More Drama From the Sky

A line of storms blew in yesterday afternoon to change the sunshine to rain and wind.  It was a lot stormier on the east side where I was than the west side where Durwood was.  He called me in the stormiest part of the storm yesterday when the wind was so strong it was sucking the store door open slightly, just enough to make the door chime ring, but he said it was barely raining.  I could hear the torrent of rain pouring off the little awning over the back door of the store and wondered if the rain would be strong enough to make its way around the door and seep inside.  It didn't but it was sure windy and rainy there for a while.  It knocked out power to the part of the east side where Aldi is.  I know this because I stopped there on my way home for on-sale strawberries (the Aldi closest to home is closed for remodeling) but all the stores along there were dark and the stoplights weren't working so I just drove on home sans strawberries.  I'll get some tomorrow.  I know parts of the west side lost power because a FB friend posted that they were in the dark.  Good thing we didn't lose power since Durwood's oxygen machine doesn't run if the power's out.  Although we weren't without frustration last night.  I was making spaghetti for supper and turned the meat sauce to simmer while the noodles cooked and the stove quit.  I went downstairs, got the ladder, and reset the breaker, only to have it blow again when a burner got turned on.  Gah!  One more trip downstairs, reset the breaker once more, and all was well.  There will be a call to an appliance fixer for a visit in the not too distant future.  In the meantime we won't be using the "simmer select" button because I think pushing it tripped the breaker.  The spaghetti got finished, the pasta wasn't overcooked, and it was good.  Maybe spaghetti tastes better with a helping of frustration...


Once the storm hit there were no more shoppers at the dive shop so I hauled out my anklet project and got the rest of the side stitches knitted onto the sole and then picked up stitches to join the sides for the run down the foot to the toe.  I was getting dressed this morning, in hand-knit ankle socks, and realized that the yarn for the anklet looks so familiar because I have an ankle sock knitted from the same yarn, different pattern though so there's no danger I'll wear a pair.


Not much has changed in the garden.  The day lilies have sent up stalks with buds on the tops out of the ferns so pretty soon there'll be bright orange flowers to offset the different greens.  I'm glad I read in an article about attracting butterflies and hummingbirds that zinnias are a good flower for them.  I'd forgotten how pretty and easy to grow they are.  The hummers must have nestlings, we haven't seen them much in the last week, but soon they'll bring the fledglings to drink at the nectar so we'll have lots of entertainment until they migrate.


June 15--Edward Hopper, Room in Brooklyn.  Emily's world was rooftops and chimneys and satellite dishes all facing in the same direction like sunflowers.  She hadn't been outside for years and even going downstairs felt like too much too far.  She watched her knuckles resting on the windowsill turn white at the thought.


Okey-dokey.  I had to wake up twice to get that pittance on the page.  Guess I was tired.  Tonight is the knitting guild's annual picnic so I have to remember to take the little crockpot, a serving spoon, the bowl of bbq pulled chicken I made on Tuesday, and the bags of dinner rolls I plan to use for buns along.  I'll plug in the crockpot this afternoon at the dive shop so it'll be warmish when I get there to plug it in again.  Hope I'll be strong enough not to dip into it before the afternoon's over.
--Barbara