Summer heat

So, I couldn't stand it-I had to have a pool. Who cares if it takes over the whole patio! Bigdog strung up a triangular tarp for protection/shade (damned doves). So with the big old oak tree, the house, and the tarp, there's no way to get a sunburn-just floating and relaxing.

First: the pool:filling

next:I couldn't stand it any longer

Bigdog and Whitedog-sharing a moment

Blackdog hiding from the "Big Bath"

Next: the 17hour brisket

Lastly: How I spent my summer vacation

Let Freedom ring

Yard Happenings

Life has been going at a fast clip since I got home from the wedding. I am trying to organize pictures to post later of the fun on the lake.

One thing I have been doing is digging out the area to put the pool on. I didn't last year and the pool could never be completely filled because a barely perceptable slant. I got my son to dig a part of it, but the rest is up to me. Nobody will help.

Yesterday I dug for about an hour, with frequent breaks because it is hotter than Hades out there. I did it in the morning when it was cooler. Sunglasses, do-rag, wipe rag, gloves (after rubbing a blister on the palm of my hand). To my delight, this morning I weighed 2 pounds lighter.....so went back at it. Being a 20ft square, it doesn't seem that I have gone far when I get a shovel and half width dug. The dirt is loose.....and am thinking it would have been a great place for a veggie garden (rats), but the hard part is the gagillion fist sized rocks.

This is the area to be dug...not all in the picture, but 20 ft x20 ft.

And this shows how much I got done yesterday. This morning it is a shovel and half wider. Great exercise.....wrangle the shovel as far down as possible by wriggling it between rocks, turn the dirt, bend down, lift rocks, toss aside....rinse, repeat. You can see the pile of rocks growing along the fenceline. I think this evening I will get out the level and see how much I have to go yet. May not be a whole lot as it slopes from the fence to the truck farm..that being the lowest part. I need to pick up some landscape cloth to put over the area before I set up the pool.

Ahhh....the pool. Looking at pictures of it makes me want to dig till I drop in order to get it up. This is where I want to be right now......

Cubedog: Me too. The advanced weather prediction is for a heat index of 126 on July 1. Man is my elec. bill gonna suck.....

Lost Worlds

Today we found a lost world. A complete eco-system:

All inside the bowl of the tree on the north side of the yard. All within a about 1 cubic foot.

SQUEEEEEEEEE

Just got out of the new Star Trek.
SQUEEEEEEEEEE!
SO worth seeing at the theater.
4 thumbs up (BigDog and I). Highly recommended.

Losing my buddy

This is Missy. She is 16 years old. I took this picture this summer when she was losing weight, but otherwise doing okay. Today is Mother's Day and I am keeping vigil. She is losing the battle for life and we have no idea what is killing her. The vet did tests and they came back fine a couple of months ago. I gave her a steroid pill this morning and she ate about a teaspoon of salmon and drank about a tablespoon of chicken broth. If she is still alive tomorrow, then I will take her in to the vet. It is time and I am finally able to let her go. I have been waiting for her to give me a sign that she is through. I think today she is coming through loud and clear. All the other pets know it too. Lucy was up on the cushion in the window with her for a while. Jack just came in to check on her. Tigger is staying outside.

Cubedog: I hope you know just how intently I am sharing your pain. Momma Kitty is trying like hell to take up Mz.Kitty's space, but just falls short. I love her for trying tho.

Fun week so far

The fever I ran monday, accompanied by joint aches, had me a little nervous. But I recovered without oinking by evening, so all is well. I think it was just a reaction from the allergy meds getting out of my system.

Yesterday afternoon I took a short nap and was sitting outside drinking some coffee and having a smoke, never knowing until I went in to cool off, that the power was out. The humidity has been in the 80% range the past week, so temps in the upper 80's has been very uncomfortable. I don't know how you get the "feels like" temp from that. The power was out for over half an hour and with a breeze blowing, it was nicer outside. They said a breaker had thrown and didn't know why. For us, that means this will keep on happening until the breaker breaks. That day will probably be on the hottest day of the year and will take a couple of hours to get it going. I think on that day I will just get dressed and go somewhere....shopping in the city or something.

For Bev.....my camera will not capture the intense blue of bluebonnets. I have rarely seen a photograph taken of them that actually captures the color. It is something that can only be painted or seen in person. And the smell....whoa....like lilacs in the air.

Today's picture is of one batch of iris that are blooming. I will have to post a pic of the yellow ones later. They don't stay with the plant long. I snip the stalks and bring them in the house to enjoy. I love it when a dark purple one and a yellow one are blooming at the same time. So pretty together in a vase.

I fold

Okay, you got rain, I got rain......so you had to have more rain and shut down half of Houston. haha. I fold. You win.
Of course, it has been so muggy here since the rain that I could have come to visit you and not noticed a difference in weather. The A/C came on the day it was 82 degrees in the house with 84% humidity. That was enough. But hey, I am proud to have almost made it to May before turning it on for the rest of the year.
The bluebonnets have loved the rain. They started blooming long ago, but have gone amuck since the rain. The burr clover has gone amuck also. I have got to drag myself out there and pull some of it up or I will have pet fur full of that stuff that they will pull off in the house....mostly in my bed.
Today a sweet breeze is blowing. It is nice and cool and blowing the humidity away. That's why it's sweet.
Have a good week!