Five on Friday

We went out to eat twice this week - Greek for lunch on Monday and gourmet tacos for Thursday dinner. Such a nice change of pace. I'll see if the grandgirls want to go out for ice cream/frozen yogurt tomorrow or Sunday given whatever their social calendar is.

No heat dome here just the usual wide temperature swings for this time of year in the East Bay. Sorry for all of you suffering from the heat as I do know what it feels like from having lived in different parts of the country.

1. Books, books and more books. I've almost finished the 52 books challenge so I decided to start trying to fill and expand my reading by tracking what country, state, etc. books are set in. No deadlines on this but I suspect it will lead me to some interesting fiction and non-fiction.

2. I used Hoopla to stream the next episodes of a show I enjoyed recently through PBS Passport, but they have a limit of 4 checkouts a month which is really limiting. I ordered a DVD player to use with my laptop as the library has lots of DVDs including shows that aren't available on our streaming services. My son gave me a purchase recommendation and they aren't very expensive.

3. I had a good laugh at Pilates this week when my trainer said "You are quite strong". I responded that I wished I felt stronger and she said, "Well sturdy then". That made me think of the tall variety of pony I rode during lessons. A good laugh for both of us. I do know I am getting stronger despite my lack of consistency with a daily exercise schedule. I used to be so disciplined - sigh.

4. I am again watering plants and checking the house of the neighbors across the street. They are from Europe and left for a 3 week trip to visit family. I am thankful we moved into a neighborhood where people look out for each other.

5. I'm also thankful for our dog who is affectionate, funny and also generally well behaved now that he is an adult. He got groomed yesterday and was as usual extremely excited and happy to go there which makes me happy.

It’s officially summer and I want to get out and about

And I think I am finally getting used to what that means weather wise here in the Berkeley area. I reminded myself that although I have lived almost all my life in areas of the country where summer is HOT, there were those 6 years in Seattle lol. We are having warmish sunny days and in September the real hot ones will arrive and of course there is no rain.

And after living here for two years I really want to get out and do more. Hence, my summer exploring idea list.

DONE - Go to the upscale farmer’s market for fun. Live music, lovely if expensive organic produce, flowers and baked goods plus great smelling food stands and trucks. We only bought produce and fancy hummus but I have high hopes for the peaches.

The Berkeley Art Museum (possibly with a granddaughter or 2 when they have their art lab)

Car show on July 4th (we did this last year and it is a good walk plus fun to look at the old cars)

A botanical garden (we have two very large ones to choose from)

Ice cream or frozen yogurt plus a meandering walk

Go swimming (the city pool is an easy walk away)

San Francisco, Sonoma or somewhere in Marin county

A state park, the zoo, a museum, a beach, or winery - so many options

Deer - 5 vs Us - 4 but at least there are flowers

 

Apparently just ready to open Agapanthus flowers are a deer munchie! Last year we only had one flower sprout so this is still a win.

Five on Friday

1. I had several things to look forward to this past week - I was able to get the latest Laurie King novel about Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes - Knave of Diamonds - from the library. Just started reading it. Saturday I took my dog sitting neighbor out to lunch at a restaurant next to the bay as a small thank you. Sunday was Father's Day brunch at our house. Pilates on Wednesday and the rest of the week normal stuff.

2. Father’s Day brunch at our house motivated us to put out the outdoor rug and some furniture on our newly painted patio. For now we are using a bench we already have to mark the one step between the larger and smaller concrete sections. We can easily pull it up onto the rug or down to the yard flagstone patio for additional seating. We also have extra folding chairs and small table in the garage.

3. We spent time outdoors on Father's Day with the two girls throwing the dog's tennis ball, blowing bubbles and the older one turning cartwheels on the patio while the little one ran around. Later we sat outside with just our son and had a nice long visit.

4. Our 8 year old granddaughter made double chocolate meringue cookies as her gift for Father's Day. Melt in you mouth delicious but also intense sugar bombs to be taken in small doses

5. I’ve made a good dent in my June Goals & To Do list and will keep going. I did decide some of the things on my original list weren’t important or necessary to do so have crossed those off. I've added an addendum though of things I think of that need doing.

Do you have a "tariff" or food shortages pantry?

A reference in a post by the Domestic Mrs. Murphy to stocking up her tariff pantry got me thinking about what may become very difficult to purchase or outrageously expensive as we try to survive not only the ever changing impulsive tariffs but also the decimation of the farm and meat industry workforce.

Of course one could answer for the latter "Everything!" but what specifically is likely to go away first due to tariffs and second due to crops not getting processed. What might we want to add to our pantries.

I used a CVS coupon before it expired to buy a small bag of granulated sugar simply because we were getting low but it also dawned on me that sugar may be affected by tariffs. However this particular product was from a Colorado coop of sugar beet farmers. Cane sugar however is mostly imported I believe.

Let's hear what you are adding to your pantry as backup whether in small or large quantities please.

What a kerfuffle! It ended well though.

This afternoon I set off to walk to the neighborhood little market to get a variety of things and a good walk at the same time. 

Part way there my phone rang and it was my son so we chatted as I walked and I put my phone back in my jacket zip pocket (it is still cool and windy here). I don't know why but I put my hand in that pocket just as I got to the market --- but my credit card wasn't there. Yikes. It must of stuck to the phone case and fallen on the ground.

I turned around and walked about 3/4 of the way home and found it on the ground fortunately. I almost went home but it is a beautiful sunny afternoon so I headed back to the market, bought what I intended and then walked back home carrying a heavy bag. My feet are tired.

What did I buy? Romaine lettuce and an avocado to add to  chicken chef salad tonight. And then there were the things I really was in search of - a bottle of Chardonnay, a loaf of delicious fresh walnut levain and rosemary and thyme goat cheese.

Sitting here eating bread with goat cheese and sipping wine while I read the new Laurie King book from the library is a perfect late afternoon.

What semi-healthy non-sugary food treats do you go out of your way to buy for yourself?

Five on Friday

I had the blahs this week and the "June gloom" weather (overcast, windy and chilly - March weather in much of the country) did not help. Dog antics did help and he engages in them frequently.

1. I looked up how long Cavapoos typically live and it was 12 to 15 years with the oldest recorded one being 20 years. Given that he is 3 1/2 and I am 75 1/2 and hubby is 72 1/2 it should work out. Not shortage of people who would take him in though.

2. I was telling Hubby about a loud group of crows I saw on a power line during an early dog walk when he commented that it was a Murder of Crows. That led to Googling what a group of various other critters are called. My favorites were an exaltation of larks, a shiver of sharks, an embarrassment of pandas, and a celebration of polar bears although the last two don't typically gather in groups.

3. I have 5 books left to read in my 52 books challenge. I only count those that clearly fit one of the prompts. I do read plenty of books that don't fit the challenge.

4. It took a couple of months but I received the $50 VISA debit card to be used for medical expenses that was the benefit for completing a health survey for Kaiser. I'm going to use it for mail order prescriptions which I like being standard with Kaiser.

5. The typing class I took one summer during high school has paid dividends although I was careful not to mention that I could type early in my working life. However, typing my Masters thesis and Doctorate dissertation drafts multiple times did save me lots of money. Of course everyone types now.