Monday, July 22, 2013

All last week we told ourselves "come Saturday, this heat wave (with temps in the mid 90's and heat indices well over 100 degrees) will break and we will feel so much better.

Saturday came and we waited and watied for the massive storm that was going to sweep through the area.  Thunder! Lightning! Downpours! Hail! Gusty winds!

Yea, it was anticlimatic when the storm finally came through after dinner on Saturday.  There was some thunder and a good bit of lightning and rain but not the apocalyptic storm we were told to expect.  And the humidity did not go down.  It stayed at 94% through today.  The temps are down in the 80's so life will get back to somewhat normal.

I finished Emily's dress on Sunday.  She came down on Saturday and we had a fitting.  It had to come in about an inch or so on each side and we pinned the hem.

Saturday, I sewed the new side seams and then took it upstairs to the a/c and finished sewing the bodice and put some of this lovely beaded lace on it.  I also finished the hem.  The lace hangs underneath the hem as well. 

I am reluctant to post a photo since it's not my dress.  It belongs to Em and she is determined to keep it a secret from Jim until their day.  She needs to try it on to make sure it fits and then it goes to a dry cleaner to get pressed.  They'll do a much better job than I can.  I think she'll look beautiful.  The color is good on her and the style suits her shape.

Pk spends 15 minutes to a half hour walking the "back 40" most days after work.  Yesterday, while perusing the garden, he found this

You may think it's a zuchini but it's actually a cucumber.  We have never had much luck with cukes but this year we got a fair crop of pickling cukes and this big boy was hiding at the bottom of the plant.  It will be tough and very seedy so not much good for anything.

We made cucumber salad with some of the cukes and it was delicious.  We plan to make some refrigerator pickles with the rest.

Our tomatoes have grown beautifully but all the rain swelled some of them up too much too fast and they popped.  The squirrels have been having a field day out there.  They left a good sized tomato on the ground but it's way too green.  We put it in a brown paper bag to help it ripen.  I'd hate for our first real tomato to go to waste.

Pk and I bought an electronic subscription to the NY Times.  We read it on our ipads.  I missed having a newspaper but we weren't reading much of it when we had it delivered and it was such a waste at the end of the week to put all that paper into the recycle pile.  The Times cost less than our local paper and it has good coverage of world news. 

I didn't think I'd like it but I've come to really enjoy it.  We are discussing world topics again and learning how much we think alike but also how we differ in our views.  And if I don't read it for a day, most sections keep the same articles (and add new ones) so I don't miss much.  I also don't waste paper. 

We were sitting at breakfast at the diner last weekend with our "newspapers".  The waitress asked how we liked the devices and we told her that we were reading the newspaper (we used to buy a paper and spread it all over the table) and we loved it.  I think we may have made a convert.

It took 11 days for the intestinal virus to run its course and be through with me.  I was never so glad to see a virus go.  So far, it hasn't spread through the family.

Work goes on.  We are pretty sure the city will cut our budget over half a million this year (after a 1.25 million cut last year).  I have a feeling that there are more layoffs coming this fall.  I'd like to not be on that list so I keep myself busy and involved. 

How are y'all handling this summer?

6 comments:

Galad said...

I have so far resisted the NY Times aggressive attempts to get my subscription, but always run out of free articles before the end of the month.

The dress looks like it will be beautiful and will be even more special because you made it.

We spent the weekend with Nicole and Patrick. It was 85 degrees and 80% humidity in Phoenix. Felt more like the Midwest than Arizona. UGH

amy said...

My mind shut down when it hit 88 degrees inside the living room, and that's when my husband came home with another air conditioner.

My 9yo is being treated for Lyme. After working himself up so much about the horrible-tasting liquid medicine that he was sure was poison, we switched to capsules and he has to learn how to swallow them.

That's how our summer is going. Heat, humidity, and tick-borne plague.

The dress is lovely, I can tell just by the glimpse of it. Of course you shouldn't show it to us until after she's married. OF COURSE!!

amy said...

I forgot to say, worked himself up so much that he threw up the small amount he'd managed to sip in the course of an hour....

roxie said...

Take that seedy twisted cucumber, slice it thin, and throw it into a water pitcher. pack in ice and maybe a few slices of lemon or lime. Add water. Drink the water.SO refreshing!

The satin and the lace are gorgeous! Of course you can't post the photos yet, but when the wedding happens, we want some fashion shots, please.

DrK said...

i really like the NYT, it is much more international than you'd think. i flick through the headlines every day at work but i should subscribe. you're so tomorrow, with your iDevices :) do you use flipboard, its really cool too? it pretty cold here at the moment, as far as cold goes down under, but you get the feeling every so often its going to be a wicked summer when it arrives. not just yet thanks. i can tell that dress is going to be divine, i cant wait to see it on her, and how magical to have a hand made dress. hope you continue to improve health wise. take care xx

Anonymous said...

Oh the dress is going to be stunning. I can't wait to see it!

Happy Sunday!  I am sitting here working on my sweater made with the cashmere yarn my husband gave me for my birthday last year. I’m further...