A $20 fee due on June 24th yearly shut the blog down for some of you. Good grief! $20? I got one notice – had no idea the blog would go down that day at midnight. That’ll teach me, huh? There’s another monthly charge of $50 that comes out of my blog account monthly but the domain people couldn’t give a grace period and a second notice on a $20 once a year charge???? sigh
Rain and more rain! And when the sun comes out between showers the humidity is strangling! This is the only time of the year that I have curly hair!
Reader photos
And in my porch tonight –
Time to watch Colbert!
Three and Greta are beautiful. I love how Three has his paws crossed.
I am glad Fluffybuns has learned to avoid confrontations; she has a great life at your house.
Does Fluffy Bun have a better attitude these days? Or will he be a loner all his life?
Betty in Rapid City
Betty – FluffyBun is definitely much better about being around the other cats but they don’t love each other. Ha! She still lives above the garage but spends the day outside. I doubt she’ll ever be a friend to anyone in this home but me.
I love the idea of making someone’s day and, if it’s receiving thoughtful cards, you can count me in too. I’ve sent several and it doesn’t hurt a bit! Lol! Mary, your porch always looks so inviting, cats and all. Most especially, I love your chicken pics.
I love to send cards. I think it’s great that you provide the addresses of someone you know or heard about that deserves a card. Always perks me up to know that this is something I can do.
Love the chicken pictures. I am ignorant of the needs of these poor chickens in this heat. Thank God they are free range.
Sleeping kitties. 🥰 Such a relaxing thing it is to watch cats and their graceful ways.
Heard from my daughter this morning. She has set the date for her wedding. Something to look forward to. I’m sure my sister will want to travel for this. Happy days!!!!
My card to Mickey is in the mail today. I wondered what happened yesterday when I couldn’t go online to read your blog. I figured it would be corrected, and happy that it did.
It is red raspberry season, and have started picking them. I just have a small patch, but get enough berries each summer to make several batches of freezer jam. (Our families favorite. Always share with them) The problem is the Japanese Beetles. Last year was the first year we had them. I didn’t even know what they were and had to look it up. We put out a trap this year, but not a lot of them are going into it. I have my own way of getting them. I take an ice cream bucket with a little syrup in the bottom, and a paint stick, and then I knock them into the bucket. With the sticky syrup in the bottom of the bucket, they can’t fly away. I thought that up on my own, as without the syrup, they would fly out of the bucket. This morning I collected a few, but not as many as yesterday, three times. When I checked them after we made a trip to town, I couldn’t find any on the berries. I don’t know if there will be more or not, but my method works better than the trap!
That’s probably more than anyone wanted to read about. Sorry. It is hot and sticky here. We have had about 2″ of rain since Monday. The crops and garden are looking much better.
Jeanine – I loved to hear about your method!!! I have all kinds of bug traps and bags hanging around. Here’s a nightmare for you – one of the bags, an off brand that I picked up, was full of dead flies and half dead flies so I went to change it to a new bag. As I took it down I broke and land in my foot! Stink? I’ve never smelled anything so bad! I ran for the hose to clean off the sidewalk as well as my foot. Ugh. Never again will I buy the cheaper bags – I learned my lesson the hard way.
My card to Mickey went out also. . . . happy to do so. Love Three’s crossed paws and Greta’s total relaxation. Enjoyed two early morning walks (5:00AM) with temps in the high 70’s. But, as soon as the sun comes up it’s time to be back inside. The heat plus humidity many of you are dealing with is when I’m okay with living with a “dry” heat as the temperatures soar. The down side the last two years is that the night temps were in the 90″s. Both climates can be dangerous. Keep hydrating all!
Jan in AZ
Jan – the night temps were in the 90’s?? Wowser – that is unbearable. Thank God for AC.
Great pictures around the farm today, thank you for sharing with us all. My card went in the mail the other day. I hope Mickey is flooded with lots of good cheer. We continue to get rain and I’m so glad we got the lawn mowed on Monday. Not sure when it will end or how long before we dry out. The Wisconsin river is high right now from the rain and they expect an algae bloom to follow from all the runoffs. We had the electrician here yesterday to add to outlets to our large walk-in pantry/small office space. We managed to get one coat of paint on and hope to do another today. Then we will get the shelves installed and get it better organized for our use. We are doing all the work ourselves except the electrical work. At least the rain is forcing us to work on some inside projects, but I have had enough rain for a while.
Nothing like a kitty sleeping.
I did send a card to Mickey. Wishing her and her family and friends comfort during this difficult time.
Reading a good book called The Martha’s Vineyard Beach and Book Club by Martha Hall Kelly.
Hi Mary and all! We had a family emergency, but I’m finally sending my card today to Mickey.
I love seeing the chickens this morning. Cabbage must be their favorite. 😁
We got the briefest of showers yesterday. Just made it steamier. Stay cool everybody.
I love the card ministry. Such a small thing ,in terms of expense , to send a card. But, we see how much it means to the recipients. I always am interested in the life stories of each person we send a card. I feel like I gain a new friend each time I mail a card. When reading Mickey’s life of volunteering and community service, she deserves 557 cards.
What else is extraordinary about this card ministry to me is the follow up you get Mary. Hearing back from the family on how someone is doing or how many cards they get is remarkable in my opinion. Says a lot for all who take time to care about others.
Some reprieve thank goodness from the heat finally. I did not like feeling so lazy with the feels like temps of 100. My dog would throw up, then refuse to eat and I knew just how he felt. He perked back up last night when temps started to drop. I know why I like living here more and more.
I agree Mary, popping a card with a nice note in the mail isn’t asking much and thinking of how much pleasure it brings someone is well worth the small effort. I think everyone that reads the blog would enjoy being a card recipient so why not send one to someone in need of cheer!
Up with a sick dog most of this night. The recent hot weather reminded me of a funny bat story that happened to me a few summers back. I was up in our house in NY and my husband was gone on a business trip. It was a beautiful warm summer night and I was in bed reading a great book with Louie, my now sick dog at present time, when a rather large bat came flying thru our bedroom! We had a small screen porch off the master bath and the bat must of worked itself thru the screens and into the bathroom then into the bedroom. It kept flying around the bedroom so I grabbed Louie and dove under the covers. I had to keep lifting the covers so I could breath because it was getting hot under there. Finally I didn’t hear the bat flying around anymore so I pulled back the covers, jumped up and closed the bedroom doors to the bathroom and hallway. Needless to say, that was the end of my peaceful summer night. In the morning I carefully came out of the room and checked around that big house but never did find that bat. The house had 5 fireplaces and we think it flew up one of them and back out into the night. That’s what happens when you live in a haunted house I guess!!!!! Always something going on.
Barbara – I loved/hated your bat story!!! Hope Louie feels better soon.
Thank you. Thought you would enjoy that!
Cards. Anyone who lives close to a Dollar Tree store can pick up some lovely cards. I go every month or so & buy 6-8 cards just so I have a nice variety to keep on hand. I’m sometimes a few days late getting a card in the mail, but I do get one sent. Your card ministry is such a lovely thing to do, Mary! Thank you! My special thing I enjoy doing is taking meals to those who have recently lost a love one, recovering from surgery, etc. I agree it’s those little things…a card, a meal, or just a visit makes all the difference! I’ve been on the receiving end so I know how much it means! Again, thank you Mary for all you do!
Thanks for adding your comment – did you know that the post “card bomb” was read by 557 people? It makes me think Mickey should be receiving 557 cards. Why would you not send a card? I write this blog for free – no charge to you for the entertainment so the least you could do is send a card once a month. I wish I had the ability to block the readers who won’t send a card just because I asked them to do so. I write almost every night and this card ministry is important to me.
I am committed to a card per month (or more). Thanks for what you do! I’ll let you know about Mickey!