Looking Back | August 2020

Looking Back | August 2020

“The month of August had turned into a griddle where the days just lay there and sizzled.”
― Sue Monk Kidd, The Secret Life of Bees

Yes, this quote perfectly sums up what August was for me…a month of sizzling, never ending heat. By months end, my gardens were all looking rather fried. We did have some significant rainfall that made all the weeds leap to life seemingly overnight, but do you think I did any weeding? Yeah, that would be a big N-O, lol.

We also found ourselves at the six month mark of Pandemic times. My state went on “lock down” on March 15, but my house started at the beginning of March. The days have a familiar rhythm and it is hard to think back to what “life before COVID” was like. It almost seems like another lifetime ago. But some of the changes are so very good. I feel like a smarter shopper now, with a major shop about every 3 weeks. Yes, I pick up “fill in” items… veggies and fruits. But my garden provided loads of fresh beans, some incredibly delicious orange peppers, and a plethora of tomatoes. And all that helped reduce the “extra trips” out.

But some of these changes are just very bad, there is no way to sugar coat not seeing my kids and while I am extremely thankful for FaceTime, texting, and phone calls… it is really not a substitute for being together in person. It pains me to say that this will likely be “reality” at least through the end of this year and it is the thing that makes me the most depressed.


The Best Part of the Month

This, ironically, was not something I did… but rather something Vivi’s chicken did! Yes, one of those Easter chicks laid its first egg! There was much joy and excitement in this feat and it might have been one of the best photos I got all month!

Something New

Zoom Knitting seems to be here for the duration, and this month we finally got “smart” (yes, even knitters can take 6 months to get their act together!) One of our members had moved away, and we finally figured out a day and time that worked for everyone, her included! So Knit Night now seems like one of the best things as hearing her escapades again make for some much needed laughter. No one tells a story quite like Julia does!

Best “Oh, Wow” Moment/s

The August skies absolutely came through with the “Oh, Wow” factor! And they reminded me that looking up is always a good idea! They kicked “ho hum” mornings in the pants! And for those “end of the day” moments… well sometimes they provided that last needed thing for my daily gratitude list.

What I did Well and What I can do Better

Sadly, August had no “I did this well” moments. But boy do I have a list of things I can do better. While there are no photos here, August was a month that I learned the hard way that my opinion not something anyone needs… ever. I read some of the best reminders of this on your blogs this month… along with the reminder that there is no prize for martyrdom. Oy. There is a part of me that is very, very glad August is over… and with it, hopefully, my incredible talent for being the truly most obnoxious ass in North America. My goal for September centers around this quote:

Thinking doesn’t hurt. Words DO. — Anna Maledon

And that is my August… even the not so pretty parts. See you all back here on Wednesday!

Goodbye May, Hello June!

Goodbye May, Hello June!

Green was the silence, wet was the light, the month of June trembled like a butterfly. — Pablo Neruda

Well, that was an odd May, wasn’t it? But it’s over and this morning June greeted me with a chill in the air, a brilliant sunrise, and a riot of Weigela blooms!

I reveled in #MeMadeMay all month long. And I have not stopped! This morning I emptied out my closet with the intention of downsizing to just me-made clothes. May also had a wide variety of weather, so I could wear flannels, wool, and yes, even sleeveless tops!

I made note of things that I “need” (okay…I am pretty sure I don’t really need anything, but I noted some items are well loved and often worn, so I have started a list of “makes” for the coming months.)


I tried to take a photo of “life” every day in May, but I was not successful every day and I have given up on 1 Second daily videos for the time being.


What is there to say… there was an awful lot of drinking in May and lots of staying home. However, we have gotten creative with Happy Hour – I am going to try and “take us out of Pittsburgh” with cocktail and food a couple times a month. Hopefully these “stay-cation” Happy Hours will feel different, since the surroundings sure as hell aren’t! Ha!

Also, when you can’t go anywhere you begin to notice other things, or at least I have. The greening of my neighborhood was truly a site to behold and May’s chillier temps made that greening up a gradual affair, rather than over and done with and for that I am profoundly grateful!

What did you notice about May? What was good? Bad? Better?

Friday Update, Photo Edition

Friday Update, Photo Edition

It’s been a quiet couple of weeks around here, at least until we went “Yellow” last Friday.

Yellow for my house looks a lot like Red. Unlike my neighbors, we are not racing out to dine in a restaurant, shop at the mall, or get our hair done. It will be interesting to see in the next few weeks if the cases in the county reflect the colossal stupidity I see happening all around me.

But enough with the rant, how about some distractions!

While I have been gone, I have been doing lots of thinking about this blog and how to make it feel fresh to me. Some ideas are percolating around, but nothing concrete yet. For the time being, I will continue stopping in here at least a couple days a week.

Yesterday, we had a swarm of special visitors (who were welcomed, admired, and applauded). This immense swarm of honey bees is festooning on our trimmed bushes waiting for the Bee Scouts to come back and direct them to the new location of their hive! Somewhere in that swarm is their Queen, who left her previous colony and took about half of her workers and set off to find a new place to live. In a week of absolute shit news, this swarm lifted my spirits. I did not know that swarming is evidence of a healthy bee colony…yep, they don’t swarm if they are sick! I wish you could see the size (and weight!!) of these bees – the size of the swarm is about 15″x10″ in size and they are weighing down the sturdy branches so much that they are resting on my neighbor’s chain link fence!

My iPhone does not quite do justice to the magnificence that these bees are!

As you can see above, sweater knitting is moving right along, I have divided for the sleeves and am now just mindlessly knitting body. I am hopeful to have this done by next Wednesday!

These past couple of weeks I have been mourning the loss of singing – specifically choir singing. The realization that there won’t be any choir, or singing in church (if and when ‘in-person’ worship resumes) makes me very weepy. Who ever thought that singing would spread germs faster…certainly not me. So I spent a good bit of time watching all the “separate but together” choirs on YouTube – and there are lots of them, but this one kind of sums of how I am feeling…

I also have been practicing with “the big camera” this week. However, the weather conditions were either too windy, too sunny, or today – too rainy!

Lamb’s Ear makes me smile

Even in the rain, they don’t let go of each other. There is a lesson here for all of us!

That is all I have for today. I will be back next week to share an update on my word next Tuesday with Honoré! Have a good weekend everyone!

 

Macro Monday | 5.11.20

Macro Monday | 5.11.20

I would love to share a post with all the exciting “Motherly” things I did this weekend, but well… on weekend nine (ten?) of Stay At Home… not much was different. We had snow/rain on Saturday and it was not warm enough to be outdoors on Sunday.

I did have calls with my kids… that was nice, but it would have been so much nicer to physically *be with them* (and honestly, there were tears all around)

Hilariously, PA is “opening Allegheny County” this Friday. However, without mass testing and contact tracing, I am not going to be running out to “re-enter” whatever used to be normal life.

However, I do have a couple of macro photos to share. Despite this miserable freaking weather, my chives have started to bloom! I love these little purple pompoms! They are one of my favorite things of spring!

That is all I have for today, I will be back on Wednesday for some Unraveling to share with you all. (And, for the next couple of weeks, it will only be Wednesday posts. I am taking a bit of a “blog vacation” but!! Wednesday’s will remain “vacation free days!”)

I hope you all had moments this weekend that brought you joy, see you all back here on Wednesday!

 

Macro Monday Haiku | 5.4.20

Macro Monday Haiku | 5.4.20

Spring rain wreaks havoc
and lilac confetti falls
among empty walnut shells

And finally, with a nod to my favorite son, May the Fourth be with you! *wink*

Happy Monday everyone!

 

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