Interview

I think the interview went well. Hopefully I gave all the right answers. Although, it is 19 hours per semester, not per month. Won’t be enough to live on if I get it. But it is a start. They are willing to work around other part time jobs. Will deal with that when the time comes. I will know some time today. I missed a call from the guy in Montana because I turned off the ringer on the phone when I went in to the interview. He didn’t leave a message tho.

I ended up wearing an ankle length black skirt and a white sleeveless knit top. The sandals were kind of hard to walk in, but I managed. The skirt I wore wasn’t even one I tried on Sunday. I was looking in the closet and spotted it. No pockets tho.

Had a quiet afternoon. Vicki got her water heater replaced. This morning she has to go to Walmart in Parker, so I am going to ride along and see if I can get the property tax thing straightened out. I did get my latest basket preserved. The crock pot worked just fine melting the beeswax. My paint brush that I use to put the wax on the basket is a little small, will need to get one just a bit larger, and the wax soaked into the basket  in my little toaster oven just fine. Although anything any larger won’t fit. I will have to use the big oven for multiples or anything any larger.

 I read two books.

I did talk to Dave Johnson about parking under his cool cover. He said sure. So I will be moving the car in the next week or so. It is a little bit further to walk and I won’t be able to see it, but Vicki is right across the street and she will keep an eye on it. I won’t need to use the shade cloth on that one.

It was 92 degrees out when I got up this morning at 3 AM. I’m sitting at the end of the patio to get whatever breeze blows through. I don’t have to walk this morning, but I think the system for my grapefruit has issues, so I will have to check that out later. It didn’t seem to be getting the water it should be getting, and it was too dark to tend it.

I did pretty well with the snacking last night. I chewed gum when I wanted to snack and then later when I actually got hungry I had some almonds.I made a large salad, enough for a couple of days, and had that for dinner with some imitation crab. The bad part of that is that the gum has aspartame in it. My all natural gum should be here tomorrow. It will also come in handy when I run out of smokes in the next week or so. Going to try to go back to my electronic cig when that happens.

Finally interview day

Yesterday was mostly about finding something to wear to today’s interview. I tried on a bunch of clothes and have narrowed it down to one of two skirts, one top and possibly a jersey jacket to hide my fat and my tattoo. We’ll see if I am up to the jacket when the time comes. I also did my chores, vacuuming, dusting and cleaning the bathroom, and last night did a small load of laundry and hung them on the drying rack in the bedroom. In the afternoon I got out the Salvation Army ironing board and iron and tested the out on the clothes for today. While it was out I also did the beige pin strip pants that needed to be ironed. Originally I had planned on wearing them, but it is just way too hot to wear long pants. 

I read a book in between my chores and had to go down/over to Vicki’s to help her with a water leak. Her hot water heater sprang a leak and she had to shut off the water to the house and I hooked up her new hose and nozzle so she could at least fill a bucket to flush the toilet. She has to go to Blythe this morning to pick up her new water heater and Jorge is supposed to install it. A pretty good turnaround. She will have hot running water by the end of the day.

So today is interview day. I have already walked this morning, and chatted with Kathy from across the street. Got the scoop on their trip and her husband’s illness. He was hospitalized while they were gone, but is on the mend now. I told her about Charlene’s accident. A nice little chat. We don’t see much of Kathy and Dale.

It’s hot. The humidity is up and we had a lightening storm last night. A little bit of wind and a few drops of rain, but it didn’t cool anything down. With the higher humidity, I’m sweating a lot. I ran the mister for a little while yesterday afternoon so I could be outside, but I can’t have anything with me that can’t handle being wet, so no electronics. No reading.

This afternoon I want to seal my last basket. That means trying out the crockpot and melting down a block of beeswax. I have to dig up a paintbrush (unused). I should do that before it gets too warm. I know I have some in the shed somewhere. I think I will start a new basket tomorrow.

The north oleanders were watering when I checked them this morning. No thanks to Jorge. Fixed it myself. 

I want to take my shower as late as possible, but not so late that my hair is wet. I’m going to do a pony tail braid to get it off my neck.

The gum works for my walk in the morning and I tried it for my cravings last night. It did the trick. I did find some all natural gum on Amazon and got that ordered. No artificial sweeteners and only 2.5 calories per stick. I was hungry in the middle of the night so I had a handful of almonds and went back to sleep. I will be glad when the nights start cooling off again, it is much easier to sleep when it is cooler and I won’t have to run the AC and a bunch of fans. It would be nice to have a few days under a hundred degrees too, even one would be nice. But it will be a while before we see that. This morning it was 87 degrees when I walked at 5 with 41% humidity. That is high for here. Partly cloudy skies.

Had to jump start Ody

Since I didn’t walk yesterday and didn’t have much on my agenda for the day I took some time and did a pedicure. I bought one of those battery operated ped egg things this last week to try and control the dry and cracking skin on my feet. I had used it once, so I went back and touched it up. I think I will have to do it a couple times a week to stay ahead of the dry skin, but if I can prevent the painful cracking it will be worth the time and effort. I think I managed to get showered and dressed around 11. I cut the watermelon so I could throw the rinds in the dumpster. The bunnies won’t eat them, and they are too big to bury under the tree. Took my garbage to the dumpster and collected the recyclables and brought them to the larger bin at the end of my street. Then figured since I was out and about, it was as good a time as any to start Ody and run her generator. The generator started right up, but the engine battery was dead. I came back and got my jumper, but it must have lost it’s charge in the shed. Didn’t have enough juice to start her. I ended up texting Keith and he came over with his truck and we jump started her. I took her out for a drive around the big block and around the park then we tested the battery and supposedly it is good. I will have to start her once a week I guess to keep her charged up. I hadn’t started her since I moved her over to C Street.

I got a late lunch and did some reading. By the time I finished the book, it was time to fix dinner. I finally got my garlic shrimp and turnip green stir fry. Was good. But the house still smells like garlic and shrimp. I hate not being able to open windows. I also got new polish on my nails, without the base coat. They looked good until I came outside. I guess it is the heat that is making them bubble not the base coat. I will either have to live with it or do them again. I think I am just going to live with it. Might put a top coat on them later so they look half ways decent for tomorrow.

Today I need to figure out and iron what I am going to wear to the interview tomorrow and print up a copy of my resume. I will probably do a small load of laundry. Can’t get more than one wear out of anything when it is hot like this. I have more clothes, but I also have my favorites that I like to wear more often.

This morning I tried a piece of sugar free watermelon gum for my walk. One of the things that makes walking unpleasant is the fact that my mouth and throat dry out within a few minutes. I hate carrying anything when I walk, including a water bottle. It worked. My mouth and throat didn’t dry out and I didn’t need my water until I got back. Was nice not carrying a water bottle. Now I am wondering if it will work for my evening TV munchie cravings. I will try it tonight. It would be nice to be able to reduce some of my daily calorie intake. Even with all the walking, I’m not loosing any weight. I’m still better than I was this time last year, but it isn’t good enough. I do want to check out the ingredients tho. Well, it has aspartame in it, I won’t be buying more. Will have to see what the alternatives are. Research time.

I have had to start refrigerating my drinking water because the water from the tap filter melts my ice. It gets a little warmer each day. Not sure what I am going to do when it is too hot to take a shower with no cold water to temper it. My hot water heater has been off for weeks now.

Bad night

I’m tired and cranky this morning. It’s already hot and we also have wind and clouds this morning. Vicki needed to make a trip to Walmart in Parker yesterday, so I grabbed my house paperwork and went along for the ride instead of doing my errands. I need to get the property tax bill changed over, but the assessors office wasn’t open. None of the government offices were open. I will have to go back on a day that isn’t a Friday. We went to Walmart and I got my hose and my instant coffee for my iced coffee. I got a nice bag of cherries too and a few other things. I didn’t need much since we had gone to Blythe the day before.

When we got back, it was all about the food. I made cole slaw, an italian salad, cleaned and cut my strawberries for the freezer and put some pork chops in the crock pot for barbecue pork. I even tried the banana pineapple frozen thing, but I used two bananas and couldn't taste the pineapple. Will try another one today with just one banana. It didn't want to freeze either, so I need to make it earlier in the day. I still need to cut my watermelon and deal with the garbage. I put the strawberry ends out for the birds and bunnies, but I don’t think they cared for them. I may start burying some of my compostables under the grapefruit tree. I hate to throw out all that good stuff when it could be recycled. I won’t have to worry about it rotting because it will dry out in an hour or so. I’m sure the tree could use the extra nutrients.

I moved the misting system so that it mists from the back end and part of the outside wall. It was more effective. But even with the filter it leaves a white residue on my brand new chair pads. I will have to put something over them when the mister is on. I got a $7 hose for it at Walmart. I also got a couple more hose splitters because I will need one when I start watering Lorna and Bob’s palm trees. They have two hoses, and I might as well use them both and reduce my time and water all four trees at the same time.

I did my nails again with the new polish I bought on Thursday. But the base coat must be bad as the new, different brand, polish bubbled too. The longer it was on, the worse they got. This morning they are horrible. I got a nice pearly pink to wear on Monday, and will have to remove the polish and do it again without the base coat. I’m not even sure I like the color, it looks better in the bottle than on my nails.

The back door has been giving me trouble so I took a few minutes and lubed that. Seems to be much better. Everything gets dry out here.

So while we were at Walmart yesterday I picked up a package of EmergenZ. It is supposed to be a sleep aid with nutrients. I tried it last night. It was one of the worst nights I have had in a long time. I barely got to sleep, and couldn’t stay asleep. Was up a half dozen times and finally ended up in the chair in the living room. I will finish up the box, but will also take my simply sleep. It has melatonin in it, and I already knew that didn’t do anything for me. 

Not sure what I am going to do today. Will play it by ear. Too hot to be out in the shed, and will be too hot to be on the patio for any length of time. I might start a new basket, or preserve the last one. At some point between today and tomorrow I have to figure out what I am going to wear on Monday for my interview. What do you wear to an interview in AZ when the temps are over 110 degrees….At least I won’t have to have it on for very long. Even with the trips to Blythe and Parker, I am starting to feel the beginnings of cabin fever. 

I’m doing pretty good at turning off the fans in the rooms that I am not using. The bedroom fans off during the day and the living room fan off at night. See if I can’t save a few dollars on the electric bill. I think I mentioned that I turned the AC up to 82 as well. It shouldn’t come on quite as often. I am using the swamp cooler during the day to help the AC, but I don’t know how effective it is. I do know that it makes sitting in my chair comfortable as it blows directly at the chair. Otherwise, with the padding, I would get too warm.

There is going to be a pot luck on Saturday the 4th. I am going to make my italian salad and Vicki is making ribs. Not sure what else there will be, but it should be fun. 

I finally got the key to the tool shed. I just have to remember to take it with me on my walk some morning so I can check it out. I haven’t even used my key to the club house or laundry. I should check those out at some point too. I still need to get a key to the back gate tho. I’ll have to ask Anna again. Hopefully, I have the north oleanders set for a while. They have been a pain in the ass since I started this gig.

Chores

Yesterday was a fairly full day. Vicki and I went to Blythe. Two grocery stores, Rite Aid and KMart. I ended up with a bunch of fruit and veggies and rice cakes. I also got some frozen veggies and some shrimp. I found turnip greens at Albertsons, so I want to make my garlic shrimp stir fry. I was going to do it last night, but I ended up having a late dinner and didn’t feel like cooking. I had frozen burritos instead. My quick and easy dinner when I don't feel like cooking. 

I did get the misting system up and running. I still need to buy a hose to feed it with, but I got to test it out. It brought the temps down between 10 and 15 degrees. I didn’t use their clips to install it because they are nails and I am installing on aluminum. Temporarily I used bent paper clips. Besides, I want to move it to another spot to see if it would be more effective. Where I have it now, the mist is blowing the wrong way. I want to try putting part of it on the short end in the back see if that helps. Once I figure out where it works best, I will do a more permanent installation. 

I bought a live basil and rosemary plant at the grocery store, then bought a couple of pots and some chive seed at KMart. Got the plants combined in one pot and the chive seeds in the other. I put them on the window sill over the kitchen sink. I also got the bracket for the flag pole put up while I had the ladder out. Now I am ready for my flag next week.

I started my laundry about 3:30 in the afternoon. I usually do it in the morning, but everything dries so fast here that I decided to just get it done. I had it all folded and put away within 2 hours. 

I checked the north oleanders this morning, the timer hadn’t kicked in, so I checked the programming and the timer thought it was Saturday. I guess it watered yesterday and I missed it. I fixed that. Lets hope that is the last of the fiddling I have to do with that particular system, There is a lizard that hangs out around that gate that I have to watch out for when I open the gate. It is on rollers and I don’t’ want to squish him.

Today I have strawberries and watermelon to clean and cut, then I will have to take the garbage to the dumpster. I also want to clean and chop the turnip greens, make a salad and make an italian salad with tomatoes and cukes. I didn’t like to cook before and like it even less now. I thought about buying a rotisserie chicken but I had chicken the last two days. Maybe I will get my garlic shrimp and turnip green stir fry tonight. I also need to buy a feeder hose for the misting system and hit the post office.

I’m going to try to remember to turn off the bedroom fan during the day and the living room fan during the night. See if I can’t save a few dollars on my electric bill. I don’t remember if I mentioned it yesterday or not, but it is $170 this month. Major ouch. I also turned down the AC. It is now set to 82 instead of 80. I’m going to have to learn to live with it. I will use the swamp cooler a bit more to try and keep it habitable. It is still a major improvement, even at 82, compared to outside. 

Library

Yesterday was kind of a different day. After I got done writing, Vicki texted me for a trip to town. We went to the Roadrunner, DG and the post office. I needed to buy some produce, but the prices were too high and the produce itself was either half dead or on the brink of being half dead. I only bought some cottage cheese, plain yogurt and some bananas. I did get a few things at DG including a watering can. Watering hadn’t been an issue until I brought my geraniums in because they were cooking outdoors, I just used the hose and didn't need to worry about a mess.

After we got back I decided to go to the library and use their wifi. While I was there I got the process started on a library card. Ran into Keith there too. We chatted while waiting for my electronics to update. I did get my phone updated, the operating system anyway, but there are still three apps that need updating. It was very slow. I also got one update done on the computer and a bunch on my iPad. My kindle app downloaded all the books I had bought in the last few weeks, plus a couple of other apps, and I shut it down because it wasn’t fully charged when I started and it was running out of juice. I didn’t see any outlets to plug in to. I might try McDonalds the next time.

I didn’t see much at the library, but then again, I didn’t look very hard. They have a $5 deposit for first time DVD borrowing, and you get it back when you close your DVD borrowing account. I will be getting my new card next week.

Keith invited me to lunch so we went to the Stagecoach. Was a nice treat.

It was about three by the time I got back, so I settled in with a book and then decided to do my nails. Got them done, but the cheapie polish bubbles. Ended up taking it off my finger nails and only doing a clear coat, and left it on my toes. Cant see the bubbles all the way down there. I’m wondering if it is the base coat causing the bubbles. Plus the base coat adds extra drying time and more time to mess it up. I will try without the base coat next time. 

The rest of the day was news and then Castle DVD’s. 

My beeswax came so I can try out the crock pot and preserve my latest basket some time in the near future. I have all the pieces I need to install the misting system and I picked up a flag and pole kit at the hardware store yesterday, and replaced the channel lock pliers that I am having such a hard time with. So I need to get the flag and the misting system installed. I was going to do them first thing this morning, but Vicki and I are going to Blythe for groceries instead. I’m guessing it is going to be too hot to do it when we get back. I didn’t get any laundry done either. Maybe I can get that done this afternoon.

Nothing new and exciting. They are watching the winds and dust storms. I closed the back windows in the car when I parked it yesterday so it is all closed up. It is too far away to rush over and close the windows. Oh, and I calculated this past month’s electric bill, $170. Ouch. But I have two ceiling fans and two regular fans running all the time, plus the ice maker that I can’t live without and the AC and fridge, so I guess I will have to live with it. I don’t use my lights much because it gets dark so late now and I have the LED night lights in the kitchen, the laundry area by the door and the bathroom. Unless I really need to see something, there is enough light to do whatever I need to do. I also have one outside by the back steps. All my light bulbs are LED now except the flourescent ceiling lights in the kitchen and the little bulbs in the bedroom. The water heater is still off and the cold water is getting warmer by the day. I wonder what I am going to do when it gets too hot to be able to take a shower, no cold water to cool it off with, and I don't have a bath tub. Maybe it is time to think about getting that stock waterer I have been wanting and make an outdoor bath tub. Then I can fill it and let it cool down....sort of. They ought to make water heaters that can cool water as well as warm it. I bet they would go over big here. I'm going to have to start refrigerating my drinking water as it melts the ice when I fill my mug. 

Chair covers

Well I did it. Got the sewing machine out and made the chair covers. Took a good part of the day, and I worked up a pretty good sweat (the AC is set at 80), but it is done and they look good if I do say so myself. I am by no means good at sewing, but I do well enough to get by. I did both recliners, the foot part being the most difficult, ended up using a draw string on those, and the two small chair pads. Those were the easiest. I got that all cleaned up and put away and read the rest of the book that I had started earlier. Once I finished the book I decided to go ahead and do the foot stool. The only thing I needed for that is my electric staple gun, padding, material and scissors. I’m pretty pleased with the way that came out too. Plus I put some material on the two foot pieces of the big recliner because they aren’t covered when it is reclined. I may at some point see about stapling material to the rest of it instead of making a slip cover. It has wings, and when it reclines, the arms and the back separate. But then again…I might be able to pull it off. We’ll see how ambitious I get some day.

Here they are…the foot stool padding, what little it had, had degraded so there was no cushion to it. I used fiber fill so it should last a good long time now.

I had a tough time getting to sleep last night which is unusual for me. Usually I drop right off. It is staying asleep that is normally my problem. I had some really weird dreams too. Not nice ones. Thankfully I finally dropped off and woke up about twenty after four this morning. Went out for my walk at 5 and took the head that I needed to replace with me. Got that replaced, visited with Keith for a few minutes, and then headed back to replace the valve on the timer on the north oleanders. I was prepared for it to be a real pain in the ass, but it went easily and smoothly. It seemed to fix the problem. They are actually getting water now. :) I’m keeping a log of parts and labor to submit at the end of the season. The valve was a warranty replacement so it didn’t cost anything but my labor, but the head came out of my pocket. It was a whole dollar plus tax. Huh, I have been here eight months and I finally looked to see what the sales tax rate is in AZ. It is 5.6%.

Not sure what I am doing today. Thinking about going to the library and checking that out. They have free wifi so I can get my electronics updated. I should go to the market too since I am out of everything fresh fruit and veggie-wise. The Roadrunner market is closed for the season, so it will have to be The General Store. It is just like it was in IP, one store had good meat and the other had better produce, now I am down to just the store that has good meat. Unless I drive to Blythe which is a half hour or so away.

Watched some more of Castle season six last night. I don’t have a lot left. I might see what the library has to offer so I can watch something different. I guess it is time to get a library card. Wonder if I need proof of residency…I should probably bring something with me just in case.

I also have a load of laundry to do. Actually two, I am now doing all my towels in a separate load due to the lint issue. I have the two red beach towels I removed from the recliners yesterday, plus the clothes I have been wearing and the two pieces I got at Sal’s the other day. But I can do those anytime. I could clean the bathroom walls. But I am not sure I am that ambitious. It does need to be done tho.

Never heard back from the guy in Surprise or the guy in MT about Ody. :( Would be really nice to get her sold so I can breath a little easier about funds. I’m cutting it pretty close to the wire once again. Once I get a little money coming in I want to replace all the tires on the car. They are four years old and have been in the AZ sun and I don’t trust them. They look fine, but that doesn’t mean they are. I don’t dare wander too far on them.

Cactus Wrens

It’s already hot this morning. Was 82 when I came out at 5:30, and is already in the 90’s. There is a high heat warning for today.

I got all my chores and errands done yesterday. Stopped at the hardware store and picked up some replacement parts for the park watering system, the post office where the two replacement valves had arrived, and then went to Sal’s. I picked up a crock pot, a chopper/blender, a pair of long pants and a fitted denim jacket, all for $12. Score. Not like I need any more clothes. I did take all the stuff that didn’t fit or I didn’t like and donated them to Sal’s. Some of the pants I had bought fit in the waist, but were too short in the leg, I was given some stuff in colors I don’t use.

I didn’t bother with groceries. I need to use up some of what I have before I buy more. I also got all the garbage and cardboard to the dumpsters. By the time I got everything done, it was almost lunch time, so I had some lunch and read a book. Maybe today, with an earlier start, I will get the cushion covers made. 

I haven’t tested the crock pot, but the chopper/blender works. I took a few minutes and washed everything and cleaned that up. I will test the crock pot when I get my beeswax. I will have to find a place to store it. Maybe my outdoor work bench. I can run an extension to that.

I got a call on Ody from a guy in Surprise AZ, but he only had 20K. I told him the lowest I would go would be 24K. I’m hoping he can scare up the extra 4K and I will get her sold. That will take some of the pressure off my finances. Plus, I got a call from AZ Western College. I have an interview on Monday of next week. The woman is coming to Q to do the interviews so I won’t have to go far. Now to figure out what to wear in 100 plus degrees for an interview. I’m thinking skirt since shorts probably wouldn’t be acceptable. Wish me luck. I could use the income. I will have to haul out the ironing board and iron for the first time in years. I’m not getting too excited about it, there are several applicants.

Some morning while it is still cool (cool is relative), I need to replace the valve on the north oleanders and the head on one of the trees on E street. Both should be easy. Just time consuming in the testing stage. I don’t think Jorge ever came to look at the north oleander system. If he did, he didn’t fix it.

I have a couple of cactus wrens hanging out under the grapefruit tree along with a few doves and bunnies. I got some good pics late yesterday. There is also a yellow bird that I have seen a few times, but haven’t gotten any photos yet. The wrens didn’t take off when I went to get the camera. I just need to remember to bring it out with me when I come out. In cooler weather I would just leave the camera by my chair, but it is too hot to leave it out right now.

The extension part of my misting system came yesterday, now all I need is the actual system itself. I got an in line shut off while I was at the hardware store and some rubber washers just in case. I will have to find my 25ft hose in the shed, but I have a pretty good idea where it is. Will be nice to get that put up and useable. Hoping it will make the patio bearable during the day and I can spend a little more time outdoors.

I was going to order a bountiful basket this week, but it doesn’t look like it is available here in Q. La Paz county isn’t in the list so I can’t order. Oh well. Will try again next week. Looking forward to the farmers market coming back in September or October. I can spend the same money and get to choose what I want instead of whatever comes in the box.

I have to remember to close the back windows in the car the next time I use it, being monsoon season, it is also haboob (dust storm) season. I really don’t want to have to clean the inside of the car. All my house windows are closed already.

Basket #3 finished.

Basket number three finished. I'm not really happy with it, but hopefully after it is treated, it will shape up some. My stitching is all wrong, and it just isn't what I had hoped it would be. But here it is...

Was a quiet day yesterday. Read, did my nails, watched more Castle and finished the basket. Not much else to do when it is 109 degrees outside. 

The park and the town are pretty much empty. Most people have headed to cooler climates for the summer.

Swept last week's leaf accumulation from the patio and straightened up some this morning. Need to run some errands, and that is about it. I'm thinking I will break out the sewing machine and make the covers for the patio chairs this afternoon. Do something different for a day. 

Hoping my misting system arrives in the next few days, I want to get that up and working. Maybe it will be enough to allow me to spend some more time outside and delay the cabin fever I know I will experience.

Tuesday's photos

Not much going on in Q right now. Too hot to be outdoors, which means basketry, DVD's and napping. Although when I settled in yesterday I read.

I finally got the photos from Tuesday's trip processed and uploaded. You can find them here...

https://plus.google.com/photos/118406578374225960662/albums/6162819029660787073

Today will be more of the same. Almost time to go indoors. Walked at 5 AM, before the sun and the birds. I have one sprinkler head that needs to be replaced. Hardware store is closed today. Will have to pick one up tomorrow. Should be an easy fix.

Hoping to finish my third basket today. Still don't like it, but I need to finish it. Maybe once it is done and treated I will be a little happier with it. Hopefully, the next one will be better. I'm learning as I go.

Not much this morning

It was a quiet day yesterday. Went to breakfast with Vicki at the Stagecoach and then hit Dollar General briefly. Then it was home and basketry for the majority of the day. This basket isn't going to be as good as the last one. I don't really like it and it looks sloppy. I tried a new stitch, and I still must be doing it wrong, but we learn from our mistakes. I'm also using new/different needles and I think that might have something to do with it too. But I will finish it today and move on to the next one.

It is already too warm to be outside, even in the shade. I do need to deal with my garbage at some point, and need to vacuum up the bits and pieces of pine needle on the floor. Seems to be more breakage with the newer needles.

At some point I want to break out the sewing machine and make the cushion covers for the patio. I think I have enough outdoor material to even do the two single cushions on the woven chairs. And hopefully will have enough to do the footstool in the living room. The padding on that has degraded, so it needs to be padded again and I want to change the brown top to red.

I did get all my photos moved to the network storage drive....25 gig worth. So I didn't burn them to DVD, it would have used six DVD's. I will, at some point, download all the photos that I have shared online and burn them to DVD. Those are the best of the photos and I would hate to loose them.

That is about all I have for you this morning. Time for that shower!

Hot, hot and more hot

Well, my cactus blossoms were gone by mid day. They sure were pretty tho.

I got out in the shed and made two pair of copper hoops, it was really too hot to be out there tho, I had sweat running into my eyes. That doesn’t feel good. :( They came out ok, but I used a fairly heavy gauge wire, and they are too big to  put in my ears. So I will recycle them into something else and make some smaller wire ones. I went with the heavier wire because copper is so soft. Hopefully once the lighter wire hoops are tumbled, they will be sturdy enough to use. Not sure when I will get to those tho, it is freakin hot here.

I puttered around in the morning, and then started a new basket. Didn’t bother to shower until I had to get ready to go to Pam’s so she could show me how to preserve my baskets. I hit the post office first as I hadn’t  been since Monday. I had several packages. Finally got my new hygrometer and the spare watering timer. I also got my chrome plant stand so I can bring my geraniums indoors. They aren’t looking happy, it is too hot for them. In fact, I’m loosing all my annuals because of the heat. Time to let them go and try again in September. 

Anyway, my first two baskets have been preserved. Pam gave me some input on my third basket, I’m trying a different stitch, and am doing the stitch wrong. I decided not to take it apart but will continue with it with the way I have been doing it until I start on the sides. Then I will try to figure out the right way to do it. I think this basket is going to end up with some shells and maybe some bone buttons in it. I just went and dug those up in the shed and found a few other things I can enhance the baskets with. I have quite a few interesting pieces I got at the trade blanket last winter. Should be fun.

I have done my 1.46 mile walk this morning. It was warm, upper 80’s. It was a thirsty walk. I can’t walk without a water bottle now, too dry. I hate carrying it when I walk. I need a flask or something I can drop in my pocket. It doesn’t need to hold a lot, just enough to wet my mouth and throat, or maybe some gum would work. Might try that first. I get really dry.

Here are a couple of photos for you this morning. One is of a bunny on top of the seed block, hadn’t seen that before, and the other is of a sizable lizard I saw on my walk.

I don’t have much else this morning. Haven’t seen Vicki in a few days. Too hot to be out walking around. Nothing else new in the land of sunshine. It will be another day of basketry.

Mist and cactus blossoms

Yesterday was pretty quiet. I did a load of laundry, puttered around and I was thinking about starting a new basket, but ended up reading. I lost a good part of the morning to something, but I can’t remember what. Oh yeah, a nap. I had a really nice nap for a couple of hours before lunch. Plus I cleaned the bucket under the fountain because it was having trouble. Lots of algae in the bucket clogging the little pump. All the birds use that one, including the hummingbirds, so it needed to be done.

When we were in Sedona on Tuesday some of the outdoor restaurants had misting systems to cool down the table areas. It worked pretty well. So yesterday I rigged up my hose because the nozzle had a mist option. It did bring the temp in the immediate area down, but the mist isn’t fine enough and everything got wet. So I went online to see what was available and how expensive it was, and it isn’t expensive at all. I ordered the ten foot original kit, a calcium filter and a ten foot extension and it was about $50 for everything. I have a hose I can use, and just need to get a shut off valve that I can get at any store here. Easy installation, uses no electricity, it has hooks so I can just hook it to the brace on the edge of the patio roof. Shouldn’t take more than an half hour to set up. Then I can be outside when it is over 100 degrees. I’m already getting cabin fever and there is still almost three months to go before the temps stay below 100. So far, I am managing OK. I am out in the early morning, and have been doing my morning computer time outside as well. I put my zero gravity chair in the back corner by the shed which is the only place there is shade in the morning, until the sun moves around. That is also where my little glass table is which means I have two sitting areas on the patio. I’m looking forward to the misting system. Next summer, if I can afford it, I will add a couple of ceiling fans to the patio and set them up on solar power.

Got a call from a guy in Montana about Ody yesterday. He is trying to sell his travelite trailer and if he does, he is very interested in Ody. I should have asked him about his trailer, might have been something I would be interested in. I have his number and could call him back. 

Since it was a small load of laundry, I hung everything except the chair cover inside on the drying rack. Set it up in the bedroom on the far side of the bed. That is about the only place it is out of the way. That worked pretty well. So I guess I will wait on the dryer for a while. I might rig up a line on the patio somewhere, to be out of the sun.

I put the metal road runner in the fountain “garden”. For now until I find a better place for it. The magnetic dragonfly is on the fridge and the door knocker hasn’t been installed yet. The green on the knocker matches the trim on the house.

The cactus that I rescued from a neighbors yard that had broken off and was lying on the ground blossomed last night. Not only did it blossom, but it straightened itself. It had quite a curve to it when iI stuck it in the ground. It has two beautiful white blossoms. They will be dead by the end of the day. They only last one day and bloom at night.

I want to make myself a pair of copper hoop earrings. I saw some online the other day and they look easy enough. Shouldn’t take too long. I should do them early in the morning before I take my shower because it is really hot in the shed no matter the time of day. I have fans in there, but all they do is move the hot air, don’t do anything in the way of cooling. So far, I think I am adapting fairly well to the change in climate. 

This afternoon I am going over to Pam’s and learn how to preserve my baskets. You coat them in melted beeswax and then put them in the oven for a while at a really low temp. I’m thinking I can rig up something with the sunshine here to do the same thing without using my oven. Maybe a shade cloth box of some sort. Keep the electric bill down and keep the added heat out of the house.

Road trip

Was a good day yesterday. We covered a lot of miles, saw some awesome scenery, did a little walking around, ate, did some more sight seeing and I bought myself some sugar free chocolate and a metal roadrunner, a magnetic dragonfly and a dragonfly door knocker in Cottonwood. The only thing I bought in Sedona was a pressed penny, which is illegible, their machine needs to be serviced, and I got four more at Montezuma’s Castle, one of which is very hard to see. Keith loves to drive (he was a tour bus driver in his former life) and I love to ride. Works out quite well.

This is what I brought home with me yesterday. I’m going to put the door knocker on the door. I don’t have a bell, so this will work nicely. Haven’t figured out where the roadrunner is going yet. 

I took a lot of pictures, but can’t process them until I make some room on my hard drive. I have a years worth of photos taking up a lot of space and need to move them and burn them to DVD. I need to get some DVD’s so I can do that. I did upload a few to FB while we were out and about. I took these with my phone.

  

           

The areas with the red rock is Sedona. The truck that lost it’s load of bees was in Congress, our first pit stop. The pull off was on the way to Jerome. It is the same pull off that Mike, Jake and I stopped at back in 2000.

We left at 7:30 in the morning and arrived home at 9PM. Was a long day, but thoroughly enjoyable. Keith is a good driver. I only got nervous on the switchbacks between Prescott and Jerome. It is pretty hairy and a long drop if you steer wrong. I think Mike was driving the last time.

I slept pretty well last night. Woke up at 4. I don’t remember if I got up to use the bathroom, but my guess is yes, and when I woke up I was covered with my flannel sheet and I don’t remember doing that. We did do some walking yesterday, but I don’t know if it equalled my morning walk. It probably did, and since it was in the mountains, I got some grade walking in too. It was hot. Sedona was 100 degrees, Cottonwood was 98 degrees. I had expected it to be a bit cooler in the mountains. Sedona was very busy. It has grown a lot in the last 15 years. Cottonwood was my request since I had considered moving there when I first hatched my escape plan. I wanted to see the town and see what I missed. It’s nice, but for now, I like Q better.

I have already walked this morning. Put a few things away from yesterday, and still need to shower and dress. I may start a new basket today. And I will probably nap too. I’m still tired after being up a couple of hours. I’m also hungry and need my breakfast.

My second basket is done!

It was HOT yesterday, I think we hit 117 degrees. I went to the post office, my Lodge cast iron pots for solar cooking were there. Then I went to DG and picked up a few things. I was beginning to think I wasn’t going to find anything at Sal’s but ended up with a velvet jacket and some green tea in cute little tins. 

Before I went out, I did my chores, vacuuming and dusting, and I cut up half my watermelon and froze the bananas that were going bad. Also dealt with the avocados that I had that were getting soft. That way when I went out, I could take the garbage to the dumpster and not have the rind and peels sitting under my sink gathering flies. I finished up putting stuff away around 11 and got to work on my basket. I finished the basket about 9:30 last night. Here it is…

I’m pleased with it. It is only my second basket, and I need to get better at hiding my knots, and I also think I am wrapping it too tight. Practice. Will be interesting to see what my next one will be like. 

I think I am going to buy a clothes dryer. Just like the one I had in IP, 110v. It will just fit in the space above the washer. There are things I don’t like to hang outside and this would solve that problem. Walmart has it for less than what I paid for the first one. Going to sit on it a few days tho. I have to decide if I really want to spend $300 of what little money I have left.

Haven’t heard anything about the job. Going to have to do something soon.

I still don’t know where we are going today. Looking forward to getting out tho.

Thursday I am supposed to go to Pam’s and learn how to wax and preserve my baskets. One of the reasons I pushed to get this one completed.

Slept fairly well last night…with help. Only up once, got up at 4:30. No scheduled watering today, so no walk. We will probably walk later, so am not too worried about it.

There isn’t much to write about since I am holed up in the house. It is time for me to get in the shower and get my stuff together for today. 

Extreme heat warning in effect.

It was hot yesterday, so I was indoors most of the day. When I did come out, it was like an oven. An oven with a fan. Even the breeze was hot. And it is going to get worse. We have our first high heat warning in effect for Tuesday thru Friday. I guess if I am going out, I need to do it today.

My plans for the day are to do the vacuuming and dusting I didn’t do yesterday, wash the kitchen and bathroom floor, shower and dress, and then run my errands. I probably have packages at the post office, I need batteries, and want to make my weekly stop at Sal’s and see what I can find this week. After that, it is back to the basket. I hope to finish it up today. I worked on it until 10 last night, got quite a bit done. Watched a bunch more episodes of Castle. Still in season four. Only two more seasons to go before I run out. I’m hoping season seven will be available very soon. I missed most of those episodes completely since I was on the road. I do have other programs on DVD that I can watch. Will probably go with McLeod's Daughters next. It has been a while since I have seen that, or Gilmore Girls.

Decent night’s sleep last night. About 11 to 4 with one bathroom break. I did not nap yesterday. And I didn’t fall asleep in front of the TV. I guess working on the basket kept me awake. I drank a lot of water.

My neighbor across the street fell while she was out shopping yesterday. She broke several ribs and her collar bone and was airlifted to Phoenix. From what I hear, she had her stuff in the car and remembered something and got out to go get it, but her car wasn’t in park and the door knocked her down. She basically got run over by her own car. Remember, this is a 55+ park, and most of the residents are in their 70’s and 80’s, so she is going to have a hard time healing. 

Not sure where Keith and I will be going tomorrow. I did some online research, but didn’t come up with anything good. So I guess it is going to be Prescott and possibly Sedona. It is in the mountains so it will be a lot cooler than here. We stopped in Prescott and Sedona when we were here in 2000.

My sister Jan, in Virginia had her AC replaced and it crapped out on her, so she is without AC. Made me think about what would happen if mine died. I have decided that I would just bring Ody over and plug her in and use her until I could get the house AC fixed. Plus, there is the car. So I do have options. I could also go to Vicki’s. I don’t think my little swamp cooler could cool the whole house. But I could close off the bathroom and the bedroom so it wouldn’t have to work so hard.

At 5 this morning when I went out for my walk, it was 86 degrees. The sun wasn’t even up yet. Still feels a little humid too. They say the cold water gets hot enough in the summer that it can burn. I’ll have to remember to check it before I get in the shower. I do know that when I washed dishes late yesterday I had to look to make sure the water heater hadn’t inadvertently gotten turned on. It hadn’t.

Places to go...

Good morning.

Yesterday was another hot day. I spent from mid morning, pretty much until this morning, indoors. I spent the day watching Castle episodes on DVD and working on my basket. Am making progress on both the basket and the Castle seasons. Into season four now.

Will be interesting to see what the finished product is.

Took the scooter out after I got the shade cloth up for the car. Went around the block outside of the park and rode the park a couple of times. I was trying to run the battery down so I could recharge it. I like having it ready to go when I want to use it. I have only charged it one other time since I have been here. I also got some sun. Good thing I came in when I did or I could have been sunburned. I found the half of towel that I want to use as a seat cover for the scooter and used it yesterday. It needs some cutting and stitching, but worked well to keep me from getting burned. I notice one of the mirrors is cracking from the heat, so I need to fix that and cover them up when they aren’t being used. I have a couple little draw string bags that the sheets for the couch and chair came in, so I will use those for the mirrors. Just need to get the labels off and get them washed.

This is where I have my car parked for now. I will have to move it and the shade cloth when the renters come back.

Visited with Keith for a little while and we have decided to take a road trip on Tuesday. Not sure where we are going yet, but I am already getting cabin fever. Will be nice to get out for a day and see something new. I would like to see a ghost town, but we can wander too far because it is just a day trip. I think we are finally getting this boy/girl friendship thing worked out. Feeling a lot more comfortable around him. In fact, the road trip was my idea. I need to take some more pictures. It has been a while. Looking for suggestions for places to go within a couple hours drive. I looked at Hoover Dam, Hubble Trading Post, Jerome, all a little too far for a day trip. There must be something or some place to visit that Jake and I didn't visit when we were here in 2000.

I finally dug up the desert sage baby that the woman on B Street said I could have. It is in a pot for now until I decide where it is going to go. It will need water, so I have to take that into consideration when I place it. Hers is huge, so that is a consideration as well. I lost one of my desert willow babies, but it looks like a new one has germinated. The two older ones seem to be doing well. But I think it is the wrong time of year to be starting seeds here. My annuals have stopped growing and my tomato plants are still putting out blossoms, but no tomatoes. Too hot. Will try again in the fall. 

I figured out how to create a new play list on my ipod this morning so now I won’t have to pull the pod out and fast forward to the next song when something starts that isn’t good for walking. The trees on C thru G streets are looking better already now that they are getting a second round of water during the week. I still don’t know if Jorge came and looked at the line on the north oleanders. I guess I will find out on their next watering day. I am supposed to be getting a key for the parts shed. I should also get a key to the back gate if I am going to be doing this again.

I guess today is going to be another day like yesterday. More Castle and basket work. I do need to vacuum and clean a few things first. The dust here is pretty bad, so I try not to look at it. My car is coated in it. 

I think we are reaching the point where I am going to have to take my rings off. They are getting tight in the heat and are starting to bother me. I need to make a couple of adjustable ones so I won’t feel nekkid.

This is what I ended up doing with the brass candle holders I got at Sal’s last week…Used the auto on battery operated candles. Nice ambient light at night. And the LED night light does a good job of lighting my steps. That has a light sensor and is only on at night.

           

I slept pretty well last night. I did take my Simply Sleep, three of them, and was up twice. But I pretty much slept from 10 until 5 this morning. Actually, later than I wanted, I am trying to walk at 5. So I immediately threw on my clothes, had a half a cup of coffee and was off walking shortly before 5:30. I almost beat the sun. It was already in the mid 80’s.

Getting hotter by the day

The rest of my day yesterday calmed down. I called the sprinkler timer company and have two new parts on the way. Called Jorge to come look at the line on the north oleanders. He said he would, but I haven’t seen him yet. I cut up my melons, made a cucumber and tomato salad, then took the waste to the dumpster. Vicki and I went to the post office where I picked up both shade cloths, my new headphones and my LED night lights. I now have a night light outside by the very scary steps. Also one in the kitchen and one in the bathroom. The first batch of night lights was cheap chinese crap and one didn’t work at all. I will toss those.

By the time I got all that done it was lunch time. I settled in with some leftovers and a book. Had the book finished around 3, too early to turn on the TV so I worked on my basket. I am making progress on it. There was nothing on TV worth watching last night so I watched some more season three of Castle and continued to work on my basket until my hands started to cramp. I will probably do more on it today.

This morning I don’t need to walk, and want to get the new shade cloth up for the car. The temps are predicted to be up to 112 by Wednesday, and I want as much protection for the car as I can get. It is close to 90 degrees this morning and the sun isn’t even up yet. I’m not liking the excessive heat much, but so far my AC is working great. So is the car AC.

The headphones are very nice and work well, but are too big for exercising. I guess I will have to stick with the ear buds and just deal with it. I do like walking with tunes, makes the time go faster.

I don’t have anything planned for today. I am starting to feel like I want to get out of here for a day. I might see if Keith wants to do something Monday or Tuesday. Go somewhere and do something. My days are all starting to run together and it is still early in the season. I invited Vicki for a movie night tonight, but she didn’t seem interested. So I will just do it myself.

At some point I need to get out my sewing machine and make some cushion covers. I have the outdoor material for the two chairs, plus I have all the material I need for the recliner and foot stool. And I need to make a cover for the scooter seat. It gets way too hot in the sun since it is black vinyl. I think I will use an old towel for that. Easy to remove and wash and thick enough to protect my legs from getting burned. I’m thinking drawstring for that and the foot stool. Easy. The recliner isn’t going to be easy tho, which is why I haven’t started it yet. I could get the material washed and ready tho. 

Well, the sun is up and in my eyes. Time to get showered and dressed and deal with the shade cloth for the car. Figure out how to hang that without making any holes anywhere since it isn’t my property.

Frustration level - high

It has been a frustrating morning already. I went for my walk at 5, the oleanders that are supposed to be getting water today aren’t. Fiddled with that for a while and gave up. Problems with the timer or something. Will have to go back and fiddle with it some more, have already been on the phone about it. Then my wifi ran out and I added my new 5 gig, and it wouldn’t work. Ended up on the phone with the useless tech support, and I finally got it working without their help. But I have wasted a lot of time on that already. Decided today would be a good day to relist Ody and had issues uploading the photos that I shouldn’t have had to update, I had already done it when I listed her before, but they weren’t there. Finally got that done too. We all have those kinds of days. I need to call the timer company and get a replacement for the one that isn’t working, and possibly call Jorge to come blow out the lines. I want to pull the timer and put a hose in it’s place first to see if the line is really clogged or if the timer is bad.

Had a busy morning. Pam stopped by and picked up the dragonflies to put in resin. And I read the rest of the day. Nothing on TV again last night, so I went to bed around 9. Still having problems sleeping, but at least I am getting more than I was. I think I may have to turn the AC down a degree or two, at least at night. 80 degrees is too warm for good sleep. I have the ceiling fan on plus another fan, but all it does is move the warm air around.

I really don’t have much to write about. Got two loads of laundry done yesterday. The lint problem has improved. Fewer clothes, more water seems to be doing the trick. 

Very humid

It rained off and on all day and all night last night. It is cooler, but very humid this morning. It is still cloudy so it isn’t unbearable - yet.

I spent some time cleaning the fridge, made my hummus and a big salad and cooked up the portabella caps that were getting old. I stuffed them with quinoa and blue cheese. That is what I had for lunch. Was going to juice the grapefruit and oranges that are in the fridge but ran out of motivation. Maybe today. I didn’t go anywhere, see anyone, or do anything but that and read a book. 

Wasn’t much on TV since all the new shows are on hiatus. Still can’t get CBS which would have offered me something different to watch. I can get it, but it doesn’t stay. Too frustrating to try and watch. Maybe a stronger booster for the antenna. I’m looking into getting some real internet, then I could watch whatever I want whenever I want. Plus I could be a little less stingy about my internet usage. We’ll see, it might just be as good to keep what I have and buy gigs a little more often.

I didn’t walk this morning. Taking advantage of the wet ground. Since it rained, I don’t need to check the automatic watering, would be a waste of my time. I’m going to try to get myself on the stepper instead. Laundry and garbage are on today’s list. But I should deal with the oranges and grapefruit first.

112 degrees

We hit 112 degrees yesterday. Thankfully some clouds came in and it dropped to 106. When I was up in the wee hours this morning, it was still 94 degrees. Thankfully I have AC. And it is only going to get worse. This morning it is about 86 degrees, cloudy and humid. Quite uncomfortable outside, but that is where I am before I shut myself inside for the day. I think I will work on my basket today. This is a preview to monsoon season.

Yesterday I went to the post office, Roadrunner Market for bunny carrots, DG and Sal’s. I bought a clothes drying rack at DG so I can hang some stuff indoors. Thinking about trying to rig up a line in the shower for drippy things. Haven’t quite figured out how I am going to do that yet without putting a bunch of holes in the wall. I want to do as little damage as I can. At Sal’s I got a couple of wall hung metal candle holders. I am going to paint them black to go with everything else and hopefully find some place to hang them with my battery operated automatic candles. I also got a pair of dressy sandals to wear if I get an interview, plus a skirt, and a 1 gallon pitcher to make my sun tea in. The jug I have been using works just fine, but transferring it to the gallon jug for the fridge is a pain in the ass and I can’t pour it without spilling it. This way I won’t have to transfer anything and loose a bunch of tea.

Around 2:30 or 3ish I got a text from Vicki. She wanted to go to the Stagecoach for dinner. I had just put my jammies on, couldn’t stand it any longer. So I got re dressed and we went for an early dinner. I had the fish. It was quite good. So I have been out to eat three days in a row. We had a good turnout for the 7AM coffee. Thirteen people and one dog. I managed to get myself showered and over there on time. 

My material for making the cushion covers for my outside chairs came yesterday. Not sure when I will get to it, but should have plenty of time this summer. I also got the little cart to put the ice maker on at the end of the counter in the kitchen and got that put together and set up. I don’t really like the ice maker there, but it is better than the kitchen table and is only for the heat of the summer anyway. I will put it back outside when it stops going over 100 degrees or so. It can’t keep up at those temps, and I need my ice. And my hospital water mugs that I got on eBay were there too. They are double wall insulated and hold 32 ounces. I drank four of them yesterday. So I guess I am getting my water quota for the day. Now I only have to refill half as often, and it has a handle so I can carry it around. 

I finally heard from the Amazon seller where I ordered the shade cloth. It made it back to them. I considered canceling the order since I already reordered thru eBay, but decided there is no such thing as too much shade cloth here in AZ, so I had them resend it. It works out to be a dollar a foot including shipping, and it runs $2.79 a foot at the hardware store. A sizable savings. 

Last night I got sick of my TV cutting out on me so I put a new cable on the booster to the TV and moved it from 1st TV to 2nd TV. It helped. CBS is still a little funky, but the rest of the channels hold now. Or did last night. I’m going to have to play with it some more at some point. It is very frustrating to try and watch something and have it keep cutting out. If I get a job I will consider getting Direct TV or something. Maybe some real internet too. But what I have is good for now.

The rest of the day I read a book. That pretty much wraps up my Monday. This morning I was up in the wee hours, but did manage some more sleep in the living room chair. It is my day off so I didn’t walk, and slept in. Keith wanted to go target shooting at 5:15 and I declined. I wanted to be able to sleep in. Good thing, the weather isn’t good for it anyway. Maybe some other morning, or later in the year when it cools off. I guess there is a range near here. I need to learn how to use my little 22.

Gonna be a hot one!

This is going to be a quickie because I have already put in a half days worth of activity and it is already hot. They are predicting 106 today, but it is usually warmer than they predict. Might hit 110 or more. I want to get everything done and back inside before it gets that warm.

I went and reprogrammed all the timers on C thru G streets this morning, two timers per street, then did the magnolias on A street, showered and made it to Monday morning coffee across the street by 7 AM. Now I need to go to the post office and DG, maybe Salvation Army too. 

I got plenty of exercise at Pam’s yesterday watering. She has an acre of land and I also watered the far citrus trees and that was a lot of walking back and forth, in the sun, in the heat. I’m getting a pretty good tan. Thankfully I haven’t been out in the sun long enough to burn.

My garbanzo beans weren’t quite done. Not sure why. It was at 225 most of the day. That is above the 212 boiling point. I had to finish them up in the microwave last night. Need to do some more tweaking I guess and maybe the smaller pot will help. Those should be here later this week and I will try again.

Silly Al’s for pizza last night. Good pizza, good company. Was nice.

Pam and Ralph are back so I don’t have to go water this morning. Yay. :)

Well, I’m gonna get myself moving so I can get out and back before it gets too hot.

Laundry solutions

I went to Pam’s to water her gardens yesterday and discovered that her baby citrus trees were very thirsty. I figured out how to get most of them watered, but there are still a few that didn’t get any. I think that took me about two hours. I didn’t do a whole lot between that and dinner at the cafe at 4:30 yesterday. Read, did laundry…not much else, so there isn’t much to write about. I did go over to C street to see Lorna and Bob about the palm trees they asked me to water while they are gone for the summer, and a spin around the park on the scooter and the trash to the dumpster.

Today I am going to attempt to cook some chick peas in the solar cooker. I want to make hummus. I have a bunch of sprouts and they are always good with hummus. This time I won’t be using the vinyl shower curtain. It actually melted in places the other day. One of my neighbors across the street brought me over a piece of glass to use on the top and I will be using that. Plus, I am going to use my cast iron dutch oven. It is black and will hold and collect the heat better. I just ordered a 1 qt and a 2 qt Lodge dutch oven on eBay. Mine is a 5 qt and way too big, but will work for today. I lined the pot with a crock pot liner so I won’t have a lot of clean up to do.

Today I have to go back to Pam’s and water, not much else going on. Pam and Ralph will be back tomorrow and she got her resin, so she is going to set my two dragonflies for me. :) Not sure what I am going to do with them once they are set, but at least I will be able to look at them instead of having to keep them in a box to keep them safe.

I didn’t shower yet this morning. I took a quickie before we went to dinner last night, and will do the same this afternoon. I basically got up, threw on some clothes and went out for my walk at 5:30. It was one of those nights where I ended up in the chair for the last hour or so. Some of the trees on C thru G streets aren’t looking happy. They are only getting about a half hour a week as every where else is getting 2 hrs a week. I’m going to have to talk to Glenn about that. I just figured out that is where all the leaves on my patio that I have to keep sweeping up are coming from.

When I did my laundry yesterday I separated it into two loads. Normally I would do it all in one, but with the lint problem, I took Mike’s suggestion and did two smaller loads instead. It worked. So I guess I have to relearn how to do laundry, and it will also take longer and more effort, but I guess it beat doing it by hand like I did in New Mexico. I still think I am going to get another one of those little dryers like I had on Alder Street. I just won’t use it for everything like I did there. Just the stuff I want de linted and my underwear. I hate having to hang my underwear out where everyone can see it. But I need to make some money first.

Well, I need to get over to Pam's and get her stuff watered before it gets hot.

More solar cooking

Spent some time cutting and flattening copper tubing yesterday for bracelet blanks. I got them cut and pressed with the vise, and only got one thru the mill before it got too hot to work in the shed. Hoping to get a few more done today if I can. I also put a 13 bean soup in the solar cooker for the day. It did pretty well. The beans were a little crunchy, but it was edible. The temp in the cooker got up to about 225. Still tweaking. Need to see if I can get a dark colored pot, that will help, and one of my neighbors brought over a piece of glass to put on the top later in the day. It did get hot enough to melt the vinyl, so I had to toss that. I may try putting another layer of the bubble foil insulation in too. I did use the back reflector this time too. 

That was what brought the temp up 50 degrees. I had to turn it to the sun a couple of times as it moved across the sky. Until I can get the temps up another 50 degrees, I won’t cook any kind of meat, just not hot enough. I think if I had soaked the beans before putting them in the oven they would have been done. I will keep trying.

Once it got too hot to be outside I went in and read. Yup, another whole book.

This morning I have to go to Pam’s and water her garden, and again tomorrow. I didn’t walk this morning since there is no watering scheduled for today (or Tuesdays). I got about six hours sleep. I was up in the middle of it for a while, but did manage to go back to sleep. Two Simply Sleep just doesn’t cut it for me. I think I will go back to three again for a few nights. Trying to get internal clock reset. It has been cool enough at night to open the windows and turn on the fans. I love it. Although it is quite late when it is finally cooler outside than inside. My AC is set at 80 degrees. That would still be too warm if I didn’t have the swamp cooler going and sitting directly in front of that when I read or watch TV. Next year that might be different. Supposedly you adapt to the temps.

Today at 4:30 I will be meeting the widows for dinner at the Mountain Quail Cafe. Gonna try to get something that is inexpensive and somewhat heathy if I can. I really would like to loose more weight. 

I don’t think my tomato plant is going to produce any tomatoes. It has blossoms, but it is now too hot for it. I will try again in the fall. Probably will have better luck with the cooler temps. Gonna let this one go and see what it does tho.

I finally got my shade cloth ordered again. This time I put the PO Box in the name field after my name. It didn’t reject it. Will have to remember that in the future. Maybe it will actually make it to me this time. We’ll see.

Don’t know if I am going to try using the solar cooker again today. I won’t be here for dinner today or tomorrow, so I will probably wait and try it again Monday. If it is beans again, that will give me time to presoak them. I might try some chick peas and make some hummus. I have sprouts, so I can make sammiches on tortillas. Hmmm….that sounds like a plan. 

Well, I need to get moving so I don’t have to stand in the heat to water Pam’s garden. Not sure how long it will take, she has a lot of stuff.