Blazing Patios

I think this has been the hottest summer I can ever remember! Well, there was that summer in the mid 70s when I worked as a Home Support Worker when it was so hot the boss told us to take off the uniforms & wear sundresses & sandals. We had seniors fainting on sidewalks in New West. And I think I spent the whole summer doing laundry in hot, steamy Senior apartment buildings.

Usually, we get two or three weeks in August every year that bakes your socks off but THIS year has been baking since June!! It's been tough on ME especially this year since I'm still having breathing problems. I am better when I stay inside or inside my air-conditioned car during the hottest part  of the day but the cooler evenings after dark are the best. I think I sit outside in the dark reading for a couple of hours. I am soooo glad I bought a Kobo Aura so I can do that!  And don't laugh, I've been reading the Anne of Green Gables series. I think I was 10 when I read it last!! But, I got a Daily Deal notice from Kobo one day for the whole series for $1.99, so I bought it. Sure makes a nice change from British Detectives or Thrillers.

It's too hot to knit. I haven't finished anything. I haven't started anything. I have been washing all my knits & drying them outdoors on the rack on the patio instead. They smell so good when they dry outside, even with the air pollution & the neighbor next door who still burns all her garbage at night! But I am wishing for a good sea breeze move the air a bit!

This weekend Mars is the closest to Earth that it's been since 2003!! Apparently Mars will be the brightest 'star' in the sky this weekend & will be only about 36 million miles away!! And there's that Blood Moon to see as well. You can see it all on 'Night Sky' or 'SkyView' aps.

The local Safeway sure is popular in this heat wave. I've often said how nice it is to go down there & have lunch when you live in an apartment. There's a large seating area - they don't clean it much so bring your own wet ones & napkins - but the deli has added scads of new salads, the store has lots of sandwiches pre-made in the cooler, lots of finger foods ready to go too as well as cut fruit & Starbucks standing by with big, cold drinks! I must be getting really old, but it's a great place to cool off, have a cheap lunch & shop - all at the same time. Especially good if you just want to be cool for a while when the apartment is too hot!!

Just a Dawg

I haven't had a lot of interesting things going on in the last couple of weeks  -  my life has become rather dull. There's nothing much to report other than my 80 year old - next month - Ex gets to keep his license for two more years!  He was so stressed out about losing it since he lives in a corner of the town with nothing within walking distance & poor bus service. But, he's safe for two more years!!!

My efforts to KILL my mice continue! There's a lot of good stuff in the back of my cupboards apparently - like packages of pop corn - that seem to be more interesting than my poisoned peanut butter. So I concocted a new poisonous package with cheese. I bought some Swiss cheese slices & they were tasteless to me but apparently not to mice. The package has vanished!!

It's been so hot this week that I've been doing laundry so I can hang it outside to dry. Since I have a teeny washer & only one rack, the process has been lengthy. But, oh my, how GOOD towels smell when they dry in the sunshine!!! Yesterday was sooooo hot that TWO heavy bath-towels dried in 20 minutes on my patio. I've pulled all the winter socks out. And today, a winter quilt. If I'm going to swelter in the heat, then I'll get some use out of it. On days like this, I wish I had a solar cooker so I could make dinner while the towels dry!!

My rescued fuchsia is leafing out all over. I cut it back, soaked it really good & tucked it into the very back of my patio where the big box of ferns used to be. Apparently it loves the spot & is already setting tiny buds! I should get my ass in gear & re-pot a couple of other things too. Like that poor spider plant that's lived in a plastic drinking glass for 10 years .  .  .  .  And the Jade plant the mouse was living in!

Haven't taken my Indian spinner outside for a spin this summer but I really must. I've been sitting outside in the cool evenings with my knitting instead, making short summer socks. But, I now have 5 or 6 pairs & should be fine for the summer.
Must get that vest done for my niece before it gets cold too since I really need to knit it outside with all the 'bits' it throws off as I work with it. I bought the same B&G Tuffy yarn in RED for myself. I have a 'jacket' pattern that's really a poncho with arms for myself for the winter. I wanted something warm but not too warm that was easy to wear. I don't want to have to take it on & off all the time but I need something when getting from the house to the car & back.

I've been listening to the Maisie Dobbs series by Jacqueline Winspear. Maisie starts out in life as a poor girl around 1900 who goes into service as a maid at 12. Her employers notice how smart she is & send her to school where she wins a place at the University.  WWI breaks out & Maisie trains as a nurse & goes to France. She survives the war to eventually become an 'investigator' who does 'Discrete' investigations. The series is very well written & as true to the period as possible. I think I'm now up to the mid 30's.

A Mouse Did It

It's been a tough week this week. Even though it's been a short week, it's still been tough. I started off by moving stuff that hasn't been moved in eons only to find my one little mouse has become generations of mice nicely homed in an old fleece in a basket. I suspect they've been coming & going thru the office window which opens onto the back stairs. One damn mouse made a home in my very large Jade plant by burrowing deep under the roots - the plant is so heavy that I don't really move it anymore!! So, I've been waging war on mice with Rat Pellets & Peanut Butter. Oh, how they love the mixture!!

I was moving things to find the bin/s of combed & dyed spinning fibre. Yes, spinning fibre. I now understand that I'll be working a lot longer than I planned & spinning a lot less as a result. I also like to knit & the two don't always go together very well in my world. I seem to have long periods of one or the other .   .   .    so while I have friendly spinners around, I want to sell off some of the stuff I know I'll never get to. I bought way more than I ever needed - it was investment buying!! hahahaha  Trust me, the Passionate Purple, Magenta & tropical Paua are NOT being sold off!! But I have subscription offerings & individual packages which ARE being sold. I very carefully stored them all away in giant Rubber Maid tubs which are NOT labeled or transparent. Stupid me.

I decided I'd rather spin fleeces, which are easier on hands that hurt & yield amounts that can make a vest or sweater. I always liked spinning from the fleece. Probably because that's how I learned to spin back in the 70s! We didn't have dyed, combed anything available to us. We had mostly white fleeces from Australia & local fleeces that almost no one wanted! If you wanted color, you dyed your own! Occasionally, a grey or brown fleece appeared but mostly the only choice was white. I ended up being seduced by all the color available 30 years later!! I love color. But, funny as it sounds, when all is said & done, I prefer lighter greys for spinning because I can wear the yarn on it's own, combine it with colored yarns or over-dye it if I want. I can't wear white at all!

But, I am NOT moving anything today. Today I'm just stiff & sore & recovering from yesterday! Yesterday I had a WCB Audit. What an adventure!! There was only ONE handicap parking spot & not available to me. It was probably the hottest day of the year to be hobbling across a half acre of blacktop parking lot with a heavy bag & a cane. By the time I got to the main door - Reception was at the other end of the building - I had to sit down, take a pee & use my puffer in any order! No bench, no washroom for the public on the main floor at all & a trickling water feature greeted me. By the time I got myself together, used the elevator, found a washroom & located Reception, I was 10 minutes late & listening to my phone ringing in my bag. Thank gawd  the building was air conditioned!!!  The young  man doing my audit was very nice & finished in about 20 minutes!  I told him I was really shocked at how unfriendly WCB is about handicap access. One would think that a place who's Claim to Fame is to look after injured workers would be totally accessible!! ONE parking spot!! No ramp to get on/off the sidewalk to the parking. No sitting place at the door - not even a ledge - to rest. It's tough work hobbling across a parking lot with a cane & a bag of documents!! No accessible washroom & no directions to a washroom in the lobby. Just a sign that said - "Please check in with Reception when you arrive".  I couldn't FIND Reception.  

Happy Holiday Monday

Since the TV died last fall, I often don't know what day it is. So I missed the Official Canada Day celebration. I was home, doing laundry & lounging outside to watch it dry in the afternoon sun.

While guarding the laundry on it's drying rack, I listened to Heinlein's "Door into Summer" for the umteenth time - I love Pete & Danny - & worked on my Goth Kitty short summer socks. Finished the first & turned the heel on the second one. I really like this Goth Kitty colorway from Knit Picks! Grey, Pink & Purple - most of my favorite colors all in one sock!! And one ball made one & a half short socks. I bought four balls!!!

Haven't done much new book reading so far this summer but I have been re-reading  'Raven Black' book 1 in Ann Cleeves' Shetland series on my Kobo ebook reader. I take that reader with me everywhere I go. Even if I only go thru the drive-thru for a coffee, I take it with me. I have the back-lit version with e-ink so there's no glare on the screen if I read it out in the sun & the screen is evenly lit in the dark. None of that flashlight effect you get with a book light!! Although I love audio books when I work, I love to curl up & read too. Some books are just better when you read them yourself!!!

Not much progress on the farming niece's vest. I've been having a bad Spring with all the pollution, mould & pollen floating around & have avoided knitting with anything that throws off 'bits' when it's worked with. Good old Briggs & Little yarns make me wheeze. I have contemplated soaking the skeins in conditioner & 'beating' them on the post outside to tame the 'fly-aways' because they DO wear like iron & soften with use. Now that the weather is warmer, I am hoping to get it finished as I lounge out on the patio watching the laundry dry!