The temperatures have dropped as of yesterday and life seems a bit easier. Sort of. We mowed yesterday, though it was still surprisingly humid. There’s lots more mowing to do and I had planned on doing that today, but we’ve had unexpected rain, with more due tomorrow. One good thing; I got to use the weed trimmer in the secret garden – it was so overgrown back there! The Dude was barely visible!
If it stops raining this morning, I might try to mow the “Lilac Side” of the front lawn because I don’t think it will be too impacted by the rain. We’ll see.
On Wednesday, we came back home from grocery shopping and as we were unloading the car, I saw a Monarch Butterfly. She was laying eggs on the milkweed! It was so cool to see that. Timing is everything, isn’t it? We stayed far away as she was skittish and watched her go from plant to plant. I guess I won’t be removing any milkweed unless I’m sure it’s egg-free. At his point, I should just leave it alone until fall.
Change of clothes for these two, who were wearing sweaters during the plus 100° heat.
As I said on IG, with so many girls wearing shoes, available footwear is almost non-existent. So this time, I matched outfits to the boots they were already wearing.
That’s Zoe on the left and Madeleine on the right.
I think I need to order at least two more pairs of shoes from my friend Cora. She makes the most wonderful footwear and she lives in Connecticut.
I’m about to finish a Jack Reacher book by Lee Child and his son, Andrew. I am wary about this trend of double authors, which seems to happen when a prolific author gets older and, presumably, more tired. But the 3 or 4 that I’ve read have been pretty good. Maybe not quite as good as the original run by Lee Child. Nevertheless, I’m enjoying them. I have the newest Robert Macfarlane on my pile, Is a River Alive? He writes about nature and is one of my favorite authors. This just came out and I only have about a week in which to read it, so I have to get going.
I hardly buy any books anymore, but I did succumb the other day, as Jane Casey has just published a new book in her Maeve Kerrigan police procedural series. I am an unabashed fan and have read them all, but our library system doesn’t always order her books. So far, there is no indication that this one is in the system. So I ordered it from Amazon. The last one ended with a real cliff-hanger.
But I won’t let myself read it until I finish the Macfarlane.
Stay safe.
Happy Friday.
glad the girls got a wardrobe change for summer. cute outfits, too.
i feel the same about books with two authors. i read one like that, co-written by a famous, prolific author of legal dramas. about halfway through, the writing changed noticeably and not in a good way. i’m not saying the other guy’s work was awful drek or that he wasn’t trying (he’s got a book published and i don’t!. I did finish it, but was disappointed and would choose to only read the big-name author’s very earliest (solo) books. double-author books, at least the one i read, remind me of doing group projects in school (which i never liked) … i could be wrong, but it always *seemed like* someone was coasting, counting on other people to do the work. no, thanks!
my sister and i are going to the big art festival here this weekend, probably this afternoon to hopefully avoid bigger crowds on saturday and sunday. i don’t need more art, but am taking my purse just in case (haha). mostly just want to do something different, that’s fun and only here once a year, get a walk in along with inspiration to do my own things (especially writing and painting).
hope you, don and everyone else stay comfortable and have something fun to do, too.
stay safe.
kathy
Yes, it is not as good. The writing is a bit more pedestrian.
Have fun at the art festival, Kathy!
Stay safe.
Claudia…….I have a friend who I call the “Butterfly lady” who now is living in a posh planned community. She misses having a backyard where she cultivated everything that would attract butterflies. She was even featured in the local papers sitting in her garden surrounded by flowers and butterflies. Now that her living conditions have changed…she went around the complex and asked the residents if she could keep some of her plants on the patios. Well….I am happy to say that the board of directors of the place gave her permission. She put out a request for milkweed plants and local gardeners stepped up. The point of this….where there is a will there is a way….. I never had a green thumb but admire all who do. It is work but as I can see it is so rewarding. You mentioned Lilacs……brought me back to my childhood playing surrounded by them….in my backyard and bringing huge bunches of them to my mom for the kitchen table. Thank you for that memory.
Maria
How wonderful for your friend and the rest of the community.
Glad to hear of your memory of lilacs. I used to a bouquet of lilacs from our childhood bush to my teacher.
Stay safe.
ps … happy for you and the monarch butterfly!
kathy
xo
Love the pictures of your girls. I’m reading a Jack Reacher book right now. Andrew Child is his brother Andrew Grant who writes under the pen name Andrew Child with Lee Child. I will have to look at the library for an Andrew Grant book. He is also a published author. Trying to keep cool. We are in triple digits. Might be getting some monsoons next week.
Oh, he’s his brother. Well, I don’t think he’s the writer his brother is. These books are pleasant but they don’t have the ‘can’t put it down’ quality that Lee Child’s did.
Stay cool, Olivia! We just got out of the triple digits and it wasn’t fun.
Stay safe.
Glad to see that Don enjoyed his birthday with you earlier this week. Coincidentally, I
have just put an extra copy of the Jane Casey into stock this afternoon as we have a long waiting list for it.
Rob Rinder ‘The Protest’ arrived today, I am number 9 on the list.
I’ve also found a new to me author – Anthony Quinn (not to be confused with Anthony J. Quinn). Just finished reading The Mouthless Dead based on a true life case in 1930s Liverpool. In 1946, a fictional detective who worked on the case, is on a cruise ship crossing the Atlantic to New York. It was an excellent read.
He also wrote Curtain Call on which the film The Critic starring Sir Ian McKellan.
Happy Friday
Rob Rinder is another author I can’t find in our system – only the very first book in the series, nothing else. Frustrating!
Thanks for the new book information, Dee Dee. Always appreciated.
Stay safe.
Cute dresses for Zoe and Madeleine. You must need a lot of shoes to make sure each of your girls do not go barefoot? Nice they all wear the same size! It’s much cooler here yesterday and today. Enjoy your weekend. Hugs, Elaine
One is currently barefoot but that’s because she has a floor-length fancy dress on and you can’t see her feet.
Stay safe, Elaine.
My library has inter-library loans where I can search other libraries for the books that my own library doesn’t have. I just picked up one today from my library that was sent from another library in my state. I wonder if your library does that. It’s a fabulous service!
Yes, it does. We live in a very small town, less than 3000 residents. I would never be able to check out the books that I do without it. But it doesn’t cover the entire state. New York is huge.
Stay safe, Ellen.
Hi Claudia! I am so glad to hear you saw a Monarch and she was laying eggs!!! The other day, just hours after saying I had not seen one in my garden I looked out the upstairs window and saw the orange flash flitting around the corner…! It could have been a different butterfly, but the size and flying mode was the same… so they are around and I might see the eggs at some point…! Plenty of the plants at any rate.
I’m glad your girls got out of their sweaters… and that the temps went down. We are in the 70’s today and it is blessedly comfortable! 101 is too hot!
Keep cool!
Thanks so much, Betsy. Happy you saw a Monarch and the eggs have most likely been laid.
Stay safe.
More pictures of the girls in their outfits! Their clothing is very stylish, and I am in awe. Unfortunately, I have not seen a Monarch yet this summer.
Hopefully, you will see one very soon.
Stay safe, Leora.
I buy used books often but rarely new ones. I also feel an energy from reading pages someone has read before, sometimes dogeared or made a little mark in the margin, often pristine. We’re still humid too but the heat has lifted some — 80s never felt so cool! Have a wonderful weekend!
I simply don’t have the available storage space for any more books – new or used. All the shelves a full and I’m donating lots of books to my library.
Stay safe.