What's happening in your neck of the woods...#21

Have a terrific day, everyone - if you don't see me for awhile, it's because I've temporarily unplugged my system to give my mom the den as her bedroom :-)
I will be back, and certainly today at my last day of work before vacay..............

SO .. I check the local radar at 8am .. CLEAR .. I do one load of laundry and hang it out .. then another .. the sun is shining .. bees are a buzzin and the brids are singing .. take some pics of the gardens .. do a VCARS follow up phone call .. have lunch .. just about to go outside and finish vacuuming out the car .. and .. SHWOOOOOOOSSSSHHHH !!!
A major DELUGE !!!!!! My clothes are just SOAKED !!! No way can I even attempt to bring them in to the dryer .. ahhh well .. such is life I guess .. at least there's nothing hung out that we can't live without ..

Am going to now bore you with garden pics .. mostly the veg garden .. for which I can take NO credit whatsoever .. it's totally a DH deal .. mind you .. I do water it .. which is why there is now soaker hoses running through it LoL


~M~

#1 Veg garden

#2 .. the veg garden from another angle.

BTW the little white "shed" in pic #1 .. MAY become a greenhouse .. it initially was one .. but .. it's pretty tattered .. some windows are out .. AND .. there are SPIDERS in it !!!!!!!!!! I am considering wrapping it in plastic ?

K .. nuff with the veggies ^-^
I rec'd a Yellow Hibiscus plant a few months ago. When it started to warm up outside (late June) .. I popped it into my perennial bed .. never thought it'd bloom .. BUT .. it did !!!!

~M~

That is a very pretty Hibiscus, Marilyn - looks a little like mine, except mine is white, with a burgundy center.
and I love the little dragonflies surrounding it ^_^

Beatiful "m" i's Betty here from Louiville , Kentucky
Day one went pretty much as planned..was across the border at 8:30 to pick up Debbie (Debbiydaisy) who is travelling with me..should have been earlier but long line up at the border and I was one of the lucky ones for a random search.

As I drove in to the garage, there were about 10 agents standing there, all good looking fellows..as I got out of the car I told them I was just so excited about beinng search...never in a shakedown before..lol they must have thought I was a little off mentally..

For about 1 hr it rained, then the sky turned blue and an absolutely beautiful day ahead for travelling...of course it had to start off in Erie at the Cracker Barrel.

We stopped for gas...lordy my car is good on gas...would say it cost me $35 in gas to make it from Buffalo to here..

Bonnie (Defoecat) and her hubby are just too cute..lovely gardens and home..made to feel extremely welcome....

You know me, up before dawn and filling in time until we can get back on the road for Day 2

Day 2 will be a piece of cake..hoping to leave here around 8..so we should be in Nashville by noon...go to O|pre Land and get tickets for tonight's performance, then get a hotel nearby..visit music row and a few other highlight spots..after the Opre there is a Midnight music venue downtown...will try to get to it if we are not too tired...

Tomorrow, Memphis...

The next 5 days or so will be easy going for sure..don't think any of the days involve morethan 4 hrs driving..

No computer for 2 days so keep well my friends..

Sounds as though Betty is making the most of her time off .. as it should be ..

Had tea on the patio this morning .. it was lovely .. and then ......... well .. the clouds rolled in !! Still have some sun peeking out now and again though ..

Have to be VERY careful out there today .. the Hummingbirds are twittering and zooming by .. sheesh .. something tells me the babies are learning to fly !!

Got this in e mail this morning .. passing it along .. no offense intended .. thought it was too true and too funny NOT to pass along ..

**************************************************************************************

TIRED OF THE RAIN?

A curious fellow died one day and found himself waiting in the long line of judgment.

As he stood there he noticed that some souls were allowed to march right through the pearly gates into Heaven.

Others though, were led over to Satan who threw them into the burning pit.

But every so often, instead of hurling a poor soul into the fire, Satan would toss a soul off to one side into a small pile.

Watching Satan do this several times, the fellow's curiosity got the best of him.

So he strolled over and asked Satan what he was doing.

"Excuse me, Mr. Prince of Darkness," he said. "I'm waiting in line for judgment, but I couldn't help wondering, why are you tossing those people aside instead of flinging them into the Fires of Hell with the others?"

"Ah, those," Satan said with a groan. "They're all from Ontario ...

They're still too wet to burn."


Off to the dump :-)



~M~

LOL Good one, ~M~ ^_^

hahahaha I like that one, Marilyn!! ^_^
♫♪♪♫

Ha, good one M. We could surely use the rain. I'm sure you've heard how hot and dry it is here. It's a mite cooler here toda but the last 4 days I've temps in my front yard from 32-39, not counting the humidex.

We're back from our Yukon trip. It was beautiful. I'll post some photos in a different thread in a day or 2. I've got to thin them out some.

Coopers been just crazy lately, so itchy that he isn't able to sleep. He scratched himself raw in a couple of places. We were a bit slow to pick up on it, but we did get him to a Vet. Yup, he's developed some kind of allergy. Here's 4 and not had any troubles before. So we';re doing the diet changes, prednisone, antihistamine and antibiotics for the opens spots.

Cheryl's down with the flu.... sure wish she's better soon.

I really enjoyed hearing about Betty's son, what a story writer.

Have a good long weekend all. Happy BC day here!

Linda

Happy BC day to you too, Linda.

Our dog has been bothered by allergies in the past as well, it always turned out to be the food he was eating. I hope Cooper has good luck with a diet change.

Happy BC day to you all from B.C.

OMG such beautiful weather I've been having...yep, left the rain at home...

Day 2...

Good afternoon all from the Best Western Suites at Opryland..

Travel went fantastic, left Bonnie's few minutes before 8..travelled until we saw birthplace of Abraham Lincoln so off route we went..probably 15 or 20 miles...his birth town is just too adorable..of course a lovely circle of stores/museum..one is quite country and is to die for..had to slap my fingers a few times...

Got some photo's ...

Debbie's feet are so swollen and painful..she's laying down with legs up, hoping that the swelling comes down so we can go see a few things before the Grand Ole Opry at 7pm tonight..tickets already bought and we have a gentleman picking us up at the hotel and taking us across the street to the Opry..omg it's so grown since last I've been here..amazed at the growth..


The hotel room is a suite, omg, living room area, kitchen capabilities, not that either of us are cooking..

So everything is going according to hoyle except of course Debbie's poor legs..and we are right on schedule..imagine that..must be good planning..

So funny, everyone around me has accents and yet when I talk Debbie has to act as interpretor from time to time...

This morning in the Lincoln town Elizabethville we're crossing the street and a man and a lady are driving the circle, she yells out that she loves my outfit and what a pretty lady I am..blind they are but shucks what a friendly bunch..love Ohio people..maybe I should relocate..lol

Computer in hotel lobby, pool outside, who knows might go sit there while Debbie rests...

Hows the trip going so far...A-ok

Hoping you are all ok...

I'm doing fine, ty Betty - mostly lurking while I'm prepping for my mom's arrival tonight.
My 'puter is in her bedroom (my den), so I won't be getting on as much as I usually do, but you're in my T&Ps ladies :-)

-Susan-

WELCOME BACK Linda !!! Am glad all went well for you .. so hope you can figure out what's 'buggin' Cooper .. don't you SO wish they could talk ?
Hope Cheryl feels better soon ..
Will await the pics :0)

JEEZ Betty .. is the heat making Debbies feet swell ? Seems you're having a wonderful time and I hope you have a 'toe tapping, knee slappin' GREAT time !!!
Well .. I always though 'Buckeyes' (Ohioans) were kinda on the 'shy side' .. you must have caught their eye for sure :o)

We're ducking in and out of the house trying to miss the showers .. it just POURED this morning ..
ONE good thing .. I SOLD my car !!! Am so pleased re that .. but MY OH MY the paperwork that must be done !! Course .. that's stalled now because of the long weekend ..

Chinese food on the menu for tonight (I am NOT cooking it)

Take care all .. where ever you might be ^_^

~M~

Ain't that the truth. Sure wish we could share some of this excess of rain with you in the west who need it. We had one good day yesterday and right back to the rain this morning and a threat of a thunder storm this evening. (I'm house manager at another concert this evening and figuring out what to do with the line-up in a T-storm is a house manager's nightmare).

Went to just two concerts yesterday - one at 10 am and one in the evening - Leipzig String Quartet in the evening and they are a favourite. We had the church which seats 1000 almost completely full. I was head usher and we had to deal with line crashers - we had people lined up at 2 pm for a 7 pm concert. Those people want the front row which is always reserved for the "keeners".

But we also had pushy people wanting to get into the reserved section early. Reserved seats are not assigned. Rather, people with the "platinum" passes are simply guaranteed a seat; so some of them line up early too. Normally we will bring in the "platinum" line first and then start general admission, but last night we let the first 10 people in the general line in first.

The lady who crashed the line earlier was not one of them. At one time, she wandered into the church, around to the back near the washroom. But she didn't use the washroom. Rather she just stood near the back entrance to the elevator. The custodian took the elevator to the basement and locked it. And I assigned an usher to keep an eye on her. She eventually wandered outside again and wasn't one of the first 1- people in, but still managed to get into the front row, but not in the middle of this semi-circular church. Still wondering how she managed it.

Today, I'm working stage manager at noon for the same string quartet in a different venue and House manager in the evening at the same venue. I've started skipping the 3 pm concerts, for the most part, because I don't like the church or the location of the church. For the next couple of days, I don't have as much on the schedule. Working stage-end on three short concerts of modern music at noon, 1:30 and 3:00 tomorrow and not even going to the evening concert. And Tuesday, I'm going only to an evening concert.

Hope some of you have pleasant weather to enjoy.

Ann

Wow Ann - some people sure are pushy, eh? And someone Didn't get a good seat cuz she snuck one right from under people's noses.....
You sure have a busy schedule, Ann!

We had a major wind-storm last night - when the wind started I went into my back yard to put away some stuff from getting blown down, and a branch from my neighbour's tree broke and missed me by mere inches......... it was an 8 ft long branch and 2" circumference... I shrieked and jumped - then went right into the house! Today my DH went on the roof and swept/threw debris and large branches to the ground. Some were 8 - 12 ft long..........
These trees, although on our properties, are the city's trees and they don't want us to do anything to them, but won't do anything either......... siiiiiiiigh I wish that tree was GONE and so does my neighbour, but we're stuck with it. The City says "if it's 40% rotted, we'll take it down." but they Don't.

My mom & aunt arrived safe last night - thankfully After the windstorm.
My aunt is going to visit her daughter in Revelstoke - sometime. I don't know how long she's staying here before she goes there.

Anyway - I'll be on, periodically - whenever I can use the 'puter in the den lol

Wow, Susan. I'm sure glad that tree branch missed you. Ottawa is on the verge of restricting people from taking down trees. In general, I think it's a good thing, but I guess we'll see how it is applied. We've now got the Emerald Ash Borer in eastern Ottawa - not far from where I live; so I guess my ash tree's days are numbered.

I'm glad it missed me too!
Last night we had another storm - brought down more branches, and hail, and rain, rain, rain!
I haven't looked in my yard to see what branches/damage happened, but I'll do that when I feel like it LOL It's supposed to rain all this week, and it's the 1st week of my 2 week vacation..... siiiiiiiiigh guess I have Indoor things to do, while I had planned Outdoor things........ ah well, at least I'm not driving to work in this - I can go out when it's nice and stay in when it's raining.
I repeat my mantra "We need the moisture" (a mantra I got when I moved to Dry Dry Dry Calgary).

I'm in the den, while my mom & aunt are watching TV with my DH in the living room.
The den is where my DM & DA have the bed, so I won't be on much.........

Hope everyone has a terrific week! ^_^

Ive been busy getting organized and setting up our rescue booth at the biggest dog show in Canada! Alberta Kennel Club has 2 big shows a year and the AUgust long weekend is the biggy! Confirmation, obedience, Rally-O and agility, competitors from all over the west, particularly in confirmation. Unfortunately the intown park location used forever is no longer available and they areusing a site west of town. Also unfortunately in terms of spectators the show is so large it is located on both sides of a road and I think a lot of people never made it over to the agility/obedience side. Well it is the first year at this site and they will make changes. They had people in golf carts transporting back and forth which was great.

The big storm on Satiurday was mostly wind at the show site and didnt do much damage although I hear one tent ended up in the middle of the large pond on the site. I would not have wanted to be the one who had to go out and get it! We lost our rescue sign which was duct taped to our tent but ended up stuck ( love that velcro!) to the tent next to us! When the big wind came up in the evening I went and checked on the computor and the weather warnings had just been issued about 20 minutes before.
A young child was killed downtown when struck by debris off a building site and the main stage at the Big Valley Jamboree collapsed unfortunately killing a lady and wounding many others - they had to cancel the last day.

Last nights storm hit about 130am I think - I got up and closed a few windows as it sounded like it was raining pretty hard. But no hail in my end of town Haven't heard how much damage was done. I just had a few small branchs off my Laurel Leaf Willow which is typical when it is really windy.

Well to get back to the show Sheltie Rescue had a free booth for 2 days ( not enough volunteers to do all 4 days) and we were the only rescue there so had the booth all to ourselves. Made a couple hundred dollars, more importanely we get to talk to lots of people both breeders and the public. Both days the temps were up around 30 so everybody was plenty warm! Our booth faced east but we could sit in the back and be shaded.
I think that is the last of my full weekends ( since mid June) and I can get back to 'normal' for August which means most Sats free and Sun afternoons volunteering at Lougheed House.

oh Fancy - I hadn't heard that a child got killed........omg!that's awful.........
With the storm on Sat, I wonder who else got hurt........

Enjoy the rest of the Dog Rescue show, and take care - it's supposed to rain some more today, up to and including Friday - hope it's gentle rain!

We could sure use your rain here (minus the hail). Still suffering through our heat wave. On Saturday we got to 101F (38.5) on the ole temperature gauge. Cooler yesterday...37C. We are waiting (not too patiently) for a end to this after 3 weeks. My plants appear to have gone into a dormant state....who can blame them? :(

OUCH on that heat, Don!! o my.............
my DA is going to visit her DD in Revelstoke tomorrow, so I'm wondering how hot it is there.........

wow what a summer we are having here in Newfoundland.i hope everone is haveing a great one as will

oh my son is realy into recycling and this is something we came up with ,its a two litre drink bottle we planted lobila in holes cut in the sides what do you think.

What a wonderful idea! Of course because Lobelia needs lots of water, you can water quite a bit from the top! Fantastic ^_^

Looks great, diggin! A novel and very green idea. Good for him.

Susan, Revelstoke is located in the Columbia/Kootenay region. Here's what the Weather Network says:

Forecast
Issued: 11.00 AM MDT Monday 3 August 2009

Today:Sunny. Becoming a mix of sun and cloud this afternoon. Risk of a thunderstorm with small hail late this afternoon. Wind becoming west 20 km/h late this afternoon except gusting to 70 near thunderstorms. High 31. UV index 7 or high.

Tonight:Cloudy periods. Risk of a thunderstorm with small hail early this evening. Wind west 20 km/h except gusting to 70 near thunderstorms early this evening. Wind becoming light this evening. Low 17.

Tuesday:Cloudy. 30 percent chance of showers in the afternoon and evening with the risk of a thundershower. Wind becoming north 20 km/h late in the day. High 24.

Wednesday:A mix of sun and cloud. Low 15. High 25. Thursday:Cloudy with 60 percent chance of showers. Low 14. High 20. Friday:Showers. Low 12. High 18. Saturday:A mix of sun and cloud with 30 percent chance of showers. Low 13. High 21.

Thanks Don - better weather than we have for Calgary, so I'm sure my DA will enjoy the weather better lol

As always LOTS happening in this Forum ^_^

Carol .. I was going to write today and ask if you had gone away .. I see the Dog Show is keeping you busy as well as the weather out that way.
Feel bad re the child who was killed ..

Don .. I SO hope you get more seasonal temps SOON .. the CBC news today was chock a block with news on old forest fires and new ones in BC .. horrifying really .. and .. if I were a plpant .. I might very well say .. nighty night .. catch ya next year !!!

Susan .. glad you came through the branch falling unscathed !!! We had a tree 'go down' in the back forty yesterday .. skeered the bejeepers outta poor Lilly as it made such a CRACK and then a crash .. I'll go looking for it in the fall ..

Have had a nice day here .. temps are okee dokee and it has just started to cloud over a bit .. took aome pics of a flower I am NEVER sure what to call .. I 'think' it's a false sunflower? Maybe someone knows. Will attach.
As well .. my Hosta (name unknown)

Hope everyone has enjoyed their day :o)

~M~

The 'Bloomin Hosta' :-)

~M~

ah -M- I have one of those blooming hostas, too!
beautiful ^_^

That's a pretty one Marilynne. I had a few minutes late this afternoon to take another round of hosta pics and now I'm editing them.

This flower is Fujibotan which holds its flowers VERY high (about 3' or more) and is the only DOUBLE LAVENDER hosta (so far). Glossy solid green leaves.

'Tis the season for blooming hostas!

This is the only night I'm not working at a chamber music concert between July 25 and Aug. 8 when the Festival winds up. I decided not to even attend tonight. I WAS there all day for three short concerts of modern music - working stage end which meant a lot of moving percussion around.

Marilyn: Heliopsis(False Sunflower)

I have one too but mine is a double flower.

Such a nice peaceful day today, cool and cloudy, worked at trimming back a large dogwood so I could get around one of the veggie garden walks and tying up all the branches for garbage day. ( NO compostable collections here yet darn it!) A fellow hort. member dropped by for some plants, Fancy dug up a couple of potatoes , organized the rescue stuff in my basement ( it is going to somebody else next week) read a book, Sounds rather busy but it was quite leisurely! Even did a couple of loads of laundry .Has been raining gently for a couple of hours.
Had new potatoes and chard for supper. I have several new types( to me) of potatoes this year. Currently eating Viking - very nice, will grow it again. There is a seed potato farm near here where you can buy seed potatoes in 'foursums' - 4 of any type which makes it easy to experiment. I also have Banana which I grew last year, Norland and Bintji which I have not tried yet.

Carol
That False Sunflower looks pretty, do you think it would do well where I have that Sea Holly? I'm getting tired of pulling all the babys as the Holly reseeds like crazy.
I see that Fancy has her nose to the ground in the photo, is she looking for something to eat again?
The weather sure seems to be the focus at the moment for all of us. It sure seems unsettled everywhere.
The Baby robin that was blown from our tree a few weeks ago is now flying everywhere and we did see some comedy as it learned to fly through our big tree.
Ann, it's flower time here too for our hostas. I think I like the lavender color the best. Even my mini Tiny Tears is blooming like mad.
Susan you have to watch for the attack trees they are allways out during a storm.
Don my DH just got back from a race at Mission and he cooked (not the eating kind) during the weekend. They even shipped in a "cool " shirt for the driver as he sat in a hot car in the sun with a helmet on so the shirt made a big difference.
Ann

Ann I dont remember where your Sea Holly is - that Heliopsis is at the south east corner of the house.It has been there for many years and I chop parts of it off every year or two - if you want some we can try to get bit off when you come down. The pic was taken in 04 - not sure what Fancy was doing but for sure no food in that particular spot!

Hi there from Kentucky, visiting with Shar, takes a bit of getting used to 99 degree weather then add in humidity...oh/oh

Have computer for a few minutes so I'll say hope all is well with you all and will bet back to read all your posts, check your photo's when I return..

Miss you all...

I am thinking we have all got 'BLOOMIN Things' !! Who would have thought we would have way back in Jan and Feb .. I keep thinking about the extended period of snow that BC got, and what they are experiencing NOW !!! Incredible world we live in.

Hope you're able to keep the pace you're keeping with the festival til Aug. 5 Ann . Certainly sounds like you're very busy. But, it must be nice to be able to listen to some of the concerts as well.

Carol .. your 'double' Heliopsis looks gorgeous !! This is just the second year for mine.
And as far as Hosta goes, well, let's just say I think it has been a great year for them .. which makes me want to plant more next Spring.

Enjoy the weather in Kentucky Betty .. altho .. I think it can get kind of intense in August ..

The fella I sold my car to is coming today to finalize the paperwork .. I actually LOOKED at the Sellers Kit I had to purchase, and realized that there isn't that much to do .. mostly just signing off.

Take care ^_^

~M~

Morning all, another scorcher today..

Must say that when we're inside because of snow and blizzards it's not much different than down here when all are confined to the house because of extreme heat and humidity..think I'll keep the snow, at least I can get out every day into the gardens and enjoy...
Today is sight seeing and some shopping..



Lots of posts to go back and read up on when I get back...

Waving to all..

Enjoy your day..

Wavin back atcha Betty .. with .. A FAN !!!! LoL

~M~

I promised seeds from Maltese Cross to someone, but don't remember who. Who wanted them?

Ann

OH MY GOSH !!!! I want to say Susan (but, I think it may have been she already has them) .. I took my 'Wildflower Book' down to the ditch today as there is a curious red/orange flower growing there in .. and .. I do believe it's a Maltese Cross .. I will take a pic later ..
I wonder if it will transfer well from the ditch into a garden ?
As well we have Wild Lily and Black Eyed Susan and Evening Primrose .... gotta love Mother Natures Palette ^_^

Just an awesome day here weatherwise .. altho you might think it to be late Sept.

Off to get supper out

~M~