r&b

Seventies r&b blasts across the yard but is drowned out by the din of Carm hard at work with the lawnmower… I'm stretched out on the deck about to read something, I'm not sure what. The warm air makes me feel languid, melting all worries except for wondering what I'll make with the glut of zucchini being produced by the garden…

The air is heavy with peaceful easy feeling!

And the sweet smell of freshly cut grass.

A few minutes ago, I used the mandolin to make ribbons of zucchini that I will make some sort of vinaigrette to toss with it once it's had some time to sweat out some liquid. Or I could mix it with some eggs and chickpea flour to make little fritters. Or both!

Yesterday I had my last follow up with the surgeon and left with a clean bill of health. Since we were right next to liquidation we popped in for another fan… and came out with a big umbrella as well! It should shade the table a bit better at supper time. It's got solar lights but we are never outside eating after dark so a bit of a waste!

I'm reading a book written by Glenn Close's sister Jessie, who has bipolar. It's hard to get through at times but at the same time I feel blessed to have had an easier journey. A much easier journey… however there is lots to think about… what can I learn to apply to my own life? What insight can I get from someone else's life?

But I have the attention span of a gnat so it's slow going with lots of diversions!

After supper… I finished making the zucchini salad with a lemony garlicky dressing, putting some ribbons aside to make fritters. I mixed up 2 eggs, about ½ cup chickpea flour, some spices and fresh basil and tossed in the ribbons of zucchini that I'd set aside. They fried up into flat disks perfect for piling on the leftover sandwich stuff from the other day - no bread required! It was delicious. 

Awesome!

"a summer day" 

"a nap"

"as it turns out, zucchini!"

shades of pink

It's almost 3:30 pm on a sunny and hot (but not boiling) day… I tried to eek every last minute that I could outside until the storms hit us, but as it turns out, I could have delayed much longer. Oh well, a quick check in the mirror shows that I'm already a certain shade of pink even though I've mostly been in the shade, except for a few dashes to the pool which then meant stretching out on my new chair to dry off!

I wrote a little blurb for June's father's celebration on life next week which has left me feeling a bit drained and emotional - Mr. Jenkins hired me for my first serious job which then turned into an almost 30 year career in IT. It was a major turning point in my life - who knows how things would have turned out if I'd just carried on with my summer job at the boarding kennel. I never would have chosen computing as my life's work but having been given the opportunity, I ran with it! I was luckily blessed with a brain that loved the logic and organization of my field.

Carm survived golf on that blistering hot day almost 2 weeks ago and has enjoyed a few more rounds in more moderate temperatures since - he's not getting 3 rounds in a week this year - hopefully as the summer goes on, he'll be able to add another round or two to his week.

It's been a week & a half since I last wrote but nothing exciting has happened! Well, maybe that's wrong! Last week Trudie & Leo came for supper one night, we went to the trailer for 2 nights on the weekend, then Pat came for supper on Monday night and Mom on Tuesday night. So I guess it's been busier than I thought!

I've been trying to get fully back to my workout routine but honestly, some days it takes a hurculean effort to get myself up off the sofa… yesterday I made it downstairs to my little gym for 5 minutes on the bike but only managed a few minutes of resistance exercise before I gave up - I was like a limp dish rag! I did force myself to walk on the treadmill for an hour which felt like an incredible achievement!

Today was much the same… Carm was out golfing early which should have been motivation for getting going, but I needed to trick myself. I told myself I'd only do 5 minutes on the bike  (which is my normal routine) and then give myself a break with just 30 minutes of walking… once I got going I managed the bike and then over 20 minutes of resistance exercises. Then I managed to walk for the full hour - I just needed some mental tricks to get myself going!

Some days I can hardly get through my coffee before I run downstairs, but these last few weeks have been brutal!

I made sandwiches for supper on Monday when Pat came, which sounds like a cheat sort of dinner EXCEPT the damn things took me over TWO HOURS to make! I'd seen a recipe for  a vegan reuban sandwich which inspired me to create my own version… first I used the mandolin to thinly slice ribbons of Japanese Yam (purple sweet potato) which I brushed with oil and sprinkled spices on. I roasted those in the air fryer, 5 at a time… each batch took 8 minutes and there were at least 4 of them… maybe 5. Then I did the same with a giant zucchini from the garden (already!)... Same time consuming process for cooking them… Once that was going, I made a zucchini radish slaw to chill in the fridge… then I thinly sliced some firm tofu and mixed it with BBQ sauce. This got air fried till it was starting to crisp up a bit on the corners. And then I made a white bean garlic spread to use in place of butter…

All of this got piled onto toasted pumpernickel bread along with lettuce from our garden for incredible sandwiches! Was it worth all the work? I'm not sure, but Pat and Carm raved about them so perhaps I'll do it again with a few tweaks to make the process a bit faster…

The other thing I've been making is sort of a 'Tuscan' white bean dish with cherry tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, red peppers, onion, garlic, scapes, fresh basil and a bit of kale. It comes together quickly in the pan and tastes delicious 😋 I've been throwing white beans into everything these days!

Last night for Mom I just made egg salad on a cardamom bun along with roasted zucchini with sun-dried tomatoes, roasted red pepper, fresh basil, and a bit of feta cheese. I'll be making buckets of this salad over the summer ☀️ And honestly, an egg salad sandwich is 'da bomb!' and always a favorite, not to mention a whole heck of a lot less work! I need to make a scale of effort and effect to rate the two sandwiches! I think the egg salad would rate way way higher!

I started doing Bulgarian split squats yesterday… 3 sets of 5 on each leg (yes, just 5)... They were hard but not impossible. Well, my glutes are getting more and more sore even though it was over 30 hours ago!!! Obviously there is a lot more muscle needed! 💪 I wonder if strengthening these muscles will make it easier to walk at an incline when I'm on the treadmill?

video of split squat 

Awesome!

"remembering old times"

"sandwiches"

summer breeze

Summer breeze, makes me feel fine… today was a blessed day of summer with a hot sun, smell of clover sweetly scenting the air, and a light breeze rustling the leaves in the poplars that are still alive. The day started off vigorously, maybe too vigorously! My arms a still a bit jelly like but at least my legs feel strong!

I drained the battery on my speaker this afternoon so had to dig out a charging cable for outside… I think I've played every genre of music except Gregorian Chants! Right now I have a 70s summer playlist cued up. Earlier it was Lady Gaga, and before that it was a jumble of high energy songs to keep my feet moving on the treadmill.

Carm had a mid afternoon golf game arranged so he's out there sweating buckets - I hope he remembers to drink his water… He did text that they are using carts today which was a relief - he's had heat stroke multiple times on the golf course 😱 so I worry like crazy when he's out in the heat.

After my herculean efforts this morning I've been chilling… watering plants, harvesting thai basil and lettuce, but mostly just stretched out on the sofa outside. Low effort tasks interspersing total relaxation.

I was listening to 'Burning' by Jelly Roll and was thinking how the lyrics were saying what I couldn't a few months ago, but now those feelings are just a dim memory that I can't even quite conjure up. I know that I was feeling bad but Nature has thankfully made my brain forget just how awful it was. Small (or perhaps huge) mercies!

Thursday I took Mom to her follow-up appointment with the Infectious Disease doctor… the doctor was pleased with her recovery especially given how sick Mom was. Dr. A. said that the bacteria that Mom had is often fatal so we feel double blessed that she made it out the other side. She's not 100% yet but seems to be getting a bit stronger everyday. She has another 3 weeks of antibiotics to make sure the bacteria is fully killed and not hanging out in her spine anymore but she is considered 'out of the woods' - thank goodness!

Friday Pat came for supper and a movie. I think they watched an old Stargate movie while I read, but when that finished we put on something about Lady Jane Grey in an alternate universe with creatures that can transform from animals to people. We just watched one episode but I'm looking forward to the next one :-)

It had been a busy day with trips to Costco and liquidation. We scored giant (and I mean GIANT) insulated mugs - they'll be great for our trip this winter, but in the meantime, I've been using mine to up my water drinking. It holds almost 1.5 litres and keeps it pretty cold through the day so I've been filling it up in the morning and trying to get through the whole thing. It's got a huge 'mouth' which makes it easy to wash… and perfect for a few slices of lemon! I'm thinking that tomorrow I'll fill it with iced herbal tea and lemon.

Okay… time to get off the Jelly Roll playlist and back onto the 70s summer music! I love his music but it is perhaps even more dirge like than Leonard Cohen!

Awesome!

"a summer day - always awesome!"

"giant mugs"