Sunny and Warm Again

     Came home from three sets of tennis in a lather and went straight into the pool. The water temperature was 74F (23C) so it cooled me off nicely although getting my hot body immersed was a bit of a shock! No Bridge class today -  Frank (our teacher) was sick so I just had an early lunch and headed for a nap. Since then I have been alternating between gardening and reading in the shade with another dip in the pool when I got hot and sweaty.

   The grass is now all cut and the edges somewhat trimmed but still lots of weeds to tackle. I will do more of that soon once the sun goes down. I used the weed whacker today and for once it was working properly (for a while). It almost always jams after a few minutes and I have to reload the string.  

   I am rushing to finish "The Lake House" by Kate Morton as it is due back at the library on Thursday. The author keeps hinting about a mystery and I must find out what it is before then. I think this is called "foreshadowing" if I remember correctly from my English Lit. course, way back when.

   Nothing to cook tonight  - just leftovers to heat - but I had some of the soup I made yesterday for lunch and it was very satisfying. It was all the vegetables needing used up (including cauliflower leaves and broccoli stalks) cooked in chicken stock and  pureed with the immersion blender. So easy and cheap!

  

Cooler and Pleasant

    I didn't get out of the house until noon and didn't realize that it was cooler (29C) and with a bit of a breeze - no humidity! I spent the morning working on the Minutes for last week's RTO AGM. They're now off to Bill, our new President, so I hope they pass muster.

   Bridge was fun this afternoon with a variety of good and bad hands and some challenging contracts. I had a proper swim when I got home, so refreshing, and had a short nap. Then cut the front and side grass. Tomorrow will be the turn of the back yard, then I can relax and enjoy myself reading on the lounger without any chores to do. Of course, there are still lots of weeds but I will just ignore them!

   I made some soup this afternoon and that will last me for the rest of the week's lunches. No Bridge class tomorrow as the teacher is sick so no rush from tennis to the Senior's centre. Leftovers for dinner and then a quick cleanup before settling in for TV.

First Dip in the Pool

   It was extremely hot on the tennis courts this morning (at least 30C) but we managed a set. I was not up to much and Iona and I lost 6-0 against Kathy and Stan. I was just happy that the set didn't last any longer!

   I was home by 10:30 and got right in the pool for just a minute to bring my body back to a normal temperature.  Then some tennis from the French Open on TV, no Canadians left in the draw but good tennis, nevertheless. I had a couple of cool hours in the movie theatre this afternoon, watching a documentary about gardens in art - Monet to Matisse. The photography was beautiful and inspired me to do more with the limited space I have for flowers in my garden.

   On the way home I stopped at Adonis for a grilled fish and Mediterranean vegetables for my dinner (don't feel like cooking as it is too hot to turn on the oven), also a pineapple for $2.50! They were giving out a couple of food samples which went down well - samosas and pastries. Then a stop at Home Depot for a nozzle for my garden hose so I can water the garden, and a packet of nasturtium seeds which I planted as soon as I got home. Mission accomplished. Then I had a proper swim, in the water for at least a couple of minutes!

   Off to warm up the fish and vegetables, then it's a night of TV.

Air Coditioner's First Workout

   I have the thermostat set for 24C and the air conditioner came on this afternoon for the first time this year. It was 31C outside but I have been keeping the house cool by opening all the windows at night. It usually goes down to 20C but that wasn't enough today so I am enjoying the cool air for a change. Tomorrow it continues hot so probably no tennis but it should have cooled down (to 25C) by Tuesday.

   The pool is still a little chilly but warming up fast. By tomorrow I should be able to try a dip. The water is still a bit murky but that won't stop me if it is reasonably warm. No gardening today - just too hot outside!

   Only a couple of chores today - laundry and shopping - so I have spent the remainder of the day reading in the shade. My current book is "The Lake House" by Kate Morton. I gave up on the Yann Martel book and it is back at the library. It was overdue anyway.

   Just about to throw some chicken drumsticks in the oven and will cook a potato and a corn cob to go with them. I don't usually buy corn until the local stuff appears (it is so much more tender and sweet) but I was tempted by cheap cobs (60 cents) at the grocery store. Still a slice of rhubarb tart left so I will heat that up for "afters". Lots of good tele tonight!