. Give it a chance, it gets better up into the book. Again thanks for sharing your woods great job filming.
I’ll definitely give it a chance, Deb. I don’t dislike it, it just isn’t really grabbing me yet. I expect it will.
Thanks so much for watching the video, Deb. I’ll pass along your compliments to Don. Stay safe!
Where the Crawdads Sing was definitely evocative and memorable. One of my favorites this year! But sometimes you just have to be in the mood for certain books. I’ll look forward to what you thought once you’ve finished.
I’m sticking with it, for sure, Roxie. And you’re right – evocative is a perfect word for Owens’ writing.
Stay safe!
Loved the tour!! The paths are beautiful. This pause we have all taken has allowed Don to invest some time in a new endeavor, and what a job he has done!! You will enjoy what he, and you, have accomplished for a long time ahead. The opening to the meadow was lovely. Reminded me a bit of a Wizard of Oz moment as it came into view!!
Enjoy the rain. We have had a couple of inches this week and it looks like a few more starting on Monday again. The days we don’t have to water are diamonds! And everything is looking quite lovely right now, including the grass which is growing fast and frequent mowings are necessary. It is always one thing or another, isn’t it?? Keeps us busy.
I know! It’s such a surprise isn’t it? This all started because I asked Don to open up a path to the meadow so we didn’t have to go through brambles. And look how it’s taken off! He absolutely loves doing it.
Didn’t have to water as it rained all day long. It’s stopped for now, but we’re supposed to get thunderstorms tomorrow.
Stay safe, Chris!
a beautiful path through the woods! I enjoyed your very first video.
and so lovely to hear your voice. thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much for watching, Tammy! I’m glad you enjoyed it. (I did it while wearing pajamas and boots…)
Stay safe!
Thank you so much for the lovely walk today! This is Day 106 for me too, so it felt like I was actually going somewhere. My little backyard and my cottage garden are keeping me sane. Your blog helps too.
You got to take a mini trip, Carolyn! Glad to help out! I’ll try to do some videos in the future, but I don’t want to overstay my welcome on IGTV. Thanks so much for watching and stay safe!
Isn’t it wonderful to have a really fabulous experience with a stressful situation? It sounds ilke both the Geico and mechanic places really have their acts together.
I’ll have to find your insta-walk. I’m looking forward to seeing it.
Have a lovely weekend. I hope the rain doesn’t take out power, just gets everything nice and wet!
So far so good. We had steady rain all day long. Tomorrow, thunderstorms. So happy to get some rain for parched grass and gardens.
Yes, yesterday was a very positive day with a good outcome and good people.
Stay safe, Jeanie!
Your weather usually follows ours. We had extremely dry conditions, too – our grass was brown. We had wonderful storms the past two days. At first, it just rained on and off, but yesterday evening we had a downpour. And today the sun is out again, but of course, now it’s humid as heck from all that rain! Brian leaves for work at 3:45 a.m. (I know), and he said the area was shrouded in a heavy, humid fog.
I won’t say a word about the book you’re reading, because I don’t want to spoil it for you with my thoughts. I read it awhile ago. It’ll be interesting to hear what you have to say when you’re done with the book.
Whats IGTV – is that some kind of Instagram video? I’ll have to go look. I’ve only watched video snippets on the top of my IG page.
It’s humid here today (Sunday) Melanie, so we are definitely following you.
Yes, you can find it on my profile page on IG – either in the posts or when you click on the TV set IGTV logo.
Stay safe!
Bravo… I really enjoyed your post today!
Thank you, Kelly! Stay safe.