First Skywatch in August and a Bit of a Catch Up

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

I hope you are all fine and enjoying summer. After several days of rain we had quite a hot day today. Every day for two weeks, various contractors have been coming to my home to do little jobs here and there to get the place move in ready. Today someone came to wash the master bedroom carpet and this should conclude the interior renovations. I've arranged for contents to be returned next week. I can't wait to get everything unpacked and back to normal.

It was a hot day but I had to get out and mail several parcels. I also had to stock up on fresh fruits and vegetables. I snapped these photos while I was out.

Some of you might remember that the master bathroom exhaust fan died after the water leak. A new one was installed yesterday. It's quite a bit larger, much quieter and has stronger air intake.  I think I'll be having the exhaust fan in the main bathroom changed to the same as the new one, a Panasonic model.

I've been on a bit of a cooking spree trying to use up a lot of what is already in the freezer and pantry. I couldn't run out every day with workers coming and going so I also ended up baking some bread which I haven't done in a long while. Thankfully it was raining heavily on the day I baked the bread so it wasn't an issue to have the oven on.

I saw these flowers by the side of the road. I thought they were cute.

When it's too hot to do much of anything, I read. I finished the crime novel, This Body of Death by Elizabeth George. I enjoyed it a lot despite the fact that I tend not to read crime novels.  

I'm now reading a few different books.  I need to hurry up and complete the book on the vagus nerve because the book is due soon and there is a wait list for it so it can't be renewed.

Are you reading any good books?  Let me know.

I'm joining in with Skywatch Friday today. Thank you for stopping by.

Skywatch in July

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

I hope you are all well.

I've enjoyed this past week because the temperature has been a bit cooler and the skies have been beautiful. I hope you enjoy this week's photos.

I'm joining in with Skywatch Friday this week. Thank you for stopping by. 

Currently Doing & Reading

Hi friends and fellow bloggers,

There isn't much to report here other than it continues to be quite hot and that saps my energy and what I can accomplish.   I've also been taking it easy since my last post because I wasn't feeling well. I'm starting to feel a bit better.

The interior repairs and exterior patio renovations are getting near completion. Indoors the ceiling and walls need to be painted, the carpet underlay replaced, closet doors returned and a bathroom exhaust fan replaced.  I'm not sure if the contractor is going to be washing the carpets. He is sticking very rigidly to the insurance parametres because he doesn't get paid for 'extras'. It's appalling what insurance considers a restorative job. Even so, I've managed to work with the company that is overseeing the project and they have approved small extensions to the work here and there for which I'm grateful. I have my own carpet cleaner and if the job won't be done by the contractor, I will wash the carpets myself before I ask the moving company to delivery my furniture from storage.

There are several issues with the patio work but it's a bit harder to deal with since the issues affect all patios not just mine so we'll see how things go over time.  The project manager is betwixt a rock and hard place since he has his marching orders though he knows that it might be better to do things differently.  Overseeing all the work which has been ongoing for long is quite a tiresome process but soon it will all be over and there will be a scramble to try and return everything to normal and enjoy what is left of the decent weather.

In between the renovations and doing the normal day to day things, I've been reading.  These are the latest books.

Highly recommended

Just completed Reckless Daughter which I highly recommend to Joni Mitchell fans.

Just starting the book on the Vagus Nerve

Just starting the E George book, a crime novel.

I also go for a walk in the evening when the sun is not quite as hot.

I treated myself to dinner out on Friday night.

I won't be travelling at all this summer.  My brother was supposed to visit in July with his wife and the plan was to travel to WA state for a short visit.  That plan is now scrapped.  They hope to come in September and I also hope to have my niece visit in September. Hopefully we can all meet up in Vancouver if travel schedules allow.

Drop me a note in the comments about what you're doing this summer.

A Quick Trip to the Garden

 
Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

I've been under the weather for a few days and the hot temperatures make it worse.

I wanted to go to the community garden plot but couldn't rally myself until after 8 p.m. There I did a bit of weeding and harvested Swiss chard and kale. They have both gotten so big; especially the chard.

I'm glad I made it to the garden. The side benefit was the cool and fresh temperature there. It was so much nicer to breathe the fresh air at the park.  The air at my home has been very hot and still all day.

I'm sorry if I haven't paid a visit to your blog lately.  I've just been too tired and preoccupied with all the exterior and interior work going on simultaneously.  Workers are getting closer every day to finishing the job.

Thank you for stopping by.

Skywatch Friday in the Heat of July

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

Happy Friday to each of you. I hope you are having a fantastic start to your weekend. We are having a bit of a heat wave where I live. It started last week. I think it was Wednesday when the temperature dramatically increased. By Friday I was really feeling the heat when I went downtown to attend the Rolling Stones concert.

These photos were taken before the concert.  The last sky photo was taken in the concert venue.  It's the first time I've been in the stadium since they opened the roof. I'm not even sure if it is always like that or they just retract it during the summer.  All the other times I've been there the roof was closed. 

This is the side of the Parc Hotel on my way to the stadium next door.

Photo taken before the opening act took the stage.

The old guys can still rock and I really enjoyed the concert. If you'd like to read more about the concert, click here.

Joining in with Skywatch Friday.

Roses ~ Tuesday 4 Meme

Here is another of Tuesday 4  invented by Toni Taddeo and kept alive in her memory.   While June is the month of roses, they do bloom all summer long and well past September in many places.

1. What is your favorite color of roses? Do you have a favorite kind of rose? 

My favourite colour of roses is 1) orange or 2) deep pink. I also like the same coloured roses but with cream on the outside.

I was trying to find a photo of such flowers for you because I know I've taken some but I can't seem to find more recent ones. The one I'm sharing is quite old and taken with a small camera in the days before the smart phones started taking good photos.

 

2. Do you ever buy flowers for your home?

Rhododendrons

Yes, I definitely love buying fresh flowers but they've become so expensive just like everything else here. I heard an American from Ohio the other day say she can buy a bunch of fresh flowers for $5. I've been buying fresh flowers here for decades and the price has never been that low.  It used to be that on the street where I live there would be many small stores that would sell bunches of fresh flowers and in those golden old days, the price was probably close to $10 for one bunch.  Nowadays most of those shops are gone and flowers, when you can find them, are at least $15 and up to $100 + for a fuller more varied bouquet.  Sadly this means I don't buy fresh flowers very often these days.  If I have an extra $15 to spend then I'd prefer to buy fresh fruits or vegetables.

3. Are there any roses in your yard or neighborhood? If not what kind of things grow around you?

No. My neighours and I only have patio balconies and I've yet to see anyone growing roses. They do grow rhododendrons and other flowering bushes though I can't say I've seen everyone's garden since we have privacy walls. In the stand alone residences in the neighbourhood some people do grow roses of various kinds though one doesn't see as many of them as one would think.

4. What do you see when you look out your front door?   How about out your kitchen window or back door?  

My daily view. 🙏

I only have a front door and a patio door and north facing windows.  The bathrooms and kitchen have no windows. When I walk out my front door I see a hallway.  When I look out the patio door I have a very beautiful view of the mountains and a church steeple.