Golfing and Gardening

and, sweating big time with both!

We, like many parts of the world, are having plenty of heat.  Today is supposed to be +37C... great.

It is too hot to bother with anything physical in those temperatures.  As a matter of fact... my ideal temperature for golfing is probably about +15C... some sun and some cloud.  Not the stinking heat of +30C days.... that's downright ridiculous.  Luckily, I don't have to work in it.  I did that for 7 years working in a plywood plant in my youth.  I'm not sure what 112F equates to nowadays ...but, that was usually the temperature in there in the summertime with all the ovens running full tilt.  And, you had to work faster as they had to set the rollers to super fast to get the sheets of veneer out of the ovens quicker when it was that hot.  Or...they caught fire!  Then, it was even hotter ..hhahahah...and, horrible and messy and we used to be totally black with soot and drenched with water and well, it was not a pretty sight...

I feel sorry for anybody who has to be outside in the burning sun on days like this.  And, I feel really bad about any animals... those poor things.  Such suffering ... I cried right out loud upon seeing a picture of cattle swarming a water truck.. couldn't even read the article.  Awful. Absolutely awful.  The poor, poor things.

The birdie bath is kept topped up and I water the gardens and grass almost daily in order to help the little birds... they come to hide out in the shrubs and have a bath or a sip of water all during the day ... the crows seem to have gone away somewhere.  Maybe over near the river in some of the big trees...it is pretty quiet crow and magpie wise these days.  The little chickadees, nuthatches, house finches and sparrows are all still around...

Haven't been taking many photos and certainly haven't bothered with this blog... oh, well... the minus numbers will soon be upon us and with 2 feet of snow and -30C ... there definitely won't be any golfing, gardening or anything like that for many months...so I'll get back to it .... maybe......if I am not snowed in and doing too much shovelling.

I already purchased a small Danielle Donaldson art class which begins in September ... painting Bonsai trees... that could be fun.  It was only $38 U.S. .... but that comes out to be over $50 Canadian... damn exchange rates... and our stupid dollar.  Along with our stupid Prime Minister and a few other stupid things.  Honestly, it all makes me not want to read any news at all...just go along in my own little bubble and try to ignore all things stupid, cruel and horrible.  Can only be done for so long though... have to have my head out of the sand every once in awhile.  Bummer.

The flowers are suffering after some major hailstones last week....and now ...a week of extreme heat... but this guy...wow... he was in one of the patio pots... and was so big and beautiful I had to take his picture.

A full 3 1/4 inches across....I measured.  And look at the colours!

This is the golf ball sized hail we had the week previous..... luckily there was also a howling wind...it took the stones sideways from north to south and they somehow missed the patio pots that were closest to the house.  Thankfully, the skylight survived as well.... several in nearby neighbourhoods did not.  Apparently it was soooo loud on the houses you couldn't believe it.  I happened to be out of town at the time and didn't even know we got hit til I drove into the neighbourhood... what a mess!!
A branch got smashed on a Dogwood and the backyard pots got whacked...but overall...not too bad really...considering the size of them.  The whole lawn looked like it had dimples too.... big ones.... for hours after the storm.

Look at that will ya?

More than a month has passed since I last posted.

Oh, well.... it's summer.  We don't get that many months of summer up here north of the 49th.... so we make the most of it.

Golfing, gardening, hanging out on the patio sipping a cold beer .. admiring the fruits of our labour ...etc... you know how it goes.  The lawn is the best its been in years..in spite of those pesky voles having made hundreds of trails all over the one side ..it grew in beautifully.  Kind of like they aerated it I guess.  You'd never know they'd spent the winter wrecking things under the snow banks.

My pots are beautiful... a riot of colour this year.  I particularly love the 'million bells' flowers (Calibrachoa)  ...  they just keep on blooming all summer.  I always have yellows and pinks ... and purples ...  and even the odd orange just to get my own attention.  I don't even like the colour orange ..but, some oranges are nicer than others...and, for some silly reason, I like how orange and pink flowers look side by side.

After my visit to my sister's "fat farm"... there was no Mr. Limpy when we got back.  Nobody fed him while I was away ... and I guess he moved on to greener pastures.  Like the clubhouse at the nearby golf course.  I was there one day and a whole family of crows was perched on trees and signposts "cawing" for a handout...hahahhah...I laughed and tossed a few bits of my peanut butter sandwich in the air.  I scared one off the post... must not be my guys...my crows wouldn't be afraid of me.  I did try to call out to Limpy just to see if one of them was him...but, no limpy guy hopped down to greet me.

This is the last time I saw him .. through the window... having some fun in the birdie bath all by himself.

And, this is the last one I have of Missus..... giving me the 'come hither' look ... there is just something about her.........

We had a huge storm last Wednesday and I saw my first funnel cloud.  It gave me goose bumps.  I know the folks in Kansas and Oklahama will be saying, "big deal"... but, we don't get that type of weather around here.  Well, not often.  There was a tornado that did touch down several years ago in Edmonton, a city not too far from us ... that did a lot of damage...and a lot of people were killed.  That was a first.

I looked it up on Wiki ... here is what happened.

~~~July 31, 1987 The tornado killed 27 people, injured more than 300 people, destroyed more than 300 homes, and caused more than $332.27 million CAD ($597 million in 2015 dollars^[1]) in property damage at four major disaster sites.~~~

Our day was nothing in comparison.  But, on Wednesday, I was coming home along a busy highway and cars were stopping to look  ...and take photos...traffic was doing ridiculous things.  I kept my eyes on all of them and on the clouds too... knowing I could make it home in 8 minutes and feeling as though I would beat it for sure.  Hard to tell how quickly things were moving but it was a fair ways off in the distance.  I did get home just in time to wrestle the big flower pots closer to the house.  I "walked" them by turning them side to side .. cuz I sure can't lift them.   All 8 of them.

Next, I grabbed the camera and stood in the garage with the big door open.  Got a few good ones of the clouds. The lower ones were rotating as it all moved along (just like in the movies) and I was happy it was moving south ... at quite a rate of speed .. not a funnel, but a huge dark bank of clouds... looking pretty ominous....
black as night at 1:00 pm...


then it rained ... next came hail.. then... oh, wow ... huge hailstones!!  And, seeing as folks might think I was exaggerating when I told the story, I took this photo with my tape measure to corroborate things..... no doubt how big it was now!!  I had to wait til it stopped as I didn't want to feel the bash of one of these on the old noggin.  Guess I could have worn a motorcycle helmet...but, what about the rest of my body? .. Didn't risk it.

Areas just outside the city were the hardest hit and crops decimated by the hail ....several houses totally trashed....it did plenty of damage.... and apparently a small tornado touched down just outside the city limits...but, not a lot of damage in that area.

But, today is beautiful.... time to go out and water my pots...... luckily I still have pots to water. !!

Who knew?

Indeed.

Who knew the centre of a pansy looks almost like it has fuzzy teeth or something ... my new camera sees so much more than my own eyes do, that's for sure!

A pretty pansy in my pot.

But, on closer inspection... furry fingers ... probably to aid in pollination or protection or something...

Look...I can see right down the throat....

Wild flax is beautiful too..

and, up close... stamens that look like they've been dipped in sugar... click on any pic to make it even BIGGER....

Awww... and, look at this poor guy ... not visible to the naked eye just admiring the little stems of drooping hearts...but, something definitely happened here....

Cabbage butterflies...

... they are pretty little things... they like to visit my colourful flowers in the pots.

                                                                         




Wow!!  the middle of August already!  Where has the summer gone?  We had a pretty wet one and now?...really hot.  Yesterday we golfed in +29C .... and today it is supposed to be the same.... not golfing today that's for sure.  Not that I usually golf two days in a row anyway...how do the old farts do it?  Oh, yeh...I am an old fart, I should should know this one.... but, I don't.  Some of them must have a lot more oomph than I have, that's all I can say.

Still doing a bit of stitching here and there .... but, not regularly, and have taken a bit of a break from the wrapping cloth pieces.  I have decided to try my hand at making a little pin cushion...not showing til it is finished though....

However, here is a bit of the stitching I was doing on the wrapping cloth piece.... utility stitches...patching .. and just making things pretty ... we were making little squares but, this time folding the edges over on the working side..  I stitched one onto the hanky corner... added some knots and then thought about tucking one just under the corner ...

Then, I got to thinking it might look cute added on to the first little square on top of the hanky corner instead of underneath it... still deciding....

The lacy edged hanky is one my Mom gave me many years ago... it has been hiding in a drawer ...  as so many beautiful pieces usually do.  Karen's suggestion is...why not use it in our project.  Give it new life and enjoy it .... even if we have to cut it to incorporate it into our creation.  I'm betting my Mom would love the way it fits in with all the other pretty pieces I have gathered and used in my little project.  She was always our biggest cheerleader and supporter no matter what we attempted in our lives....I'm sure she would be thrilled to know I kept my hanky (well, not just this one either, ... ...but, all of them that she gave me over the years) and am now getting to use them like this.  She wouldn't be totally surprised at my keeping them in pristine condition ...that was always my way..... I had dolls and things I never played with...just kept and looked at and enjoyed in their new condition... I was a strange kid....

After I added French knots and a few other stitches to the square ...I turned it over and thought.... gee if I am going to leave it loose... you will see the messy under side... maybe I'll just cover the stitching with a piece of silk to make it look nicely finished ...

and.....so I did.  There now.... nice and tidy underneath as well.  Love and devotion, as Karen would say..... care and attention to detail.... always me anyway....... and, just like Karen, I'm kind of proud of that in me.  Sure, some folks find it strange... but, there you have it.  It's good to like your own quirks and foibles don'tcha think?

not an extension ....

...but, it is new windows....wider entrance way..... 'elipticals' here and there .....  ..

window that is almost ceiling to floor on the one side....

... and, look....a lovely fluffy petunia.  Have you ever seen such a beauty?  I don't even know what it is called... or how I managed to choose it.... I just bought several little bedding plants with no buds on them.... ...but, I love it.

.... still around.......

..... moving out (well, not really 'out', but out of the main floor and into the basement..it should be interesting) .... and getting ready for the big renovation...  packing boxes and moving furniture (my body sure feels it today) and searching for the perfect tiles, trying to choose wall colours, cabinets, contertops,  etc....  etc..... takes a lot of time and effort ......

We'll be cooking on the BBQ on good days... and the rest? ...mivrowave...toaster, kettle, electric frying pan and maybe a little toaster oven...if I can find it....now where did I put that thing?  It's a tiny one I bought at a garage sale for $5 one year.  I meant to use it to cook my polymer clay dolls....but, hardly made any and toasted them in my regular oven when I did....tsk, tsk...yeh, yeh...I know..... toxic fumes...... but, I think I only did two or three things in there....

While I was busy and ignoring my yard.... ...this popped up in the driest portion of garden in the whole place ... the other iris are suffering.  I think because we have been having so much rain... they just aren't  doing anything.... even fancy Beverly Sills ... who last year was sooo beeyoootiful.... has no buds .... bummer.

But, I love this pinkish very long legged one....a corm from a neighbour I planted last year.... hahahha.... that sounds funny....as if I planted the neighbour.....but you know what I mean......

Au naturel........

....and..... with a white board behind....

late bloomer ....

My "Christmas Cactus".  This plant is pretty funny.  Every year it blooms before Christmas....  in November actually.  Flowers, of course, are then long gone by Christmas.

What now?.... a single guy appeared several days ago.  As I walked past it I was thinking ..wonder why that little nub just didn't fall off when the others did.  And, why haven't I noticed it earlier?  I almost flicked it off and tossed it into the pot as I usually do with the little bits that never become flowers.

On closer inspection... a live one!

And today??

Wow.

I crawled right under the coffee table and took one from the underside .... because to me...that looks more like it should be topside.  Best angle to me... what a beauty!

Maybe the snowflakes coaxed it along.....

Friday flowers....

......taken over and through fences of various gardens in Entroncamento on our walks about town on days we actually stayed home.  We put in a lot of miles ....same as last year.... but, this time even stayed away for days at a time.

Who can conceive of being able to grow Bird of Paradise in their backyard when one lives in Canada?  ...hahahha..... they would be covered in snow if they bloomed at this time of year anyway.  Well, every year with the exception of this one.  No snow and temperatures of guess what, today?   a great summery type golfing day here at +14C (courses won't open til end of April ) ....sunny and blue....sigh..... how I wish I wasn't coughing too hard to go outside.  I would surely wet my pants half way 'round the block if I went for a walk.

My sister mentioned that these are definitely not the golden years...not even remotely close to resembling the silver ones either ....she was thinking probably closer to rust and corrosion would be more like it if one tried to describe things.  Yep.  I feel exactly like a rusted out old car body.  Look like one too for that matter.

So, instead, I send flowers..... check out  Susan's header and pics on her post .... beautiful... and Sylvia's too....alway so lovely ...  I saw several blogs with flowers earlier today whilst trying to keep myself occupied and in a position that least initiates coughing.  Because it reeeellly hurts!  Which totally negates lying down....drat.  I just want to lie down and go to sleep for about 4 days right now........

Don't know what these actually are ..but love the watermelon colour....

update:::   some say it is quince....... okay then, we'll go with that.

And, finally, some blossoms above the hillsides of grapes at one of the Port quintas we visited.  The blossoms were alive with bees.... buzzzzzzing......... I thought I was very brave leaning right into the tree.  Of course I didn't think to zoom in......sigh.... shows how light headed I was already.  Hahahha...what an idiot...

Beverly in the morning light..

I love how the different light conditions affect colours.............. click to biggify and see her close up.......

                                                                            






A few other plants and flowers have appeared now as well.... even though I seem to have almost ignored the garden during all the wet days...and weeks.....

love the drooping bleeding hearts.....

lilacs are 16 feet tall and tower above the patio wall ... beautiful against the blue morning sky....

The diva ...

Finally, ... she makes her appearance.  All the others have bloomed and gone... she's been waiting them out I'm sure.  I thought the buds looked a bit strange and almost thought they were going to rot on the stem... so much rain here and not enough sun.  Nothing was happening ...and the outer covering just seemed to be getting brown... but, out they burst today... well, only one so far, ...  there are 3 other buds .... and, ohhhh...man...  was she worth the wait!

Please meet Beverly Sills... named for the famous coloratura soprano.  She really is an amazon next to any of the other iris in my garden.   She's beautiful, pink, and frilly......  I had seen and heard about this iris, but hadn't seen one in person.  It took me two years to find one.  It was late in the year...she had no flowers when I planted her... ... I was just going by the little picture on the identification tag and hoping for the best.  She is just as lovely as depicted and very near the colour even though I know one should never rely on an artist rendition...but, I was hoping... .... and it didn't disappoint.

more sunshine and exercise...in Constancia....

...still going up... hahhahah...... but, honestly, in hindsight, it was a very good thing that we put on as many walking miles as we did.  We enjoyed waaaay too much great food and way too many custard tarts and other yummy desserts later on ...... poor Joe fared the worst, but luckily I only gained 4 pounds.  Lost it and then... am gaining it back as I am not out walking in the snow and cold.  Roll on, warmer days.

A little chapel nearer the top.... church in background... and behind that a lovely little perfectly kept cemetery with some very old stones and crypts.

Little houses right close to the cemetery and church....I decided the caretakers might live here.   I love to make up my own little stories as I go along.... not only while on holiday...but, pretty much everywhere.

As usual.... one or two not quite up to snuff.  Somebody needs to show up with a brush and some whitewash.  Still sturdy for sure...just needs a bit of cosmetic care....

some old.......some new........ all so clean and lovingly cared for even though blackened from time and weathering.  Coarsely crushed light sand between the stones for walking on..... ..... some real and some artificial flowers.... and even two new bumps of pale sandy earth where someone was recently laid to rest.

We quietly took some photos and definitely appreciated the workmanship of the stones and little vaults.....  and then began to head downhill.

Turned around to look back.... a beautiful palm ....  turned around again and this..... I'm not sure exactly what it is...but, reminds me of what we call Tulip Trees around here......     






                                                        

Little planters along the walkways and the streets... ... flowers in all of them.....

Prickly pear cactus..

Hard to tell the size without some perspective....yikes...

This little place looks like only half a house... how strange.....

And, this lovely little fella (I decided it was a "he") was behind bars.  The cats roamed freely...but, this did seem to be the fate of most dogs.  Small, tiled areas to hang out in.  Only saw one or two with bigger yards and some grass to play on. Hardly saw anybody actually walking a dog.   This little guy was just a puppy...and only wanted somebody to talk to him and pet him.  He had the softest fur...like velvet....   Several others we saw were pretty loud and probably wanted a taste of Canadian back(side) bacon. Probably they were just frustrated.