How do you survive a Mid -Atlantic heat wave ?

G-Gal - I loved hearing about the singing birds at your place. We used to leave out seed for the birds but haven't done so for a while and from time to time I really miss them. They are really interesting.

Ruby

I'm surprised that your garden doesn't attract them even without the extra seed, Ruby! Usually we don't feed them in the summer, but this year we have been because I enjoy watching them from the window. What comes to the feeder is different from what I see in the garden anyway. It's neat to have a whole range of critters. We have friends who are professional birders, and it's fun when they're over because they can point out birds I would never have noticed.

orchid----
I have worked for a HD now for 12 years....

There was a time we discounted things and plants---sold broken bags for "nothing", etc....We could mark down damaged things with just a Supervisor's or Asst. Mgr.'s approval. Those days are gone....It is now ALL business and logistics....I will try to explain to you some of the logistics between "selling at a discount" or throwing it away.....

ALL stores are allowed a certain %'age of "shrink"--which would also include throwing things away, theft, "lost" merchandise, unaccounted for items, stuff that falls behind the racks and is never seen, and the biggest--mistakes in the receiving dept. Also--wrong pricing under wrong items on the shelf. People DO NOT read the description--they just make a stink b/c the shelf price tag said $14.99 but above it was an item that cost $49.99.
Because the ultimate goal of HD is to keep ALL customers happy---they will get the item for $14.99.....
Kachingggg......More "shrink".....

As long as the allowed "shrink" %'age is not exceeded by more than some measly amount--it is "no skin off their noses".....NOT good--but it happens all the time. You can think of this as the "out of sight" happenings....

NOW--marking something down falls in a whole different category....

Lets say--an item costs $200 retail. It gets damages by some means--and the customer still wants to buy it.
There is a margin of 10% off the retail price (up to $50) that is normally allowed w/o a higher up's approval as a discount.
What this means, however, is that the Co. just lost $50.

Again--if you have a plant that costs $20. It withers....gets some dead leaves...looks yuk---so customers wonder WHY we do not discount them down to $2 and sell them anyways???? HD does not do that! "Bell" does not do that! Throwing it away is more financially "logistical" than losing $18 in sales--which will go against the Company's sales goals....AND--believe me--those "sales goals" can make you--or break you!!!!

In short--mark-downs go against the sales goals and profits.
Discards have an allowed margin that do not. When discards/shrink reach their allowed %'age--everyone is warned to be more careful--as we cannot allow any more of it for the month.

I KNOW Lows discounts more than HD does. I shop there, occasionally, for that reason--but our Lowes here does not have all these fantastic discounts either. Must be a local thing---or whatever the Store Manager, or the margins of sales allows....
Me--as an employee at HD, for example, cannot buy any broken bags of soils or mulches----just b/c I work there...
I CAN go to Lowes and get a discount on the same....so, sometimes, i go to Lowes....

It's ALL business........nothing personal! Gita

edited to correct allowable discounts.....

This message was edited Jul 15, 2010 5:40 PM

Gita, that's an interesting look into the business practices of big-box stores! Thanks for explaining it!

I, too, wanted to chime in on what Gita has addressed above. I have been a plant "merchandiser" at Lowes, hd, Kmart, sams, walmart for 15 years. Plant merchandizers are hired by the plant suppliers to display and maintain displays of plant material in the stores. This maintenance of plants , including watering, is determined by the store's contract with merchandizing company.

I first began as a merchandizer after seeing carts and carts of annuals dying for want of water at our local hd and saying "somebody should be able to keep these plants alive" I was hired by one of the plant suppliers to do just that the following season. Here are some of my experiences in trying to do just that.

WHO OWNS THE PLANTS is the determining factor in who is responsible for care of plants until sold. When I first began, once a shipment was received by the store, the store became the responsible party, so any plant losses accrued to that store's shrink as Gita spelled out. About five years ago most stores switched to a point of sale policy which means that the supplier owns the plant until it is sold and is not paid until such sale, and absorbs any losses, not the store. Kinda like "consignment" sales. When the store owned the plants, they supposedly had more of an interest in keeping them saleable.

WHAT DOES THE SEASONAL SALE OF PLANTS REPRESENT TO THE STORE? This varies by corporate chain and within a chain by store management. Most big box stores consider plants as "loss leaders", or a way to get people into the store where they will buy lawn tractors or wheel barrows or endless bags of mulch. How many flats of white impatiens would have to be sold to equal the profit on the sale of one tractor? How many employee man hours would each sale take, etc? Most store managers are adept at hard goods but have little knowledge of or concern for the successful retailing of live goods. It's lots of cheap plants that get people in to buy what is really important and profitable not the plants! Mostly, I would say, it is something to be tolerated and accomodated rather than lokked forward to and enhanced. The Garden Center is the least well-staffed from cashiers to other personnel and the least desireable dept to work in. And guess what the least of the least desireable "things to do" in the garden center is? That's right, WATERING!

WATERING ANY IDIOT CAN DO IT Can't tell you all how many plants I've witnessed the demise of due to lack of water or sometinmes worse, improper watering.. All of us who have struggled mightily the past several weeks to keep our own plants supplied with adequate water know that very few people could have done the job in our absence with the result of live plants for our efforts. Nothing even close to that level of commitment exists at the big box stores and even Gita has to take a day off.!

So, here's my list of oft repeated in retail settlings of how to water plants so they will be alive until sold.
Individualize: Know the requirements of each type of plant and display as much as humanly possible shade plants in shade and sun lovers in sun., so you are not fighting unnecessary battles.
Know and check daily, the water needs of each type of plant. One size does not fit all. Some will need to dry out (lift the pot, stick in a finger to check), some will need water twice a day.

Water the soil not the leaves. Watering down plants with a quick sprinkling is not watering! Water must supply the roots not the leaves. Water on the leaves will do nothing but look like the plants have been watered while promoting the growth of mildew, etc

Be consistant and systematic in watering Water each pot, cell, row, flat in a grouping with the same amount of water to supply wet, but not soggy soil. For instance, I water each 10 inch hanging basket with an 8 or 10 count befor I move on to the next. The pot is heavy with water but will not run out when a customer lifts it off the rail to buy it.

Water early in the morning, or first thing in the morning so it is done before customer and time demands increase.

Watering time is the most valuable time spent in the center as on can assess the individual and overall well being of the stock on hand. and make mental notes for the future. (Next year's supply of plants is based on this years sales and could be adjusted for what would have sold when if we had it our it was alive when the customer wanted it. Many plants are shipped in from growers in very different zones than the store. Only a very few of the managers will customize orders..It's very much now mass production only.

Hopefully some of you will find what I've written to at least be of interest. I've run out of time but I have more to post on this later.. Thanks for letting me get some of this off my chest.



This message was edited Jul 12, 2010 9:14 AM

Oh, good info ladies.

GG and Ehig, glad you got together. We did get rain. DH thinks about an inch. It was wonderful.

Wow, you got lots more than we did! That's terrific! And there's another possibility of rain for tonight and tomorrow. Good thing, because my hydrangeas are wilting again.

Thanks Gita & Coleup very interesting.

coleup,,----
AMEN....AMEN....AMEN....!!!!!!

Takes one who has done this kind of work to understand all the commitment and selfless effort it takes.
You HAVE to care and love gardening and plants to be an effective garden associate. Too bad--so many customers go away with a bad impression of the store just because no one could help them about their petunias of Spider Mites....

The casual shopper may complain that the plants are dry and dying.......They even complain to the Headquarters about it! They do not know that it can take the better part of one's 8hr. shift to water the entire garden section. Often--this chore is up to one, or two people. AND--in my case--they do not even work in the garden dept.

In this kind of heat we have had--I can tell you that even if I watered all of Outside Garden (ALL trees and Shrubs--all Hydrangeas, ALL tables and Veggies) from 6AM on--when I think I am done, maybe around 2PM or 3PM--the small veggie pots and the 4" plants will all be dry again. It is an endless job!

In our HD, there are ONLY 2 people assigned to water in garden. Ann--who is the other full-time Phone Operator--and me. I only work 2-3 days a week--and spend half of each day watering....
That also means that the Service desk has to answer all the incoming phone calls as well as do their own jobs.
NOT very fair--as the SD can be extremely hectic many hours a day....

I have asked my Store manager WHY do they have to take the 2 Phone Operators to do all the watering when there are anywhere from 3-6 associates in the garden that could do the same thing...
His answer was that THEY need to be there for customer service.....HA! They hide inside, where it is cool, and spend too much time in the break room! NONE of them would have a clue how to properly water any plants anyway! SAD! THEY are the ones who work in the garden--NOT me! NOT Ann!

I spend more time in quality "customer service" when I am out there--because I know what I am talking about. I steer the customer to the proper soils and chemicals and advise them on fertilizers and educate them on plant knowledge and planting and insects and all that....How to care for their lawns---AND--I still water everything.....

It just blows my mind that NONE of the garden associates "see" anything wilting or dying and could grab the hose to water something....How blind can one be???? WELL---It is NOT their job!!!!

If I have time left after watering everything--I will walk around and dead-head Geraniums and other flowers to keep them "salable".....Pull off dead leaves, etc....
The cashiers--who often have NOTHING else to do, could do this just as well......They just don't "see" it!!!!

Of ALL 135 associates in my HD---i am the most knowledgeable one when it comes to the garden and plants and all the associated chores and needs....and I have been a Phone Operator now for 7 years.....because of my bad knees, my 2 knee replacements, getting "old" and going PT--etc...etc....
In a way--I don't mind my regular job. It is boring--but it is also stress-free and I don't have to deal with angry customers, 3 pages of pack-down lists that have to be done every day, "fronting" all the shelves daily and such.

I am NOT complaining.......I have job! BUT--When I go out to spend some hours in garden--I am reborn! I am invigorated--and I feel i have something valuable to contribute. Then I go home and take a pain pill--as I will be hurting...Sometimes I take it before I start....

Do I get any official recognition for doing Clinics all day, every Sunday, from mid-April till the end of June? NOPE!
I set up my table with goods that are (my selected) topic of that week and spend the 8 hrs. out there answering questions--and--usually--watering a lot of dry plants for several hours during the day.
IF I need to give "customer service" to any one at all--I turn off my hose and do it.....Anyone can do that!

SO? What's wrong with this picture???????
All those other "wannabies", the temporary Garden hires-- just lallygagging with the cashiers and spending time in the Lunch Room--what are they there for? NOT for customer service???????? HAAAAA!

Whew! Thanks for the vent!!!!! Please be kinder the next time you go to a Big Box store and find only one or two people in the garden Department--even if it is 100 degreesout there.
I guarantee you--they are the ones that really care about plants! Give them some kudos!

Gita

(we just had massive downpours this afternon)

Gitagal & Cole, Thanks for the interesting info.
Often wondered why the garden centers seem so
neglected. Walked through Walmart garden center
the other day and saw an entire shelf of bellflowers
that had been allow to just die & the price on them
was still $6 !
Been looking around for those white plastic plant
markers & having no success at all. Tried Lowes, HD,
K-mart & Walmart. If anyone has seen them around
please let me know.
Thanks,
Cris

Cris, I got some at Bob's in Hamilton Twp. If you need some stop over; I overdid it...

Cris et al to continue the big box saga...

THE BEST TIME TO BUY PLANTS IS ON DELIVERY DAY
On delivery day you are only dealing with the quality of the grower and any insults the plants may have endured in shipping like freezing or frying temps. Most growers now ship plants dry as opposed to well watered due to weight considerations. Top shelf plants usually suffer the most waiting for water and proper placement. Plants that are shipped in on pallets like large trees and shrubs must wait until two store personnel, one certified to operate a forklift and one safety person to unload them and many times must be held outside of the retail area until a second team is scheduled and assembled to bring them in.This can sometimes take a number of days, factoring in that forklift operators are in short supply in most stores and froklift operators would rather do straight fast runs down wide clear isles than wend their way thru the crowded isles of plant displays.
Find out your stores delivery days. Large growers with fleets of delivery trucks usually have a schedule and route they folow for deliveries. Most deliveries of annuals are built around weekend sales, to build up stock for the weekend and then replenish after. Some shoppers alter their routes to and from work, school, etc to check out whether a truck has arrived!
Bell at the hds it services has the most advanced supply and demand delivery system as they have eliminated the need for store personnel to be involved in receiving. Their drivers unload and with merchandizers place shoppable and labled carts. Bell used to also have a team of 3-5 people who traveled from store to store specifically just to water, pull dead plants and restock on a daily basis. Bell also does all of the ordering and discard for each store by- passing yet another bottleneck of waiting on store personnel and priority increasing the odds that the cutomer will be satisfied.
Even so, unless your plants are freshly delivered, straight from the greenhouse , it is, in my opinion, more likely than not that your plants will have experienced at least one near death experience before you bring them home.

SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST or the second best t ime to buy ...to be continued

Lots of interesting info Gita and Cole. Appreciate the tips you offered. I have lucked out a few times at Lowe's Garden Center and one of my buys was a $14.99 type of Cacti for fifty cents. I love those sorts of bargains.

Gita, I can attest your green thumb. Several of my house plants got their start at your home and even years later are still doing quite well. Cole, I am also the proud owner of several of your Bleeding Hearts who were very healthy looking when they arrived here. I hope I can continue to keep them doing as well as they were when they came here to live. If I am correct, I also got the huge Cleomes from you too and they seem to be happy too.

Again, thank you both for the education.

Ruby

Rain totals 2.53" woo hoo!!!

We've gotten barely a tenth of an inch so far today. I have hopes for later tonight, though!

We have been having a lot of rain in the last few days. Right now it raining pretty hard, we have had a few really heavy downpours and there have been some of those nice soaking rains, too. Guess we will be mowing the grass again soon. LOL

Judy please continue, thats all very enlightening. Esp the fact that all these big box plants have had a near death experience.
(more rain here last two nights and both days)

Thanks for the info on Lowes and Home Depot's mark downs. I had been wondering why they stopped marking plants down as low as they were. Now the best mark down you can get at the Lowes by my house is 50% and usually the plant is almost dead. They used to mark them down to $1.00- $5.00 just to get them out of there and the plants were in decent shape. I got alot of nice plants for my yard.

We finally got alot of rain here the last 2 days. I have alot of tropicals in pots, so I was having to go and water everyday. Nice break for me!!

The Lowes near here has been awesome this summer. I've found great 75% off bargains every week and they've all looked good except for a couple that were a bit wilted and perked up as soon as I got them home and watered them. This week's haul was Snow Fairy bluebeard, BIG plants, for $3.25, nice looking hydrangeas for the same price and ostrich ferns for $1.

Hart and Storm Two Lowes, why the difference? Has to do with individual store management, Garden Center management , store sales volume and merchandizers assigned . When I last worked at a Lowes, they still owned the perrenials, shrubs and trees so, depending on "shrink" (explained in Gitas post above) it might be worth it to an individual store to discount plants rather than to take a total loss. When to pull plants and discount them lies in the judgement of g center manager and some times merchandizer

In general big box stores abhor empty space or shelves and will fill it with something and keep it filled even if that filler is half dead plants. Lowes in particular is promoting itself as a legit Garden Center, with knowledgeable plant people on staff and gorgeous well organized Centers just like the one in their tv ads. Lowes puts a lot of focus on this image by requiring each store to precisely follow the plan-o-gram in the Garden Center. This means that each square foot has its designated product- annuals with annuals, 3designations of shrubs, evergreen, flowering, and I forget the others. smaller to larger and color striped within each larger designation. Everything is pre-spelled out on paper, even the end caps, the fronts and ends of each isle is planned. There are to be no price mixing within the displays.

Getting the plants to conform to what is on the plan-o-gram paper is as you cccccan imagine, a daunting task and each Garden Center is rated on how well it conforms to that lovelly tv image by freguent, unannounced corporate walk thrus. I'm guessing that your lowes, Hart, has put plants on discount that are distressed in some way or that no longer have enough members to fill a niche in the plan-o-gram so have made way for more conforming stock to fill the space.

If Bowie is your home store, storm, and you have been to the new store in Severn, you will appreciate that the lowes plan-o-gram is meant for a severn store and that the Bowie store has less than a third of the space to work with. It takes a genious to run that store's Garden area. They fired one such genious three years ago now, shortly after I was assigned to a different store. He could drive a fork lift , was a gardener, and had an extensive knowledge of plants and knew how to retail live goods. The 50% discount is probably the lowest they can go without higher up approval which may not be worth the hassle to obtain.

So, Hart, you have a sorce of "Survival of the Fittest Plants Premium" and storm, seems that only Basic Survivors are available to you.

If you know your plants, you know that some are like cats and have nine lives some only have three and that we can discern a plants potential when others can not, especially if it is priced right!

Judy

I hear it is to get HOT HOT HOT again for a couple of days.

Judy--

Thanks so much for your further input. You have more hands-on experience that I.

Today, at our store, Vinnie--the regional, Corporate biggie will be walking our store.
That means that anyone who closed last night will be hauling like mules to shape up every aisle, every endcap, sweeping all the floors, etc.....This--has to be accomplished by a handful of people.

Besides all the above--Wednesday nights the new Ad has to be set-up. The new ads start on Thursdays.

We ARE one of the lower volume stores--along with Edgewood and Aberdeen. Low volume--less associates....
We seldom have more than ONE associate per department---maybe kitchens or flooring and garden have a couple more.
Have to run---Gita

Oh, Gita! So Vinnie is still raising the heartrates and stress levels of store associates!

Vinnie probably won't remember me but I did meet and talk to him on a walk thru of the store I mechandized. Seems us merchandizers got wind of unannounced walkthrus before the stores. I, of course gave the store a heads up as to date and approximate arrival time so we could be ready.. I was ready, too. When Vinnie and the other suits strode into outside garden , I went up to him and politly asked if he as regioal manager could help with a desperate situation in outside garden. And what situation might that be he asked? We have had no water in outside garden since the pipes froze late last fall I replied. He said I'll see what I can doand continued his walk thru folled by the other suits whose jaws were still in a drop. Two days later a team of plumbers arrived to fix the pipes and I even got one of them to install two new outlets near the front gates which eliminated a lot of hose dragging! And the plants thank you, too, Vinnie!

Unfortunately the water pressure was so low at that store that watering was interrupted every time a toilet flushed!!!

More to come and my sympathies to all of us who must wear our weather for the next several days.

Judy

PS Think of these posts off topic as they may be as a weird kind of wether report. And remember that "venting" does cool one off and creates a breeze!

It is not unusual for our threads to wander a bit. LOL

I am so happy to hear the rain reports. I am not complaining about the two or three nights that we have had good rains too. The earth is loving it. Things looked so desperate for a bit. The heat I am not so crazy about. It really cuts back on the amount of outside work a person is able to do that is for sure.

I was just thinking the other night that I haven't been in to a Lowe's, Home Depot or any of the other stores with garden centers all season. I was thinking that as I was looking at the many pots of flowers I have on my front deck. I usually have a few standards that I usually buy but for some reason didn't even think of getting them this year. I am not needing any that is for sure. I really love the idea of plant swaps and have many, many lovelies from those events. The extra bonus of getting things from plant swaps is that you get to think a moment about the donor of said plant while gazing upon its beauty.

Anyway folks....I am finding the thread very interesting and informative. Hope everyone is having a good week. Take care all.

Ruby

Well, it's not that bad out today, which is a good thing because the compressor on our a/c just quit. Someone can come tomorrow to take a look; at least it didn't happen on the weekend! Actually if it were up to me I wouldn't even have it on right now; I just took the dog out for a run and there's a breeze and the temperature on the screened porch is about 81. But DH likes to be cool...

Too bad you're not closer I could have sent hubby to look at it.

Hiya all - I've been MIA for a while in the posting on DG department - figured I'd drop by real quick ^_^ I have figured out how to deal with this flaming heat - going to Norway!!! Average daytime temps....60°F! I still have 8 days left of this - but, I'll totally be enjoying the cooler temps and midnite sun for 3 weeks! It'll be just long enough with low temps and probably miserable weather and I'll be ready to come home ^_^ Lots of 'stuff' going on when I'm there, friends, family - a music festival, a wedding - midnite fishing and a photo safari will also be on the agenda - add tons of strong coffee & only fish for dinner to that mix and you have my vacation ^_^

On a sad note - DH and I said goodbye to our beloved JB, our bestest kitty of 16 years, last nite - it was hard, much harder than I thought - he had a special place in our lives and will forever be missed...we know there is another kitty out there who needs us and will start looking when I come back :-)

Y'all enjoy this heat - Bec

60° sounds great!!!! enjoy your vaca.
Sorry about your kitty.

Bec so sorry about your kitty, know just how you feel as we are now kitty-less ourselves.
On the other hand how great the vacation sounds. Also we have missed your postings and hope you will have time to post a few vacation pics and conservation in the future.

Ya, we own a HVAC biz.

If you're south of the Mason Dixon line(rt 195) you live in south Jersey ☺. So I do live in south Jersey we are east of Trenton

We are south of the Mason-Dixon line, were it to be continued eastward. I didn't know that rt 195 was the dividing point. We are a little south of Millville.

I hope compressors are easy to fix. And I hope they have the parts if they need something. It's very close and going up to 93 today, but of course it's the humidity that really gets you!

On the other hand it's nice to have the windows open and to hear the birds. I'm listening to a bluebird murmuring to itself as I type.

Becky, I am so glad that you posted. I knew you had been extra quiet as far as posting goes. So sorry to hear about the kitty. I know that it is hard and for a pet to have been around that long, it makes it difficult to accept. Glad to know that after you come home from vacation that you will get another one to join the family.

Here is hoping you have a wonderful trip back home. Yes, some cooler temps sure sound good about now. I know that you will enjoy yourself and I too will look forward to hearing storiesi and seeing pictures.

OH my gosh GHGal, what an awful time to have AC problems. I know that each morning I say a little prayer that we don't lose power that day. I do not do well at all in the heat. I turn in to a grump for sure. Nothing seems good when I don't have power to stay either warm or cool, whatever the season may be. Hope that someone can get you up and running soon.

Cool to know about your business Jen. You married well. Always good to have someone who knows what they are doing around.

I am also sad to hear of your kitty being gone too Holly. Again, I know it is hard to lose a furry friend. Take care all.

Ruby

Ruby, not to worry; the repair guy has been and gone. It was luckily just a fuse, so we're back in business, but we haven't closed down the house even so. Frankly it feels nice to be able to have the windows open; I went and sat on our glider by the river and read for a while, and our pup joined DH in the hammock. There's a nice breeze even though it's humid, and it feels like summer is supposed to feel. We just had mango Italian ices. We're going out to a crab shack this evening with friends, and that place doesn't have a/c, so I figured we'd leave ours off til we got home, or shut down the house and turn it on as we're leaving so the pup can enjoy it. She's really suffering; she's a black, curly-haired beast and she hates the heat!

We have a generator if we lose power completely, but if the a/c isn't working that doesn't help!

Thanks for the info Judy.

Still sweating up a storm. No end in sight to this deadful heat??

That was interesting inside info on the plant selling story in local stores, Coleup & Gita. I haven't been to any of those stores this summer. I imagine the plants are in critical condition, though. Our local HD doesn't seem to care about plants after May. They seem to think people will buy them just out of pity and rescue impulses.

Hart--re: the cherry tree leaf damage--I'm sure they were Japanese Beetles as they were in full force around then. It was too late to spray--I've been wanting to apply Milky Spore for a few years now and I think this will be the year since rain hasn't been an issue. I haven't seen any tent caterpillars around here. Sallyg, the coneflowers will rebound with a water dunking. It's just after a long day and I come home, their rays point downward like they are rocketing up to heaven instead of spread out like fan blades hoovering Earth. So pitiful.

I've been looking at rainscaping/water conservation information. I never paid attention to automatic watering schemes before but boy does it sound good now. I've been filling empty milk jugs up with water and lugging them out to my potted roses and stuff to make sure they get their quota everyday. It seems like a real time-killer now. And I thought that eding my beds with rocks dug up from the ground was cool--until I have to drag a hose around them and get snagged on every jagged edge. Irritating!!

Bec--Norway sounds great, esp. for the 60 degrees weather and strong coffee. I've considered a Candadian vacation this year--I like the clear starry night skies and Franco-Anglo culture and cuisine.

I went to an all day, OUTSIDE Crab Feast today. Started at 1PM and we left at around 6PM.

It was under a huge pavilion and there were fans here and there--but it was still miserably hot.
I was in a constant sweat--and the spices on the crabs, and all the drinks did not help.
They had a DJ and all kinds of raffles. Great crab-puffs This one woman made 600 of them herself!!!

There were 6 of us and it WAS nice to see each other--but the weather did not help.

Got home--took a shower and am pretty pooped.
Tomorrow I have to work 9AM--and will, probably, spend 2-3 hrs. watering all the plants in the garden dept...
OUR HD cares! We MUST do this--as there is a contract between HD and bell Nursery that supply the plants.
I can tell you now that it will be miserable!

Gita

We were supposed to go to a clam dinner at a lake with two other couples, but we had spent Tuesday in Rehoboth and it was so hot that we couldn't even eat at our favorite crab place in Dewey Beach, because we need to eat outside since we have our dog with us. So we told the other two couples that we weren't up for eating crabs on a hot deck in the sun on Saturday night, with temperatures slated for 100. They were happy to change the venue, so we all had Dungeness crabs or soft shells in an air-conditioned restaurant overlooking a marshy creek. A much better idea! They were all happy that I'd put my foot down.

Gita, your event sounds like it would have been much nicer with the temperature about twenty degrees cooler, but at least you got to spend time with your friends!