JUST HANGIN' IN THERE

Wild swings in the weather this week. Record-breaking heat here as in much of the world. Rough times if you're shingling or racing the Tour de France or putting down asphalt --- stay hydrated! Then pouring rain and some very welcome thunderstorms overnight. (Where do the butterflies hide??)

The sun/rain/sun does wonders in the garden. Roses and clematis are bursting. Canada Lilies are late but straining for the rays. The smoke bush looks like its doing a whole carton of Marlboros at once.

Still no progress with the repaving at Wineva in Toronto. We didn't want to waste a trip so we had a look at some other places to live. High in the sky, great views, downtown buzz. Hmmm...

But also in the harbour this installation, a reminder of the plight of refugees around the world. People just trying for a better life. Are they anonymous and ignored by passing ships (the rest of us??).

Even in the heat the yard work never ends --- and that's a good thing. Pat mulches her beauties and even gives them reading material! The Other One is down the slope thinning and hauling ash and cedar. Oh --- Pat is also harvesting a bumper crop of fruit and veggies!

Back in Toronto the CN Tower offers a thrill in these scary times. Just hang in there!

CAKEWALK --- MOON WALK ---- SALT WATER MOON

The obvious (but globally ignored) climate emergency was evident in this week's brutal heat wave. Extreme temperatures and humidity that used to be tropical but is now northern. Wake up, people! All we could do was dip our toes in local shores. Oh, and sleep in the natural coolness downstairs.

Drove down to pretty Blyth for a first-time visit to their local playhouse. "Cakewalk" could have been a funny romp but in this case was overwrought and just toooooo long. My rating? --- 3 1/2 flat tires out of 4.

Bird nesting is over so time to check the boxes. The first  picture shows evidence of 2 different types of bird nest on top of each other --- lower is thinner twigs (wren?). Upper is rougher twigs (sparrow?). The second picture is small wood chips and thick sawdust ---- probably a squirrel.

Up to the pretty shores of Wiarton for their weekly car gathering. The Girl liked this bigass Hudson. The Boy reminisced about this 60's scooter. And lots of variety ---- from little Jeepster to hulking old dump truck.

Guys showed up on short notice to put new flashing around a non-traceable chimney leak. Nice work and so fast the cleanup happened before morning coffee!

Big shout-out to the July 20 50th anniversary of the moon landing. The most audacious, outrageous achievement of our time. To many of you it might be ancient history, before you were born. But I was backpacking in Europe and arrived in Rome as the Italian guys were yelling "Luna! Luna!" as an excuse to grab at American girls. Awesome, awesome.

Fittingly, with remnants of this week's full moon in sight, we drove topdown to another pretty little summer town --- Lion's Head --- to see their local playhouse's very first production ever. "Salt Water Moon". Surprise ---totally opposite of Cakewalk. Rating: 4 full tires out of 4. Mesmerizing performance by the 2-person cast. Future at Stratford or Broadway?? Bravo! The audience was ---- over the moon!

EVERYTHING'S COMING UP ROSES

Had some fun and good news, or at least progress, this week. First up was the annual trip to Stratford. Very scenic and  pretty setting. Gentle cultural vibe. World-class theatre --- in this case the uplifting musical Billy Elliot. An amazing 11-year old dancing and singing and acting --- what were you doing at that age?? (I was catching frogs and drooling over '57 BelAirs...). But driving off there was a major fire to bring us back to reality.

On to Toronto where the Beach is as inviting as ever. The Gardener can't resist tidying up a tree, even if it's not hers. And the corner grocery is getting a new mural reflecting local charm.

But the Main Event was the final grinding of the stump. At last, after weeks of delay. They should have sent this guy and this more powerful machine in the first place. Anti-climax, but now on to the next stage --- re-grading and re-surfacing. Stay tuned, it'll be into August.

Had to get a new sunshade on the deck now that summer is upon us. This is at least the third version; the others have been overcome by wind, rain, or flimsy. Looks good so far --- what's that guy digging into??

Flying critters and furry critters are feasting and multiplying, especially grackles and squirrels. The pond has new lilies, tadpoles, and tiny new fish. Pat picks fresh lettuce most days, and the gardens are thick. Grateful times ---everything's coming up roses.

WHY DID THE TURTLE CROSS THE ROAD?? BULL!!

Summer is here in all its blazing sunshine and heat. The local waters are clear (refreshing) and all kinds of boats go by ---- oh buoy!

Can't resist the local car shows. Over in Meaford ("me-Ford": get it?) the chrome was lined up like a beach buffet. What a picnic...

Local critter shows were pretty good too. One particular female frog has been croaking loudly for days --- where's her guy?? Regal monarchs are swirling and their yummy milkweed will be ready for them soon --- hang in! More little fish in a big pond. And a Snapper Rescue in heavy traffic!

Car show #2, in Owen Sound. Colours! Chrome! Convertibles! And my favourite --- a 1929 convertible pickup truck. OK, it needs work but originally owned by Jed Clampett!! (...you can Google that one...)

Chores, work, and maintenance still goes on summer or not. For some it's so-sew. For others it's lop-chop.

Hoping for major progress this week as The Trouble Toronto Tree is supposed to finally be stump-grinded. The neighbour sent this photo of her similar tree, rotten to the core.

But it's the 7th hour of the 7th day of the 7th month, so my spirit is back in Pamplona and my legs are running the corrida. No bulls.hit....