Much more comfortable today but, apart from an hour of tennis, a bit of gardening and my swim, I have been indoors watching the U.S. Open tennis tournament. It is on for the next two weeks so you know how I will be spending a big chunk of my free time! Lots of amazing players so sure to be several exciting matches.
During the hot spell I was working on my newest (to me, from Valu Village) jigsaw puzzle, and finished it yesterday. I t was fun to do and I will definitely try it again.
These are the plant-based sausages I used for the sausage rolls. I fried one up and it did taste just like an actual sausage in both texture and taste. I would definitely recommend them. They are a bit more expensive than regular sausages but they were reduced for quick sale.
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| Their main ingredient is pea protein. |
Weather continues brilliant (or awful depending on your preference) with it still in the 30's. We are promised cooler nights next week which will help somewhat. We did have some heavy rain yesterday and it did go somewhat towards eradicating the drought. Another storm, please, that would really help! At least I haven't had to cut the grass much recently as it has basically gone dormant.
I haven't done much gardening this month as it is just so hot out there, but have been keeping myself busy with reading and a jigsaw puzzle. Today I made sausage rolls with plant-based sausages. They look like the real thing but how will they taste? I will have a couple for dinner tonight.
Thunder rumbling around this afternoon, then the sky got really dark and it rained for about twenty minutes. Of course, back to blazing sun right after. We need a really heavy downpour, everything is so parched. I have been cowering inside as it is still up in the low 30's and not cooling off much overnight. No relief in sight. Later I will go and have a swim and will feel more like eating dinner. Cooking is out of the question!
Still very humid and steamy. I have given up on my daily walk as it is just too hot even early in the morning. Instead I have started to swim lengths each day - I'm up to twenty (the pool is small!) but that takes quite a bit of effort so I don't think I will be increasing that any time soon.
We are still getting out on the tennis courts, usually from 8:00 a.m. to around 9:30. Sunday's game was interesting, Kathy and I took the first set 6-0. this is really unusual as, no matter what combination we play in, we are usually well matched. I guess the other two had a slow start. The second set (with a different combination) was much more even.
I have shown off this hibiscus plant already but this is the first time it's had two blooms at the same time. Unfortunately it is losing leaves at an alarming rate, probably due to the hot conditions.
Nothing much has changed in the last week. My pool heater isn't working again - the guys are coming tomorrow to fix it, hopefully - but it is still hot here so the water is reasonably warm and I am swimming every day.
Regarding one of the books I wrote about last week, The Bookseller of Florence, it is a non-fiction and extremely well researched and well written. However it is a heavy read (both physically and mentally), more like a text book than my usually reading fare. I have been to Florence so that aspect of it is interesting. I am plugging away at it - it's fascinating how much is known about people and events in 14th century Italy - but it is definitely not a light summer read!
That's it for this week.
Still sitting here sweating - it is so hot and humid! I worked in the garden for about 10 minutes then had to jump in the pool!
Yesterday's tennis was fine for the first hour (8:00 to 9:00) as it was overcast, but then the sun came out and we all wilted. Tomorrow it will be more of the same. I wonder how long we will last!
Three more books from the library. This should last me over the weekend. I have just finished the Alexander McCall Smith book and would recommend it for a light but thoughtful read. The others were on some list or other so no idea what they will be like.
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| The bottom one is "The Bookseller of Florence" by Ross King. |
Not much on the agenda today as it is so hot and humid. The humidex makes it feel like 40C! Judy and James dropped by on their way to (or from) somewhere else and James had a quick swim. Since then I have been hiding out indoors watching tennis on TV. The Canadian Open (women in Montreal and men in Toronto) is on this week but I am quite happy to stay home and watch it in relative comfort.
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| It is set to be hot all week until Friday when we are promised rain. |
A little rain this afternoon so I finished my current book and started another. After a period of nothing new arriving in my inbox from the library, three books arrived almost simultaneously, so I picked up one this morning, the others can wait. One good thing about the pandemic is that the library is currently not charging for overdue books.
This is my third Mary Lawson books and I can tell I will enjoy it as much as the others. The others, which I have probably mentioned before, are "A Town Called Solace" and "The Other Side of the Bridge". All three are set in a small community in Northern Ontario and are packed with emotional, often tragic circumstances and complex family relationships that will stay with you after you finish reading.
I finished this one today - a compelling tale of mystery and intrigue set in post WWII Eastern Europe, complete with spies, danger and human frailties. A good read.
Gorgeous day today - hot but not humid. The family came over for lunch and stayed for a swim. After his marathon 30 lengths last week, James declared he was going for 100 this week. Keep in mind the pool is only 10 meters long. None of us thought he could do it but he did! He was pretty tired when he finished and really deserved his medal and prize of cake and ice cream. I'm sure he burned off enough calories with his swim, he's pretty skinny anyway.
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| Here he is with his silver medal (I didn't have a gold one) |
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| This young man is 6'2" so we had fun trying to figure how tall the biggest sunflower is. |
