August, 2013

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Bounty of basil

Wednesday, August 28th, 2013

I grew a lot of basil this year. Really a lot.

I love pesto and like to freeze it for when there is no more fresh basil. Today, I’m trying a new way to freeze it to conserve freezer space. (You might want to wait and see how it works out before trying this yourself. I’ll report back.)

In other news, the annual plague of grotesque grasshoppers has arrived, the monsoons are continuing, and we have finally finished reading Anna Karenina aloud. (Thank god…this is a seriously long, repetitive, and bleak book.)

Last of the ceiling

Thursday, August 22nd, 2013

The last of the ceiling went up yesterday. Yay!

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We also said goodbye for now to a special helper friend this week.

We’ve really made great progress on the house in the last 6 weeks. You might think that’s strange since I was gone most of July. (Or maybe I’m not as “helpful” as I think I am. :) But actually, knowing that I’d be gone and really, really wanting to get this finished, we’ve tried getting a helper this summer. It started with looking for someone to help dig some trenching, but then we had hopes of someone doing more.

Mostly, they weren’t that great. Some didn’t show up for days with no word. Some stopped coming altogether. (One actually moved across country…we heard…not from him.)

Then we found Eddie. Eddie has been a dream. He showed up every day. On time. He had a pleasant personality. He was skilled (especially with taping drywall, which is not my favorite job.) He worked hard all the time he was there. When there was a break in whatever we were doing, he’d always find something helpful to do. Sweeping the floor. Cleaning up. Gathering trash. Whatever.

While I was gone in July, he worked with Brad. And then when I was back, the three of us worked together. Until today, when Eddie headed back to college.

We’ll miss Eddie, but I think we’ll stay in touch. And of course, we’ll think of him often because his mark is on this house. Oh and he does artwork too.

Outdoor movie night

Tuesday, August 20th, 2013

If you haven’t experienced outdoor movie night at our house, here’s what it’s like. (Oh and there’s fabulous food and drink, of course.)

Prime time for this right now. The weather is great.

Can you guess the plant?

Friday, August 16th, 2013

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Isn’t this a beautiful flower?

What is it?

An exotic orchid of some type?

No…it’s a Bisbee cowpea (a kind of black black-eyed pea that is heat and drought resistant). I grew one bed of these, which were attacked early in the year by aphids. Usually, that’s the end of a plant, but I patiently rinsed these for a few days, and they eventually made a great comeback. They’re thriving now, and even as we are harvesting the first of the dried beans (in long pods with many peas in each), they are blooming again. Gorgeous.

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Closets…the progression

Wednesday, August 14th, 2013

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…and the drywall transition to the vigas and glulam is really looking amazing.

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Closets

Friday, August 9th, 2013

I’m finally back home…for good now. And I jumped back into construction full steam this week. (I have the sore shoulders and bruised shins to prove it.)

Today we designed and began to build my closet. That was exciting. Closets are one of the things that I’ve missed most in the past couple years.

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Other than that, we’re mostly working on drywall now. Lots and lots of sanding, hence the sore shoulders.

In other news, the hedgerow and outdoor tomatoes have both outgrown their mini-hoop covering and have been set free. With all the rain we’ve gotten, everything is green and thriving, and the wildlife should have plenty to eat without getting into my garden. Still, we’re keeping an eye on everything!