The Dog Days Of Blogging

The original saying is the 'dog days of summer' but blogging felt more appropos. I looked up the origin of the expression which has nothing to do with actual dogs and in short it means the hottest, most humid, lethargic weeks of summer, and hello mid-July. 

There's also a whole big thing about the stars and the constellation canis minor but we're too hot and lethargic to dive into that here today. 

We've been staying busy seeing friends, swimming with the grands, hosting dinner guests, and watching World Cup matches. I haven't spent a lot of writing or reading blogs either. I'll get back into a routine eventually but for now indolent feels like a very apt descriptor.

We had a nice weekend and I took almost no pictures. That's par for the course in the lazy hazy days of summer. 

Speaking of lazy...one or both of us had something every single night last week. Sometimes it just works out that way and we roll with it. For the record, hubs is better at rolling with it than me because he's a social creature and I need my pjs and 9PM  10 PM bedtime, but I rallied. 

We had our wine club dinner Monday evening, I played Mah Jongg Tuesday night, hubs was out Wednesday, clients he sold a house too took us out for a celebratory dinner Thursday night, friends invited us to their club for dinner Friday night and we had two couples here for dinner on Saturday night. We won't count the calories consumed but it's salads only this week. 

Except wait! We're not eating salad right now, are we? At least not any that contain lettuce. Bother. 

Hubs was grilling a Tri-tip on the Green Egg for our guests on Saturday and I had planned to make a salad, then thought I better shift gears. I ended up making a tomato-cucumber-avocado-red onion mix with a yummy vinaigrette dressing and that worked well. We have cherry tomatoes here and my daughter gave me cucumber from her garden so the produce felt safe. 

This is how crazy it is when you're retired. We wanted these two couples to come for dinner at our house and we had to sync our calendars way back in May if we hoped to get it somewhere on the July or August calendar. But we did it and it was a really nice evening. 

It stormed just as we were getting ready to eat and when I say stormed I mean the whole enchilada...a literal deluge with blowing winds, lightning, thunder, and just crazy. We've had a few of those this summer. 

I made the appetizer we had in a restaurant last week and it was good. My peaches were a little softer than I would have liked but still very tasty. It's simple-just peaches, proscuitto, olive oil, honey, chili flakes, chopped pistachios and a white balsamic drizzle over all. 

On Friday I was helping with a Mah Jongg lesson for some newbies and hubs took his best bud out paddleboarding. 

Where hubs goes, he goes. 

Friday night hubs and I shared these amzaing ahi tuna nachos. So good!! 

Sunday we went to church then I hit the couch. Hubs was showing a house and wanted to get in the lake after he wrapped that up, but thunder returned so we watched the World Cup final and ate leftovers for dinner. 

Nothing too exciting, but it's been nice to have time to catch up with friends. I know some people love great big gatherings, but my favorite are smaller more intimate dinners with just a handful of people at one time. Everyone can talk to everyone and it's just overall more low key. We're enjoying our outdoor space and hosting friends there and will definitely be doing more of that as we move in to August. 

So what were you up to this weekend? Something energetic or something more chill? We're always a little bit of both round here, which is how we like it. 

Linking with Holly and Sarah for their Hello Monday blog party. 

Hop over there to read more or add your own recap. 

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 663

Here are the questions to this week's Hodgepodge. Answer on your own blog, then hop back here on Wednesday (July 21st)  to add your link to the party. See you there! 

1. Do your goals and dreams energize or exhaust you? Elaborate. 

2. July 23rd is national lemon day. Are you a fan of this flavor? What's a favorite dish or beverage you enjoy that calls for lemons? 

3. "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade"...is this something you're pretty good at managing? Have you had to do this recently? If so tell us about it. 

4. Something you love that is lemon yellow in color? 

5. How would you describe your attention to detail? 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

A Guilt Free Hodgepodge

Welcome to this week's edition of The Wednesday Hodgepodge. If you've answered today's questions add your link at the end of my post, then leave a comment for the blogger before you. Don't be lazy now. 

Here we go...

1. "Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability." Sam Keen

Do you feel less guilty relaxing in July than you do in January? Elaborate. 

Why does rest make us feel guilty? In this season of life I'm taking time to relax guilt free. We're not lazy people and while work is important rest is also essential. I enjoy having things on my calendar, both fun and commitment related, but I also love seeing some blank space to do nothing in particular. 

2. What's a telltale sign you're upset? 

I'm not someone who hides their emotions very well.  I cry easily and if I'm upset while talking I might cry. I try hard not to, but...

At other times I might go quiet, and since I tend to talk a lot going quiet is noticeable. 

3. July 16th is National AI Day. What are your general thoughts and/or experiences with AI? Have you purposely used it? Does it excite you, scare you, or worry you? What do you see as a benefit? How about something relating to AI you see as a negative? 

Well it's here to stay so I want to think about it at least a little bit. It's already tucked in to so many things we use every day so there's no avoiding it.  I listened to an interesting podcast recently on the topic and have linked it here (What Every Christian Should Know About Artificial Intelligence). 

A lot of people ask if I use AI to come up with questions every week. So far no, except in all likelihood something has slipped through the cracks. We just don't know (or always think about) all the spaces AI now inhabits. I come up with most questions off the top of my head. But I also have a book of questions Marilyn gave me, there are websites with questions, and I google topical issues to inspire questions, so it's a mix. 

I'd say AI is both exciting and worrisome. Like all technology there is the potential for misuse and actual evil and I'm sure we'll see that with AI too. Also I want to think and I guess the biggest negative I see is the temptation to become lazy in that department. I am rebelling against it as much as I can. 

Positives? I think if a summary is needed for something AI can be helpful and a real time saver. While it doesn't actually think it does consolidate a lot of information in a short amount of time and that's useful in a lot of instances. 

We want to take a trip out west and I was struggling with how to combine a couple of destinations without excessively long drive days so I popped my locations into AI and he/she/it? came up with a plan.  Since I'm not familiar with the geography in this particular part of the country I needed help and AI gave me a place to start.  

4. You're invited to a summer pot luck and are asked to bring an appetizer, salad/side, or dessert. Which category do you go for and what are you bringing? 

Depends on my mood, and possibly who else I know will be there. I would likely go for dessert because I like to bake and desserts hold up well in transport. 

5. It wouldn't be summer without___________________. 

A tomato sandwich, made with homegrown tomatoes right off the vine, slathered in Duke's Mayo. Yum! Haven't had one yet this summer, but it will happen soon. I need my daughter to share some of her larger tomatoes with me as we only grew cherries. 

6. Insert your own random thought here.  

So one of our state's senators passed away suddenly this week, and people are just vile. Sadly this is no longer surprising. 

I don't know how we've gotten to the point of celebrating the death of another human being in our country, but here we are. Lindsay Graham was from our local area and hubs and I met him in person once. He was really funny. Did we agree with everything he said and did? No. But he served our country in the USAF and raised his sister upon the death of their parents when she was just 13, and both of these things I do admire. 

I read a quote by Matthew Hennessey with the Wall Street Journal who said, "The best thing you can do when someone dies is say a prayer. If that isn't your thing, find something nice to say. If neither of those options works for you, there's a third option: Shut up." 

You don't have to agree with someone's politics to be decent in death. We need to do better. 

Everyday Images On A July Monday

Good Monday morning friends. July is rolling right along and I'm going to do a bit of a photo dump today, and link with the current Everyday Images photo prompts while I'm at it (hosted by Kym at A Fresh Cup Of Coffee) Kym shares prompts every two weeks and I'm typically getting mine posted just under the wire. She leaves the link up the whole two weeks, so it's not too late if you want to try these. 

I have some random snaps on my phone that need to go somewhere and a blog is a good place to save them. 

Question-Do I actually need to save pictures of my cherry tomatoes? 

I'm going to say yes. One of my favorite things about blogging is the look back at ordinary life it offers, and pictures help all the many words I use come to life. Here are the most recent photo prompts: 

~at home (monthly)~who I'm spending time with~what I'm working on~where I'm going~when I'm taking a break~why I'm happy today~signs~

at home...

We don't have a garden but we grow a few things in pots and our cherry tomatoes ripened while we were away. We're enjoying picking handfuls every day and adding them to salads or just eating them right off the vine. This picture says summer to me. 

who I'm spending time with...

Last week it was my mama as we celebrated her birthday with a fun dinner out. I haven't been with my mom on her actual birthday in a number of years, so this was special. My sister, niece, and nephew-in-law joined the party and my mom loved having family around the table. 

She had a piece of delicious peanut butter pie for dessert, with a candle of course. 

what I'm working on...

Recreating this appetizer for one. We had this in a restaurant on Saturday night and it was absolutely scrumptious. I have friends coming for dinner this weekend and I want to make this starter for them. It's prosciutto, fresh peaches, olive oil, honey, Calabrian chili flakes, and chopped pistachios, plus a little something green which I forgot to write down and now can't recall if it was mint or basil. Either would be good. 

And of course I'm always working to perfect the selfie. Not there yet. 

where I'm going...

This week nowhere. I mean here and there but nowhere out of the ordinary. Recently we went to the land where the palm trees grow-

Technically palm trees do grow in my state, hence it's nickname The Palmetto State, but these are Florida palms.

when I'm taking a break...

When you're retired you have the opportunity for a lot of breaks. Pretty much as many as you want. This is from our recent trip to the beach which I wrote about in great detail (here and here). This is definitely my idea of a break-a beautiful view and a book on my lap. 

why I'm happy today...

Many reasons, but one would be having grown up girls with very green thumbs. Daughter1 harvested these potatoes and sent a picture while we were away. I didn't get to taste them, but there's more where these came from (aka her garden) so hopefully I'll get a sample soon. 

And look at these carrots! Daughter2 dug these up from her garden last week, then made carrot top pesto which I didn't even know was a thing? She said it tastes a bit more like parsley than basil, but still a great way not to waste any of the produce.  Her kiddos were super excited to pull carrots out of their very own garden. 

signs...

This was at the entrance to the beach path at our hotel. I made sure to shuffle my feet, but we did not see any stingrays. We didn't see as many dolphins as we usually do either, but the water was clear and there were plenty of shells. 

Insert young middle aged lady with an old soul talking about birds here-

There were literally a couple of hundred of these Black Skimmers in one particular section of the beach just a short walk down from our hotel. A volunteer with the local Audubon Society was there taking pictures one day, and he told us more about them. 

I'd never heard of this particular bird before, but their lower jaw juts out and skims the water allowing them to grab fish as they fly by. This beach is a nesting place for them, and they come back every year. They lay eggs in the sand and then the parents teach the little ones how to fly. We saw several young birds trying it out which was really cute. 

A restaurant had this sign posted as we left one evening-

We miss you too St. Pete's Beach!

Linking with Holly and Sarah for Hello Monday today too because hey, it's Monday. Have a nice week everyone! 

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 662

Here are the questions to this week's Hodgepodge. Answer on your own blog, then hop back here on Wednesday (July 15th) to add your link to the party. See you there! 

1. "Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability." Sam Keen

Do you feel less guilty relaxing in July than you do in January? Elaborate. 

2. What's a telltale sign you're upset? 

3. July 16th is National AI Day. What are your general thoughts and/or experiences with AI? Have you purposely used it? Does it excite you, scare you, or worry you? What do you see as a benefit? How about something relating to AI you see as a negative? 

4. You're invited to a summer pot luck and are asked to bring an appetizer, salad/side, or dessert. Which category do you go for and what are you bringing? 

5. It wouldn't be summer without___________________. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Florida Part Two

The beach, the bride, the beauty part two. 

Recapping our recent trek to Florida for a July 4th wedding. If you missed part one you'll find it here (Salt In My Hair Love In The Air). 

Saturday. July 4th. Happy birthday America! 

The wedding wasn't until later in the day so we started the morning on the beach. I had booked an appointment at Spa Oceana in the Don Cesar to have my hair put up for the evening's festivities. My hair is heavy and there's a lot of it and it was one million degrees. 

Best decision I made all weekend. We made our way over to the spa at noon and I liked the way the girl styled it very much. There might have been one hundred bobby pins and a full can of spray on it, but it stayed put which was the main thing. 

Hubs hung out in the hotel and then met me after for lunch. We opted to eat inside because I had fresh hair. We shared the most fabulous caesar salad ever and a flatbread topped with poached pear, endive, rosemary, pecans, and mozzarella. Yum! 

We headed back to the hotel to change and last minute decided to book an Uber to the venue. Reviews said parking was limited and while there was public parking not too far away it was July 4th and we were worried about not finding a spot. The Uber was nice and we went ahead and reserved one for the return trip too, which worked out well. 

Yes hubs did take a selfie in the Uber. Don't tell our kids. 

The wedding and reception were held at The Davis Islands Garden Club, a lovely outdoor space with an old Florida feel. 

The venue overlooks Seddon Channel and the gorgeous homes on Harbor Island. You get a glimpse of downtown Tampa too. That's a cruise ship passing behind those houses...

The ceremony was outside and it was toasty.

The bride looked stunning and all of the flowers were beautiful. 

She embraced the colors of the day in a nice way. Everyone was invited to wear red, white, and blue (light on the white) and any stars, stripes, or sparkles they wanted, and there truly was a little bit of everything. 

That jacket came off after the ceremony. 

The father of the bride got the memo and the bride and her dad both had patriotic tennis shoes on for the occasion. 

After the ceremony there were hors d'oeuvres on the patio and themed drinks from the bars. 

The mother of the bride and me. We had our babies at the same time and now those babies are both grown married women. 

The venue did have some indoor space, with A.C. (that's important!), that held tables and chairs for dining. We had dinner inside after the bride and groom had their first dance. There were speeches made, and a sweets table for dessert instead of the traditional wedding cake.

The DJ and dancing were set up on the covered porch and you could see the Tampa fireworks if you went to the water's edge. It was a fun night and we're so happy we were there to celebrate the newlyweds on their special day. 

Sunday morning was a little drizzly so we drove a few miles down the road to a place called The Buoy for brunch. Guess what we had? 

If you guessed a grouper sandwich you would not be wrong. It came with coconut rice which was different and tasty. I also had a bloody mary which was my appetizer too, since it was served with a shrimp skewer. 

The view was pretty and the pelicans put on a show here diving in and out of the water for fish.  The skies cleared as we got back to the hotel so we made our way to the beach and relaxed, walked, and swam. A family sat down beside us and they had British accents and we're kind of like that Progressive commercial where they tell you how not to be your parents, except we're the parents. Hi girls! 

Anyway, turns out the mom in the family went to school in the small village we lived in while in the UK, so it was fun chatting with them. We eventually made our way to the pool and bemoaned the fact we were heading home the next day. 

That evening we went to a place called John's Pass in Madeira Beach which is more or less a boardwalk village with lots of shops, food, and 'stuff'. 

We had lobster rolls at a little dive called The Boardwalk Grill, and they were scrumptious. 

We walked around some and it's possible I ended up with three pounds of salt water taffy because the seller told me if you bought 2 pounds the third was free. Three pounds of taffy is a lot of taffy, but I planned to share with my girls. 

We got back to the beach just in time for one more Gulf sunset. 

The drive home Monday was long, but uneventful. We made two stops, the first in Florida at one of the orange vendors where I bought a big bag of oranges to bring home. 

They had all sorts of Florida related items in this little shop but we passed on the alligator head. 

We made another stop further up the road in Tifton Georgia at Adcocks which is billed as a pecan grocery store.  

Went a little crazy in here and I bought pecans for baking, a bag for my youngest grandson for snacking (they're his favorite), two kinds of salad dressing made with Vidalia onions, some Georgia peach preserves and a jar of hot peach preserves for pouring over cream cheese, all while hubs grabbed chocolate covered pecans, coconut bites, and salted caramel chocolates. Go big or go home, right? 

It was a great little beach getaway and we loved our time away. Now back to reality...

...which is pretty nice too.