Two Tomato Plants

A week ago, my older son and I optimistically planted two cherry tomato plants.

It was HIS idea!

I've given up on vegetable gardening...

I've been defeated by squirrels too many times!

Friends of his had an abundance of tomatoes last year. He credits their success to daily watering AND spraying with hot sauce - diluted slightly with water... just enough to make it spray-able!

I hope he succeeds! I hope the squirrels don't plant their own seeds in the mulch we put down.

So much depends on the sauce - to keep the squirrels away!

"Cat Food"!!

Here are two Pinterest photos that give new meaning to the term "cat food"!

Food in the shape of a cat!! The orange segments on top - and the tomato slices (bottom left)!

Now I don't know about you - but I've never had the urge to shape food into animals... except perhaps "ants on a stick" when encouraging my kids to eat healthy snacks.

But I'm sort of glad none of my kids were "food artists" either! Could you imagine them slowing down supper because they wanted to create a masterpiece with some dish before it was served!!

I wonder... Were adult food artists - as kids - children who enjoyed eating - or kids who liked playing with their food?!!

Open Windows, Open Doors

Now that summer is here - with all its heat - I often get up at daybreak...

I hate to miss the sunrise...

But I also like to open all the windows and doors - all that have screens, that is. For several hours, I cool off the house - before closing everything up at 8 AM, to conserve the cooler air.

Fresh, cool air: natural "air conditioning"!

Canada Day Thunder Storm

Yesterday - Canada Day - was hot and muggy. 

Then, in the afternoon - a thunder storm rolled through.

I decided to take a nap! (What's the point of worrying?!)

When I got up, the main storm had passed, and I could see two "streams" in the nearby college grounds.

Terry headed over to dig trenches - to keep the water running to lower ground. It seemed to help.

Glad we were here at home - not getting soaked downtown, where all the festivities were occurring! 

Then it started to pour again... 

And then the basement flooding started!!

(To be continued... we're in the middle of it now...)

Canada Day!

Today is Canada Day - the day I traditionally take time to reflect on how wonderful it is to live in this country and to be Canadian!

Last year we had a Canada Day dinner with friends...

The salad (before dressing was added) resembled a Canada flag - thanks to radishes, tomatoes - and strips of red pepper (to make the shape of a maple leaf). Real food artistry!

Then we played a Canadian trivia game!

Fun!

This year, the weather forecast is for extreme heat - so we may stay indoors - which is fine with me, too.

End of June Flowers

July is prime blooming season in our yard.

I'm waiting in anticipation for the next wave of flowers - like the white daisies...

The orange lilies... and more... 

In the meantime, the peonies are fading...

The Persian cornflowers are diminishing...

Here and there solitary flowers are showing up - almost hidden by the invasive gout weed.

I've planted - and transplanted - so many perennials over the years.

Some have disappeared. A few return...

It's definitely a game of "survival" in my flowerbeds... Not all survive!

Now I'm looking forward to what July will bring!

Cheap Food

My daughter told me about an app that offers cheap food - no choice, however! Just bags of food that won't keep, so it's offered at discounted prices. Both supermarkets and restaurants have signed up.

The app is called "Too Good To Go"... (Not sure exactly what that means... Too good to go to waste?)

I'm tempted to try some of their offerings... 

One place I'm curious to try is a downtown buffet restaurant that Terry and I used to frequent before COVID. It shut down for several years, then reopened in a new location.

They rank high in the app's feedback. 

But there are also deals closer to home - bakeries and supermarket deli bars that offer bags of discounted food.

Maybe it's time to be adventuresome...

Two slight problems - for people with food sensitivities, like Terry, who is allergic to fish and seafood, there is no way of knowing what the mystery bag will hold. There's also no indication of quantity: Will it feed one or more?!

But I'm ready for some food adventure - so it's only a matter of time before I try! I just need the right deal!

Morning Walk

A few days ago, I slept over at my grandkids' house. 

It was a fun, busy time.

After they had caught the morning school bus - at 7:15 AM - my son asked if I wanted to join him for a walk...

He didn't have to start work until 9.

Great idea! 

So off we went around Almonte.

There was less water running over the falls than I expected.

Not long afterwords, Terry arrived to pick me up...

What a peaceful way to start our day!

Learning About Kangaroos

On my virtual walk along a coastal road in eastern Australia, I've reached the natural habitat of kangaroos ...

I was surprised to learn several facts about these animals. First, that there are different kinds of kangaroos - different sizes. 

(Much like we here in eastern Canada have different kinds if squirrels... Sitting on a Montreal park bench one day, I noticed that the brown and white squirrels in the park were about 30% larger than the squirrels in our neighbourhood. That's a significant difference!)

The second surprising fact was that kangaroos can swim - in fact, they are surprisingly good swimmers.

The third surprising fact was that, if threatened in the water by an animal like a dog, they use their upper limbs to push the animal's head under water to drown it! 

Wow! I had never heard that before!

(Makes me realize how little I know!)

Trees Fall...

Recently arborists removed a large tree branch that had snapped and fallen onto college property near our house. Arborists came to remove the fallen branches.

I took a few pictures and posted them on the blog...

Last week the rest of the tree toppled over - landing in the opposite direction! 

I don't think anyone expected that to happen!

Luckily no one was harmed either time - though the fence will need to be repaired.

Interesting Oatmeal Recipe

I prefer written recipes - but I recently came across a "reel" - a quick video - of an oatmeal-cottage cheese recipe I thought looked interesting. 

I had to watch the reel half a dozen times to catch the last ingredient - which I didn't get in the end. I assume it was a spice - so I used 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon. (I omitted the nutmeg.)

It is supposed to be a mug cake, cooked for 1-2 minutes on high in the microwave.

I mixed the ingredients, then divided it into 3 custard cups - which I cooked together in the microwave. I didn't want it to overflow.

Mine was not brown on top but it didn't overflow either...

I enjoyed it - appreciating that, with cottage cheese in it, it was high in protein. I also like the tangy taste of cranberries (or rhubarb).

Another time, I would add one chopped apple and an egg - instead of honey. I'd probably have to use 4 small custard cups to cook it in.

I enjoy experimenting with food! Figuring out how to omit sweetener is my current cooking challenge. I find that adding a chopped apple - and/or chopped dates to most recipes adds sweetening...

But maybe that could be another blog!

Cat Feeder

We have this large plastic cat head in our basement storage room. I'd like it to find a new home for it - if it still works.

It's a food dispenser once used to feed one of my daughter's cats - the one who always seemed to be hungry. He would wake her up several times during the night wanting to be fed.

To dis-associate herself from food, in her hungry pet's mind, she purchased this feeder - which we affectionately called "cat mom." It was programmed to portion out dry kibble at set times during the day (and night)!

It worked well for years, until one day the cat got angry at "cat mom" - and knocked off her head, spilling a large quantity of kibble on the floor!

The dispenser was never used again!

Now I'm hunting for instructions - to test the feeder. If it still works, I'd like to include the instructions with the feeder when I pass it on.

Shopping Centre Fan Zone

When I first noticed this World Cup "fan zone" in the shopping centre where I walk, I wondered if anyone would use it...

A larger TV was added - and they are! Yes, they are!

Snow "Mountain" - Gone!

All winter long, snow from the college parking lots is pushed onto a field nearby.

On May 31, at least a month after our last snowfall, there was still a sizeable grey mound of dirty snow covering a walking path.

How long would it take for all the snow to disappear?!

Yesterday, I walked past it again - only to find a tiny pile of snow in a muddy patch of ground - with a few puddles nearby. 

In a week's time - by the beginning of July - I expect that all sign's of last winter's snow will finally be gone.