Digging For Dinner

     I dug up two potato plants this afternoon and each had one potato. Rather a meager haul but enough for my evening meal. I have decided to just dig them up as I need them, I don't eat potatoes very often but tonight I will make a potato salad.

My hibiscus has produced two blooms simultaneously and there's another bud almost ready to open. This hasn't happened before - usually I only get one bloom at a time. Must have been feeding it better this summer!

Up and Working

   The pool guys (different guys today) came with the new pump not long after I got home from tennis. In fact I had time for a quick dip before they arrived. They had it installed and working lickety split and so one less worry plus the water is still in good shape.

   

    The new pump allows for programming the speed and I have it set to run more slowly overnight. Two advantages to that - with the old pump I switched it off every evening and on again in the morning which was a pain. But now I will just let it chug away. Also the slower rate should use less power, supposed to pay for itself over time. We shall see!

Stops and Starts

   The pool is still blue (not the dreaded green) and the grandkids came and churned up the water to distribute yesterday's doze of shock. I don't think I will put in any more as it does tend to cause an imbalance of chemicals. The pool guys will be here tomorrow to install the new pump. I am going with a "variable speed" pump which is a bit more expensive but (supposedly) uses less power, so long term savings. We shall see!

   I opened a can of paint this afternoon to do some touch-up jobs, but the family arrived just as I was about to start. Once they were gone (5-ish, Judy spent half-an-hour looking for her car keys) the notion had left me so I will postpone until tomorrow.

An Eventful Day

   It started with a shocker. My pool pump seems to have died! On the phone to the pool guys before I headed out for tennis and left a frantic message.

   After tennis - it wasn't too hot and we managed two sets - I heard back from the pool company and they will come on Thursday to fix/replace it. Meanwhile I have to dose the pool with "Shock" to keep it from turning green. The phone call was fortuitous timing as Cathy had invited us for coffee and treats after tennis so that's where I headed after and how I spent the rest of the morning. 

This one I took. Cathy's husband joined us. Left to right, Susan, Cathy, Frank and Kathy.

The usual suspects. Frank took this one. They have a very shady patio.

Cathy is still without a car (it's in Florida - long story) so I drove her to the local florists for a flower arrangement - a "hostess" gift for a friend. She has been biking to tennis for the last month!

   The afternoon was uneventful until I started to check messages. Then the power went out and didn't come back until 9:00 p.m. I fixed a salad dinner, read my book and then, when it got too dark to read, went for a walk. It keeps cutting out for moments but hopefully it is finally fixed. At least I have been able to check my mail and watch TV.