July 2020

July was a very hot and very dry month for us.  We reach 100 degrees and more than 5 times.  And no rain at our house the entire month.  I had to resort to watering my garden a second time during the middle of the day to give it some relief from the heat.

Over the 4th, Dave and I went down to check on Bruce's house, and possibly do a few minor repairs to get a jump start on getting it ready for a second "winter" home.  We left Salt Lake on the 1st, and got up on early on the 2nd to start some work.  I had been making a list of items we would need to accomplish by the end of November, (it was rather long).  Dave took one look at it over breakfast and said, "You know, I didn't envision my retirement being spent doing a lot of manual labor and money, and fixing up a house".  I asked him what he want to do instead.  He told me he thought it was time to sell the house.  He asked how I felt about it, and I said, "Well it's technically your house, so it's OK with me."  Bruce's next door neighbor, (Jax), had been after Bruce to sell him the house, so we walked next door, and talked to Jax about him buying the house.  We knew what the appraised value was, and we decided not to take a low ball offer.  Jax immediately offered us a fair cash price.  We accepted, the real estate papers were signed, with a closing date for the 21st of July.  Dave and I both felt a relief.  We then rented a U-Haul 10 foot truck and loaded most of what we wanted to take home, and came back on Monday the 6th.

Dave drove the U-Haul and I drove the car.  Opal rode back with me.  She decided that the back seat and the passenget seat were not good enough for her.  She loved watching the cars go by.  And she needed a better view.  So she crawled up on my chest, settled in, and rode home.  It wasn't the easiest for me to see over, but she was happy and content.  Sometimes she would doze off, but mostly she watched out the window.  As people would pass by, they would laugh, smile, and point at her.  She would rest her hind legs on my right upper arm, and her front legs on my left upper arms.  It was a perfect fit - for her.

We went back over the 24th of July weekend to finish clearing out Bruce's house.  This time we did NOT take Opal with us.  We borrowed Trevor's pickup truck, loaded up the last of the few things we were bringing back.  We then called 1-800-Got Junk, and had them clear out the rest of the house.  There was just under a truck load to clear out.  We then locked up the house tight, and it was ready for the closing.  Dave took a flight back to Vegas on the morning of the 28th for the closing, and came back that afternoon.  We were lucky to be able to sell and close on the house in 26 days.  I passed some of the items we brought back to Trevor and Audra, and I cleaned up a lot of them and I'm selling them on Ebay and the local sales website.

While we were in Vegas, Trevor told us to try a place that he loves to go to whenever he's on his way to Portland.  It's called Peg's Glorified Ham 'n Eggs.  They have a couple of Vegas locations.  We went Saturday morning the 25th.  When Trevor said they give you large plates, we wasn't kidding.  I ordered Mexican eggs, and they brought the meal on a 12 inch skillet.  It's impossible to finish a whole meal.  And delicious!!  If you're ever in Vegas, try Peg's.

Our peach tree did very well this year.  We ended up with almost a full bushel.  We had to be quick to pick them - the birds were enjoying them, and even when I want out to pick them, the birds weren't afraid of me.  I would try to wave them off, and they would just sit on the branches and chirp at me to leave.  We gave a few to Trevor and Audra, some to the neighbors, and we've been enjoying them everyday.  Everyone remarks about how sweet and juicy they are this year.  And they are big and heavy sized.

My garden is simply loving this heat and the extra watering.  I have several pumpkins on the vines.  These were growned from seeds that I saved a couple years ago, (so no cost).

Every week I've picked a 1/2 basket of green beans.  Trevor and Audra enjoyed the first basket.  I cut back the amount I planted this year, since I have so much in the freezer, and canned jars in the pantry.  These were growned from beans that I saved from last years harvest, so they were free, (no cost).

The butternut squash is doing great this year, aslo grown from saved seeds.

The cucumbers are finally taking off.  The birds ate the first plantings, just as soon as they poked up out of the ground.  I ended up buying these seeds, (I only paid 20 cents a pack at the dollar store).

My gladiolus are starting to bloom.  I got these planted rather late, due to all the trips to Vegas.  I moved them to a new spot this year.  They seem to really like the north side of the house.

I hope to get several good bunches of cut flowers for the house this year.  The bulbs were 5 little bulbs that I purchased about 20 years ago from the dollar store.  Every fall I dig them up and bring them into the gargage to protect them.  In the spring I divide the bulbs and replant.  Now I have lots of gladiolus.

The tomatoes have been riping since the weekend of the 4th.  They are juicy and so delicious.  I enjoyed a tomato and lettuce sandwich on several times.  On day, at Dave's request, we have BLT's with home grown basil added.  It just set off the baon, lettuce, and tomatoes.

If you look closely you can see one of several butternut squash.  Last year, I have 5 large squash from the garden.  Dave's company had a pot luck soup day, and I took the 5 squash made soup, (over 2 gallons).  Everyone loved it.  He only brough home a half cup.

The onions - these bulbs were purchased.  We've been enjoying green onions, and this winter will have yellow onions.  I break off the tops, and let the bulbs get large, then dig them just before the frost and store them in the garage.

I planted sage, it's doing well.  I love brown butter with sage over pasta or gnocchi.  I'll dry some for use in turkey and chicken stuffing this fall and winter.  Another dollar store find at only 20 cents a pack.

My parsley is doing good.  I had to dig it up and replant it.  The bed needed some work.

Dave is still working from home.  He keeps very busy in his office from 8 to 4.  And I keep busy puttering around the house, yard, and the garden.  The house is very quiet with just the 2 of us now.  Opal misses Autumn, she searches for her, and goes to the basement door and meows.  What few times Autumn comes over, one of the first things Autumn will do is pick up Opal and give her hugs and pet her.  I hint around to Dave that Opal needs a little kitten playmate, but he doesn't get the hint.

We are still "sheltering in place" at home.  We go out very little.  We make sure to always wear a mask and social distance.  It appears that this will be the new norm until well into fall.

We hope everyone is staying well.  We're happy when we hear that our friend test negative for the virus, so far we don't know anyone who's tested positive.  So have a good summer, and stay well.