Heatwave!

    It's 7:15 p.m. and still 35C. The A/C has been blasting away all day - hydro bill is going to be humungous this month!

    Defrosted some shrimp for dinner and will have them sautéed with a corn cob - that's all I feel like tonight.

  Although I did have a couple of dips this afternoon, it was too hot to sit outside, even in a wet swimsuit. I have been happily ensconced in front of the TV watching the Olympics. More swimming tonight but not much chance for any Canadians.

A Lovely Trip

   Finally a chance to post an entry after a few busy days. Most of the blame lies at the feet of the Olympic coverage from Rio, so let's backtrack to Sunday.

    I was invited to visit the Athertons at their trailer on Orr Lake. It's a lovely situation, a small privately owned trailer park on quite a substantial lake. Their trailer is fairly new and quite commodious with room to sleep the three  kids in bunks and a double bed for the adults. It also has a very large screened-in porch where they eat most of their meals. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera but will remember the next time I visit. The lake has a nice beach and is quite shallow, perfect for the kids to paddle in or plunge off the dock. I had a try at kayaking in the afternoon but it was so windy that I couldn't get very far from the shore - kept getting blown back! I left around 5:30 and had rather a slow drive home, getting in at 7:30, tired but happy.

    I had a quiet morning on Monday and left for Bridge around noon. Pinkie had brought some mango pudding for us to try - delicious - and we made plans to go for dim sum next Monday before our Bridge game, should be fun and Pinkie will order for us.

    I slept in a bit this morning - thought I was getting up at 6:45 only to discover it was actually 7:45 so had a bit of a scramble to get on the road to the tennis courts at a reasonable time. Hendrina was already there when I arrived so I took the cake out of the freezer and it was ready for our little celebration after we had played two sets. Hendrina was quite thrilled to have her 80th birthday recognized and the cake went quickly although she managed to save some to take home. Our last set was shortened as Carol succumbed to the heat - this is the second time she has had to quit early.

    Lunch at Panera Bread with Judy and Elliot (the other two are at camp). I had a chicken citrus salad which was delicious and just enough for me. Since I got home it has been a mixture of reading outdoors and watching tennis at Rio (Serena is out!) and there's more to come.

    Just a light dinner tonight as I made myself some bruschetta an hour ago. I am having trouble keeping up with all the tomatoes and peppers in the garden, not to mention the kale!

First Day of the Olympics

    Where has the day gone? I have done very little but it is already 6:30p.m  and very little accomplished. Of course, I have been watching quite a bit of the Olympics (currently watching a Canadian in the women's tennis singles - and she's in the lead) and made a pot of soup for lunch and a batch of pickled beetroot this afternoon. I still have some fish to cook for dinner but that will only take a few minutes.

   I am enjoying my current book, "The Infidel Stain" and spent quite a bit of time reading this afternoon in between cooling off in the pool. It has been very pleasant, mostly sun but a gentle breeze. Currently it is 27C.

Get Out the Ice Cream!

   Well, the cake did have to go in the freezer as Hendrina was a no-show at tennis. It was extremely hot and humid again and quite a few people gave it a pass today. I left at 10:00 a.m. after two sets as Judy and the grandkids were coming over for a swim (also I was very hot and uncomfortable). We had a great time with them splashing in the water and showing me their new tricks. James has taken to somersaulting into the water with a big splash. He is such fun to watch. They had a second swim after lunch and left around 2:30 just as I was thinking about a nap!

    It's still 27C at 8:00 p.m. and the A/C has been humming away all day. No sign of it cooling down but soon I will turn it off and open all the windows. I am just about to go serve myself a big bowl of pralines and cream ice cream with a piece of rhubarb cake. I will remember these roasting days when we have freezing temperatures in January! I hope it cools down somewhat overnight. This morning it was just as warm in the house as when I went to bed so no relief then.