Stylin'

Aren't the Foxglove looking pretty?  Some are pink, some are lavender.  I keep hoping for some white ones.  There are gazillions of them coming up all around these bigger plants.  Sadly, Mike thought they were weeds and sprayed them with Round-up.  He realized what he'd done and quickly washed it off.  Still, it took a lot of water, and it got washed down into the soil around them.  I looked at them this morning, and they still look okay.  I'm hoping at least some of them will survive.  It's a great place to grow Foxglove (and little else) where they are.  Even if these little seedlings don't survive, more seeds will be sown when these new blossoms are spent.

One of the things I love most about living in the country is our absolute privacy.  When we moved in, we could see two of our neighbors' houses.  Now the trees have grown up and we can't see them any more . . . and that means they can't see us.  Here's how our nearest neighbor looked on the day we made the offer on our home.

Here's how it looks now.

That means I can wear whatever I want when I'm out.  Or, I can wear nothing at all!  (I should probably post a "danger" sign, just in case.  I'd hate to turn some unannounced and unsuspecting visitor to stone some day.)  It rained most of the day yesterday, and so I didn't fill the bird feeders.  This morning, the birds were all sitting around with their tongues hanging out, looking gaunt and pale from hunger.  So, after finishing off ten more yo-yo's (40 down, 8 to go!), I walked out in my boots and PJ's to feed them.

Nice, eh?  The crows let out a few snickers and cat calls, but I ignored them.

George was using all his powers of persuasion to convince me to go for a walk with him.

Poor George.  Can you see his scaly eyebrows and broken whiskers?  His pemphigus is acting up again.  Just when it's all cleared up and his eyebrows, whiskers, and fur grow back, it acts up again.  He's such a sweet guy, it breaks my heart that he has this terrible disease.  I'm glad we can control it with medication, but I worry that some day it will get out of control.  That would mean the end of George.

The lavender is a hair's breadth away from opening and looking very pretty.  Can I get a little sunshine, please?  Sol?  Are you there?

The weather should clear up by this afternoon.  We're supposed to have a nice warm day for the 4th of July.  Several years ago Erik started a family tradition of heading down to the Willamette River for the day.  We set up our chairs and awning on the East Bank of the river and wait for the fireworks at dusk.  They're always playing music in Waterfront Park just on the other side of the river.  I'm looking forward to spending the day with my family.  Erik brings his barbecue and we barbecue burgers and hotdogs.  I usually bring a salad and a dessert.  It's a great way to spend the day.  We'll miss Matthew this year.  He's attending summer school down in Klamath Falls.  He has to be back at school the next day, and so it isn't really feasible for him to come up to Portland for the day.

Here's an image of the Portland skyline from a few years ago, just before the fireworks started. 

What are your plans for the 4th?