Our bath!

We cut the check for Mike this morning (at least, Vic did), because his work on our bathroom upstairs is done! His boyfriend Dan was a huge help, and the room looks simply fantastic.

It is *such* a relief to have the toilet stand alongside a solid wall, instead of an entry to the eaves that extends up through the ceiling. I am all smiles.

Also, Mike did a wonderful job creating a cathedral ceiling over the tub. We had to have one so that people as tall as Mike is could actually take a shower.

Garden sustenance

It really is wonderful to have flowers growing in your environment. For myself, it helps my mood and my perspective.

Also, it doesn't hurt to have a hot tub!

Dodge driver

Although my husband would prefer to be a Toyota driver, like me, he is now officially a driver of a Dodge. He just got this, his new company car. It replaces the white Toyota van, which, you may remember, got creamed on 128. I was able to influence his choice of color; it's the color that I once hoped to find in an Echo!

Thursday, August 11

This view was framed on a boat. We ("we" including Mike & Dan) took a boat trip, a.k.a. a blues cruise, in Salem at the Willows. The boat leaves every Thursday at 7pm and again at 9pm, and the band is the Gravel Project. There's good food and drink (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) and, for the 7pm trip, a near-guarantee of a beautiful sunset over the water.

The first boat to pass us was a ComPac 16, just like our sailboat, Kiwi.

The band has a new bass player, a fuzz bass player, a slap bass player, by which I mean: a really good bass player. I didn't think to snap his picture, but here's the band's leader on guitar.

Veggie crop

Our vegetables are growing, as they will, and ripening, as they do. There's something magic in it, even if it is commonplace. Participating in the cycle of planting and growing and harvesting food connects me to all life-giving food production everywhere. The way I see it, it's a maternal thing.

I've included nasturtium here because, you know, I eat every bit of nasturtiums. Isn't that flower pretty?

Before the rain

Phlox everywhere, which just makes me happy. I'm still going to order more! I got another mailing from SpringHill or somewhere like that, offering a collection. I'm pretty sure it's exactly the same offer that I got a couple of years ago; it includes orange- and blue-flowering plants. This time I *will* plant my order.

Nearly there

I chose a soft yellow for the bathroom, which had been a pretty aggressive yellow previously. It's nearly all painted now!