Thursday, August 9, 2018

So Hot, Trying to Keep Cool and Carry On

Hi friends,

It's been incredibly hot here. Yesterday on the news they said it was the hottest day of the summer so far. But I went out yesterday (Wednesday) and today (Thursday) and I think today may have been even hotter.

When I went out to appointments and errands, I was so concerned about a homeless man in a wheelchair and a little pup on the patio of a restaurant I had to stop and make sure they both had water.

I know the man had been drinking beer as I passed him in the morning. I asked him to please try to refrain from drinking beer otherwise  they won't let him stay at the shelter where I learned he will have a bed for the night for the next two weeks. I gave him a bottle of water and a small bit of money (not enough to buy booze) and kept encouraging him to drink water. I sat and chatted with him a bit and grew even more concerned when I realized that he is a schizophrenic and also suffers from depression but hasn't been on his medications for a few weeks. I know he just got out of hospital and I'm surprised they let him go like that since he is also old. Thankfully he told me that the shelter where he will sleep for two weeks is going to help him get into an apartment.  He also had several bags on his wheelchair which I noticed had some food in it so at least he isn't hungry.  What I was most concerned about was sitting outside all day long in the heat and not having any H20.

Completed book #41 of 42
As for the cute little puppy, her owner's friend told me the little doggie had a big bowl of water just before I dropped by. The little dog was absolutely sweet and so friendly which I find is often not the case with the small lapdogs. I wanted to pick her up and bring her home. I didn't get a photo though as my camera battery was already kaput for the day and I had to get home to charge it up.

Book #42 of 42 in progress
Waiting for book #43
When I got home I put a wet washcloth in the freezer, got on some more comfortable clothing and took a little rest with the fans going before I got up to put together a salad, sweet potato and some of the BBQ chicken I had prepared last weekend. I'm so glad I did the batch cooking because it means I don't have to put on the oven or use my pressure cooker during this heat. The heat makes me lethargic and cooking is the last thing I want to do in the intense heat.  We are supposed to get some rain on the weekend right in time for my niece's visit. I hope it does rain because we really need it.  My niece and I can use those times to get cosy and watch movies. She loves nothing better than a funny or scary movie (think the Hobbit movies) and a big bag of popcorn.


I finished the book about Denys Finch Hatton. I have to say I quite enjoyed it and am amazed at what the author was able to research and put together since there are no remaining relatives of Finch Hatton and very little exists of him in history books.  I picked up another book  I'd placed on hold about Prince by his ex-wife Mayte Garcia.  I am waiting for a book called The Bookshop.  This one came on recommendation from one of the many blogs I read though now I cannot remember which one. If you happen to be reading this post, let me know it was you (please).


 ~~~~

If you read my last post here
you will know I've been doing some batch cooking and want to continue.
Since then I've ordered some proper containers from Amazon and
they arrived today.
 
There were 20 containers in the package. I think that will be enough.
~~~~

The heat of the last few days has taken it's toll on my little garden.
I'm hoping I can keep it going another few weeks. The forecasted rain this weekend would help a lot but last weekend rain was in the forecast and it never arrived.

I was happy to see the Black-eyed Susan flowers bloom. For awhile I wasn't sure they were going to bloom this year but they did come about just over a week or two ago.  They are not quite as healthy looking or as plentiful as in previous years.


The strawberries are nice and juicy but I only have one pot so not much of a harvest but I'm enjoying them.  Seeing strawberries growing "in the yard" brings back happy childhood memories of finding the odd strawberry when playing with siblings.  Those were in the days when we were not able to buy strawberries so readily in the supermarket.


The other morning I went out to take a photo of the sunrise. 
I was a bit late as the sun was already up.



Imagine my surprise when I captured this


 drone hovering a few feet from me. 
I hope I don't appear in the "movie" as I wasn't dressed for my cameo role, lol.


A shot of the garden after watering. I hose down the patio floor to cool it off.

~~~

 Keep well everyone.
Enjoy the weekend ahead where ever you may be.

I'm joining in with

and

40 comments:

Jim said...

Great sky.

Lady Fi said...

Those strawberries look delicious.

Pamela M. Steiner said...

Thank you for your kindness to the homeless man and his puppy. May God bless you for your kindness unto "one of the least of these"...and may that man see Christ in your kind actions. I am sorry it is so hot there for you all. Do you have AC at your home? That would be difficult to endure w/o it. Here in Florida we cannot live w/o our AC, yet when I grew up here we did not have it anywhere and somehow we all survived the heat! I guess we've gotten spoiled in our "luxury". Makes me ashamed that I cannot do without these things. Thank you for your kindness. Your flowers are lovely even though it is hot and dry. They still seem to shine! That drone! Wow! Not sure I'd be too happy about that...yikes!!!! I hope you get some rain and cooler weather in time for your visitor. Enjoy and be blessed.

eileeninmd said...

Hello, thanks for sharing the books. I have so many on my wait list at the library, I will never catch up. Pretty flowers and sunrise. Our privacy is gone with those drones flying around taking photos. I hope you have some relief from the heat. Happy Friday, enjoy your weekend!

Carol @Comfort Spring Station said...

I'd like to read the book about Prince. I always thought he was fascinating.

carol l mckenna said...

Divine sky shot ~ lovely!

Happy Day to you,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)

Nonnie said...

I love strawberries and those look yummy. That's a big drone! We have someone in our neighborhood who has a drone. A lot of people complain.

Annie said...

Life is hard for homeless people in extreme weather. Glad you checked on him.
Your patio looks so beautiful!You did a wonderful job with your plants.
I find those drones coming close to homes kind of invasive and scary.

Joyful said...

Thank you Nonnie. The strawberries were a nice treat. I think drones will become more of a problem. I like it when I see panoramic sky views when people are on holiday and use a drone but I don't want a drone at my window.

Joyful said...

Yes so true about the homeless. The city has identified numerous neighbourhood hubs where people can go and cool down and get water. Usually it's at the community centers though the truly homeless will seldom set foot in these places and probably have no way of knowing any updates about such things. I agree with your comment about the drones. This was my first close up experience with a drone. I hope I don't have another one soon.

Joyful said...

Thank you Carol. Happy Day to you too.

Joyful said...

I hope you will get and enjoy the book. I never was a big fan of Prince but of course one couldn't help but hear about him a lot in the news. I did like his wife Mayte and thought she always had a grace and elegance about her. I guess the combination led me to pick up the book. I was shocked by Prince's death via drugs as I always had the impression he was a very healthy guy.

Joyful said...

I understand what you mean Eileen. I think my "to read" list is twice as long as my "read" list. I keep adding anyway, lol and try to get as many as possible from the library. If it's a popular book I have to wait a very long time. Today I woke up to cooler weather so maybe the rain will arrive tomorrow after all. I hope so. Enjoy your weekend.

Joyful said...

Thanks Jim!

Joyful said...

They were!

Joyful said...

Pamela, you always write such lovely and thoughtful comments. I really appreciate you for taking the time to share your heart. Hugs to you and prayers too for what you are dealing with right now. xx

Red said...

It's just been too hot. It's supposed to cool off a bit tomorrow. Schizophrenia depression and beer are a bad combination. Good of you to try to show some support.

Mari said...

It's been very hot here too. My hubby suggested going out to Lake Michigan and walking the pier this evening, but we both decided it was too hot and muggy.
It was good of you to check on the homeless man. You're right that it's frightening that he was out in that heat.
I love your sunrise photo! I would have been a bit freaked out by that drone!

Joyful said...

Yes it is. I woke up and thought it was going to be a cool day. It ended up being hotter than I remember from yesterday.

Joyful said...

I hear you Mari. Mostly I prefer to stay home rather than go out anywhere (unless I have to) on a hot day. I saw the man out again today but I didn't get a chance to chat with him as I was on the bus. I'll be trying to keep an eye on him and call an organization to see about helping him if I can find the right one.

Rhodesia said...

Our garden is also suffering from the heat though we did have 9mm of rain the other night which was good. It is hot again, but not the very high temperatures that we were experiencing.
I think drones are a pain, I dd not like any one taking photos of me normally, but a drone is just invading your privacy!!
Enjoy your weekend, Diane

Nancy Chan said...

It is hot here too but I think not as hot as your place. These days, I avoid the hot sun by staying indoor most of the time unless I really need to go out. You have a good heart. In spite of the hot weather your flowers and strawberry are doing very well. By mid day, my plants are looking limp and drooping.

Jan said...

Hi Penny,
I hope the homeless guy is able to get his appartment and move on support. It is so great that you had the time to stop and the heart to care about him and the little dog. Our heatwave here in the UK seems to be over now, or at least here in the north and by the coast. I love your book choices and might explore these too when I get some time. It was good to see your flowers and patio, it looks like a beautiful space and have you a wonderful view too? YOur photo seems to suggest you are high up with a great view. Wow the drone was a bit too close for comfort I wonder who had sent it out.
Keep cool yes in the heat and take good care. Jan

Sharon Wagner said...

I bet Prince had an interesting Life. Thanks for your blog visit! Great photos.

Al said...

I think a drone hovering in front of me would make me a little nervous. Stay cool!

Joyful said...

Our skies turned cloudy today and rain was in the forecast. I hope it really does rain this weekend as we can sure use it. Temperature is still hot and humid. I agree about the drones. I didn't see it again after the 1st time and hopefully won't.

Joyful said...

Oh I'm glad to hear you are so overly hot but I'm sure it is still plenty warm where you live. My plants too are drooping and limp by mid day. I try to water them well but then end up overwatering.

Joyful said...

Hi Jan, yes it would be so nice if the homeless guy could get an apartment of his own. I know a few other younger, homeless men in the neighbourhood who also got into an apartment. They are still panhandling on the same street corners. It is just that now they have a real home. This latest man needs the home more as he is an older gent and has a hip issue. I sure hope he doesn't have a long wait. I'm glad your heatwave seems to be over. Yes I do have a wonderful view from my place and I am up a bit higher. Take care. xx

Joyful said...

I'm sure he did Sharon. I'll know more once I read the book :-) Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend.

Joyful said...

Yes, it was disconcerting. It didn't register right away that it was a drone. I couldn't see it clearly at first, only the blinking lights. Then when it moved higher I knew what it was.

Spare Parts and Pics said...

Your weather sounds like our weather. We had the hottest July in the history of keeping track of such things!! Very kind of you to look in on the homeless man. I don't know how the homeless can even survive in this heat.

Angie said...

Drooling over the strawberries … thanks for the Prince book recommendation - added to my list! We've had a few rumbles of thunder and about 10 raindrops today … sigh. The watering continues!

Joyful said...

Our July is always the hottest month of the year but this year it seems August may overtake it. But at last today it rained a bit. Not enough. Hopefully it will rain tomorrow.

Joyful said...

The strawberries I've had this summer are delicious. I hope you enjoy the Prince book. We had a few raindrops today. I sign along with you. I hope tomorrow we have some real rain.

Yogi♪♪♪ said...

Kudos to you for stopping and helping the old guy and making sure that he and his puppy are okay.

The heat here in Oklahoma in the summer is always hot. Thank goodness for air conditioning or I don't think anybody would live here.

I love your strawberries. I remember as a kid we use to pick them and eat them, germs and all right there in the Garden.

jabbott said...

Hi there I see you also have been running away from the heat, but I love your flannel in the freezer top that you recommend.
I too have been concerned by the homeless people in the extreme temperature. The practical help you provided was the very best you could do and you provided the basics he so greatly needed!!

Jeanie said...

I think you've long topped me in the book-reading line. Usually I read so much in the summer but this year I just seem to be scattered! Sorry it's so beastly hot. Thank you for taking care of the man you mentioned. We should all do these things but you actually are.

shayndel said...

Love how the photos just shine bright even in the heat and all the sweltering your black eyed Susan`s are radiant and your patio looks amazing!! I feel the light of your heart in them, as you have such a heart of compassion for the homeless man who was out in the street. Its good to hear he will have some chance to stay in an apartment. Your batch cooking comes to the rescue in the hot days and soon you can share all your fine cooking with your niece!! Have a wonderful time and hope the rain will cool things off a bit!! Blessings and Love!!

Aditya Narayan Mohanty said...

Nice capture.

Terriea Kwong said...

You have a kind heart and beautiful vision of photo taking. Love reading your posts.

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