The air quality from the Canadian wildfires is bad.  It’s of course worse up in MI.  It’s hot and breezeless, too much to stay out in for long.  S and L are demonstrating how we all feel this morning.  I had another mostly sleepless night.  There may be t-storms later.  Good prep for helping Stacey move in today!

My big job under the circumstances was to move a pile of leaves from the patio to Percy’s Memorial Path.  It’s hard to tell from the photo.  I was sweating like a hog from just standing out there.

Almost the whole immediate family will be reunited today.  Only Lily is missing, by her own choices.  I still believe that one day she’ll come around.  Hey, if I could do it…

So much for using my time here for gardening.  I couldn’t have done much if I tried.  Probably for the best.  I got more done inside, and spent time with S.  We had some interesting conversations.  Y, sadly, is self-isolating from us right now.  I hope that he, too, will rejoin us when the time is right.

I was going for a deprivation record, but towards morning I managed to doze off.

S, OTOH, was going for an all-nighter; all I know is he was zonked out on the sofa, alarms and all, when I got up.  Y, I have no idea; he’s become a recluse spider or vampire.  K made dinner and then returned to the game-cave.  E of course is helping in MI.  Sometimes it feels like I’m on my own here!  Not for long!

But most of my bills are paid for the month, leaving me back to virtually zero.  I could really use a windfall, O spirits of the universe!

It’s too hot to work outside, so I watered and came back in.  Tomorrow I believe I get to cat-sit at my apartment while Stacey et al are moving in.  I think I’ll enjoy the peace and quiet while I can.

Sleepless night #2; I don’t know what causes it.

Everything is quiet.  S and I actually watched the new Good Omens finale together.  He liked it.  Then I watched more stuff on my laptop until late.  I followed the latest amusing episode of Sibling Meatheads arguing about the topic of slabs of meat. Then I read.  I took some sleep supplements.  Nothing worked.

I “got up” (semi-vertical) early to see E off for his ride to the train to MI this morning (thankfully not by me!).  I’m running errands today (food and drug admin).  Maybe tonight sleep will catch up to me.  Anyway, so far so good camping out for the week.  I’m too busy to be bored.

Yesterday I harvested all two of the eggplants and made clever little pizzas out of them.  Even S liked them.  I made fresh pack pickles out of some red okra.  My garden may be a late bloomer, but it’s worth the wait to have fresh veggies upon which to do weird experiments.

Even more flowers keep appearing after all the rain and heat.  Every day the veg plants are doubled in size, taking over the yard.  I’m starting to see more butterflies and pollinators, finally.

I’m learning all kinds of new practical skills, like tech stuff on my laptop, driving around in my sleep(!!), more house management, and how to ignore surly teen attitudes.  If I survive what is just a minute fraction of what Avdi copes with every day, I think I may have earned another bourbon.

Look I grew a pair, and some other parts, proving my virile gardening skills. αΩλ42⇓

I spent the night mostly not sleeping as usual.  It was totally quiet, too.  I watched two whole movies, one about dying, and one about–dying!  I dozed off toward morning.  Then it was time for coffee and the garden walkabout.

My neighbor gave me a whole case of Modelo cerveza as pay for keeping their garden watered while they were away.  It’s like a raise!

We talked garden shop for a while.  She showed me all her plants that are doing better since we chopped down the walnuts.  Little does she know, I’m letting other trees take their place heheh!  I’m so evil.  Which reminds me, I need to cut back the walnuts that are regrowing again!

Then I did some weeding, sweating like a beer, and came in to drink some.

There are actual eggplants on the eggplants!  This garden is full of surprises.  The less I fuss over it, the better it does.

I confess I did order some more assorted wildflower seed mixes on sale.  You know, ’cause it’s never enough.  It is not an addiction.

I’ve included the dog who lurks under the table, and his pool.

Much of the erev meal came from the garden!  The first zucchini, a large assortment of greens, and several herbs were featured in a Mediterranean-themed dinner.  E was out at rehearsals, but Y had a friend over, and Jess joined us briefly, so it was a full table.  Everyone but Y+1 seemed pleased.  Later a big delivery of McD’s showed up!  Go figure.

All this sauna weather built up to a huge thunderstorm last night with a tsunami of rain that almost came up to my patio sliding doors!  At one point lightning was right outside, and the power flickered.  Scary!  But I don’t have to water!  It was like 1 1/2 ” in just a short time.

While all that was happening, I was watching the movie ISS, about the International Space Station.  Russia and the US declared war on each other down below, and were bombing each other and everyone in between to hell.  The earth was on fire.

Meanwhile, on the ISS, the Russian and American crews were each ordered to take over and eliminate the other crew, which they proceeded to do.  Only one crew member of each survived to return home in the Soyuz, but to where and what?

It felt very plausible in today’s world, with trump goons in power.  Even escaping to the ISS wasn’t far enough.  I suspect anywhere in the universe wouldn’t be safe from human insanity.

A&J are about to go out of town for Ruby Conf for a few days.  E is about to take a train to MI to help S and J&C move.  Then they will move into the house this week.  I’ll be camping out at Avdi’s for the duration.  Things are moving fast.

It was quiet, with almost everyone at the City Museum, conducive for getting things done inside and out between rains.

I actually got a lot done in the garden.  I cut back the old, spent broccoli trees, etc., trimmed the natives along the herb wall, laid down and watered in cardboard paths in the veg garden, repositioned sprawling melon vines and tomatoes, and generally restored things to some semblance of order.

I discovered red okra ready for cutting.  And the one zucchini (hopefully of many) doubled in size overnight.  It looks like a real garden again, with actual food in it.  E harvested more potatoes.  Oh, and there’s a resident bunny, helpfully weeding for me.  S/he kept on mowing while I took their picture.  (E also mowed the lawn.)

And you get an unsolicited bonus post, just because.

Kids can teach you a lot about how not to act as a grownup, but many of us miss the lesson and keep our  inner self-centered kid alive and well.  (Just a metaphor.)

Example: Tall mountain of recycle cardboard in dining room falls on kid.  Kid complains someone (else) should do something about it.

I say, it goes in recycle can outside.

Kid states that is not on his chore list, and checks list to confirm it’s (theoretically, not necessarily in fact) someone else’s job.

I state it’s not on my list either, as I go to dispose of it.

Kid says, you don’t even have a chore list!

I say, exactly!

Kid explains he’s too tired to do more than the required minimum.  Too much lack of sleep partying last night.

Which is legit, being a kid, but.  I think you see what I’m driving at.

Many of us never grow out of it.  The rest of us get left holding the trash bag.  Kids have sort of an excuse.  So-called leaders have none.

Meet Loucious of Borg.  Resistance to his new doggie pool was futile.  S and I “persuaded” him with the hose, frisbees, and treats to love the pool.  It’s his favorite new game.  Now he is assimilated.  Of course I forgot to take exhibit photos, you’ll just have to trust that this is him worn out by devious design.

Naturally it started to thunder and rain for a few minutes, but that was enough to water the garden so I didn’t have to.  Look at all these happy plants, including yet another one of last year’s elephant ears coming back up!  Best of all, here is the first ripe tomato of the season!  Let the harvest begin!

And another exciting discovery–the mystery flowers crowding the front of the veg garden, swallowing up the zinnias and calendulas I planted, are native blue lobelia!!  I must have planted them, too!?  My evil “plan” of turning the garden into an almost-native flower jungle is working.

Update: I saw a zucchini, finally!!

My eyesight is noticeably worse lately.  I drove multiple times today and it was hard to see, even in daylight.  It’s also harder to read.  I can’t get new glasses until I get the surgery, and I can’t afford any more medical debt on my low fixed income.  Driving and seeing are skills I need to help people out and not be another dependent.  It’s a catch-22.

It’s still brain-poachingly humid out, but every so often I go out back and weed something, just to feel useful.  Right now, everyone’s in their room or couch, sleeping or chilling.  Even Avdi wasn’t feeling well and had to come home from the office and lie down.  Too much partying!!  (J.K.)

Most of the action is outside, with plants energized by the rain and heat.  The blue skullcap and pink phlox are blooming up through thick natives, and the loofah gourd vines are finally climbing up the makeshift trellis.  This weird yellow ‘shroom has been appearing in the rock garden.  Poke is poking up everywhere.

The three sisters mound finally looks like a thing, with corn, bean, and squash plants getting big.  Under giant jungle squash plants, the strawberry bed is possibly no more (again).  I think my chaos gardening scheme is already in progress on its own.  Survival of the bad-ass-est.