The Heat Breaks, Still Smokin', A Buddy Visit

The Ridge

On Thursday, July 16th Bill was up at his usual 5:30 and Gibbs came back to bed when he finished his early morning business. It was really foggy and/or smoky when I looked out my window at 6:30. Asked Bill if he was still taking Jazz.

Good morning!
Interesting morning sky.

The answer was yes, he would be careful. It is sure saving on fuel and he is enjoying getting out on her this summer. After he left, we lazed in bed with the breeze coming in my little window until 7. With my tea and my cuddlebum by my side, I played my games.

Of course, can't forget my 4 Moonflowers today

The only thing on my agenda was a visit with Pat. She had a minor surgical procedure yesterday so it was a good time to catch her home! 😂 I went in at 10 and we had a great visit for an hour and a half. When I stepped out of her home, I could smell the smoke but the sky was just gray.

The smell seemed worse in town
but the 'fog' was worse out in
the country.

Back home by noon hour, I made a meat, cheese and lettuce wrap for lunch. That was good! I checked my vegetable plants up on the berm and saw that the rain last night was enough to keep them watered for the day. I'll check again tomorrow. I deadheaded my one petunia plant and came inside.

Heading towards home at
12 noon, you can see what it
was like.
Bill rode Jazz, like these guys.
(He reported back of his arrival
in Listowel, safely.)

It was a good time to sit and do some quilling and finished my aster earrings. I think they turned out quite nice. What else? Hmm, I attemped pink flowers with no name and I'm not as happy with those but finished them anyway. 

The sandhill cranes are toying with me!!
I hear them from inside, rush outside
just in time to catch a brief sighting.
Picture on the left is my best yet.
Every day they visit the pond but I
don't know they're there until they
talk and fly over. LOL

My eyes were heavy so I sat with Gibbs and finished my book. A nail biter to the end.

At 2, I remembered the dessert I wanted to make today so made rice pudding w/dates and a plain NY style cheesecake with almond crust instead of graham cracker crumbs. Then I went back to quilling until Bill got home around 4:30. 

Whenever I start doing something in the 
kitchen, Gibbs does a ho-hum and goes
up to bed. 💖

We had air fried salmon filets and fries for supper. Bill was very pleased with the rice pudding, it's one of his favourite desserts - even without the raisins. Shudder, I don't like them.  🤭 I added some cream to my dish and oh my, that was delicious! 

The pink ones will not become
earrings. They don't make the cut.
I can use them elsewhere.

We cleaned up dishes, he made his lunch and at 7 drove over to see what he can do at the neighbour's place tonight before they come home. 

We reached a lovely high of 23C/75F today but many had their windows closed because of the smoke smell. Up here on the Ridge, it wasn't too bad at all.

I was using Rosy for the salmon,
so skipped my onion rings for a few
tasty fries.

It was a great day! Prayers for those in northwestern Ontario dealing with the heat and smog. 

My creamy rice pudding was
oh so good!

By the way, I stand corrected.🤭 Flip flops for me are taking me back to my teen years when I couldn't afford any other kind of sandals! So, not old-fashioned! 😉I haven't seen them for years but now wish I'd picked up 2 pair! 😂 My sister hated them then, 'nothing between the toes!' and feels no love for them now either. 

Lastly, I apologize if the link didn't work for Dawn's air bnb. It looked okay when I put it in. Woops!

Thank you for the visit!

Still on the Go - No Complaints

The Ridge

I was awake early on Wednesday, July 15th, hearing Bill and Gibbs. Thinking it was the usual 6, I was surprised to see it wasn't even 5 am! What's going on you two? Unless I was dreaming. I felt stiff across my shoulders and achy in my arms and legs. LOL

Good morning!
9 today.
We're not done yet.

Bill went out to load his cooler on Jazz and Gibbs watched from my bedroom window, right in front of me. Cuddle time for me! It wasn't even 6:30 when he came up for a goodbye kiss all ready to leave. His head was really big! Oh, he had his helmet on. 🤭

Chuckle from the hardware store.
Louise works in the paint department
and this was on the wall above her station.

I had to clean today but didn't get up myself until 6:45. I did the big dryer lint trays today and that was just the perk I needed! First, I found Daddy's dime sitting on a washer and a nickel on the floor. The dryers garnished me with $5.96 in change so it's a good day.

Their loss, my gain.

Before leaving Durham, I stopped at Impact Tire for our C the A tickets and then at the Home Hardware to get the second 5 gallon pail of paint shaken for Bill. Once I returned home, the sky was featuring a lot of yellow, dull, hazy yellow. 

No special effects here.

There are forest fires in the northern parts of Ontario and it is drifting this way. It is quite bad here so I can only imagine what our friends up there are experiencing. 

Left - my wagon is full!

Despite the warnings, I put on long sleeves and went to the front field to clean up branches. As my daughter says "they always say don't work outside. Too hot, too cold, too ticky, too whatever. When are we supposed to get stuff done?" It wasn't the heat or the smoke but the bugs.....again!

I piled my trusty 'not red' wagon high and lugged it up to the brush pile. Done and done! Now Bill can cut when he is ready. Our grass looks worse than our neighbours and Robin's now! Neglect does that. 😉 He'll get to it, soon. 

It was quiet eerie inside looking out.
Truly yellow tint to everything.

I stayed inside and started another pair of earrings and at 10:30, packed a snack, made my coffee to-go and drove to Williamsford. The guests have checked out. For a reason that I didn't at first understand, I seemed slow at cleaning today. It wasn't that dirty although all 3 beds needed to be stripped.

Going the back way to Williamsford,
I saw these and thought they were hawks.
Just turkey buzzards having a
private rendezvous.

Just as I realized I was 30 minutes longer than normal, it dawned on me that the guests had turned the a/c completely off. It was 90F/32C in there. That would slow a person down, I guess. I drove home by way of Durham and fueled up Ptooties. Rumour has it that the price is going up.

The country road was quiet
and spooky.

The rest of the day is a blur but it was spent inside until 4:45 when Bill got home. There had been a spattering of rain earlier so I had worried about him getting wet. I was showered, dressed and ready to head out but wanted to make sure he got home safely.

By 2 pm, it had cleared quite a bit.
The turbine blade tips are a bit lost
in the smog.

I can't even imagine what he is waiting
for. Can you?
💘
I tell you, he's a laugh every day.

A friend and Lion's Club member is opening an air bnb in town, beside the Funeral Home (of which she is the director), and she was holding an open house from 4 to 7 today. I went to have a peek. 

My lilies caught my eye
this afternoon in their
brilliance.

It is a century home and she has done really well with the upgrades without changing the esthetics of the older home. Lovely. 

'Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer do.
I'm half crazy over the love of you.'
Oh dear, that made me remember Mom and
I singing that together. 
💕💕💕

Not surprising, she knows Robin and has benefited from her tips regarding starting in the business etc.

It's a lovely air bnb.
I'll try and include the link if
you are curious.

https://www.airbnb.ca/rooms/1725750187826669089?adults=1&location=Durham%2C%20Ontario%2C%20Canada&search_mode=regular_search&check_in=2026-07-19&check_out=2026-07-24&children=0&infants=0&pets=0&source_impression_id=p3_1784061585_P3MPUzIb50gVpDIF&previous_page_section_name=1001&federated_search_id=d5b3abe3-9662-4a94-bd12-e99cabc2f25e

I was home by 6 and Bill had dumped the black tank and cut a bit of the berm and our lawn grass while he had the mower out. He uses it to pull the blue boy/honey wagon.

My old fashioned flip flops.

I made us toasted bacon and egg sandwiches for supper. It was enough. I'm off all day tomorrow (at this stage) so will plan on making a cheesecake or something 'edible' for dessert. 🤭 I sent Bill off to cut Dot and Gord's lawn and cleaned up the fry pan. 

This was very good!
Good night.

This was a good day. I wonder what tomorrow's weather will bring? Today started out hot and sticky so we turned the a/c on. By noon, I had turned it off and opened windows. High of 20C/68F and a low tonight of 15C/59F. Crazy, huh?

Thank you for popping by!