lovely start to the day on Saturday, with a 4:30 am hot tub… it was cool, sky was just beginning to lighten, birds were singing, and clouds drifted above…
back to sleep for a while and then got to watch qualifying for Sunday’s F1 race at Silverstone…
and one of my favourites got pole position…
was able to turn off the fans and open all the windows to get some fresh, cool, air into the house, which was wonderful after the last few days of sizzling heat…
out in the garden I spotted a house finch couple enjoying snacks at one of the feeders…
the coneflower has finally bloomed… this one was planted on the south side of the house, next to the furnace vents… I think this is a much better spot than the pergola garden…
whenever the hose has been put out it has gotten water and has been growing nicely since it was planted…
not too long ago it produced a bud and it has slowly been opening over the last few weeks…
the petals still need to bend completely, but it is looking pretty good now;-)…
seeing it reminds me of how every year I would buy one, we’d plant it in the garden, and then in the spring my beloved would pull it out thinking it was a weed, lol…
my blood pressure medicine was increased a month ago, so the doctor wanted to see how it was doing and didn’t want to wait three months till my next usual appointment…
the only side effect to the increase in the meds had been being exceptionally tired for a week or so…
I’d been taking bp readings since the change and the numbers had been good, so I wasn’t worried…
the numbers were also good in the office…
I mentioned a text I’d received at the end of May recommending a covid booster, but I hadn’t heard anything more…
but apparently, today was the last day to receive the phyzer booster… they still had some in the office, so I got it… the next one will be in the fall around the same time as the flu shot…
it was a hot one yesterday… spent most of it in the garden…
started out with breakfast and a book while it was still cool…
then I took a break and trimmed virginia creeper which had gone crazy with the rain we’ve had recently…
after half an hour I’d filled my bucket between the garage door, entry pergola, and hose area…
back to relaxing;-)… after lunch and a rest in the lounge chair, the time came to move into the house to cool off for a while…
brought in all the cushions as there was a threat of a thunderstorm…
I watched an F1 qualifying session and headed back outside, where there had not been a storm or any rain, lol… had a wander around the vegetable garden and spotted the first pea-pod…
more reading on the deck, followed by a lovely steak for dinner…
finished my book and watched a bit of tv before bed;-)…
well over a week ago, the lemon tree made its way from the house into the garden…
since then it has been rather irritated with the weather… the leaves were all hanging down as though it was thirsty, but watering it didn’t seem to make any difference…
finally, a few days ago the leaves had perked up and it looks happy again…
the hibiscus has also forgiven me for bringing it outdoors… it had enjoyed being under the cedars but was miffed when it was moved out to the edge of the pond… where it proceeded to get a bit of a sunburn;-(…
sometime back, we picked up a new hose as the old one had sprung a leak…
we ended up with a different type… not an expanding one…
I have used it and discovered that it didn’t work for me… it was 100 feet long, like the old one, but it seemed to kink more and the water flow seemed to come and go…
I’ve been sharing my complaint about it for weeks, so finally, we picked up the type I’d had before;-)…
it isn’t exactly the same as the old one, but is much better and lighter than the one I’ve been using…
now it is much more fun to water the plants and grass;-)…
once orientation was completed, I signed up for my first of three (3 hour) different sessions…
the first session consisted of a tour of the zoo with a more senior volunteer and two other newbies… everyone we met was so helpful and provided us with lots of information…
I hadn’t been to the zoo for a while so it was a lovely refresher… the zoo is a very busy place…
and I left with my volunteer t-shirt;-)…
the next session was with a mentor, usually one-on-one, but it ended up with two newbies with our mentor… they know so much about all the goings on at the zoo, and were happy to share with us…
part of our training included time at the McFeeter’s Heavy Horse Centre… we got to watch the new Shire horses, Willow and Willy, move from the barn to the paddock…
I must say, by the end of our three hour shift, my feet were a tad sore, lol…
my last and final session was at The Leaf… the first half was touring the space and learning a few new things… one exciting thing was getting to walk out on the second floor balcony that overlooks the Tropical Biome…
it is reserved for those who rent the various spaces on that floor… and, that the floor on that level is sprinkled with the glass from the old Conservatory;-)…
then we practised in three different areas…
I learned that there are a few places between the zoo and The Leaf that have to have someone in attendance at all times…
so, if no volunteers are available, a staff member has to take over… it is clear that volunteers save time so staff members can focus on their important work…
I have now finished my first two shifts as a bonafide Volunteer Ambassador…
say hi if you spot me… most likely at The Leaf for now…
this morning I finally got around to sorting out a working pump for the bathtub pond…
I had switched the two pumps between the main pond and the bathtub, but not long after that change the pump in the tub stopped working completely…
and because there are no fish in that pond, the chance of mosquito larvae growing in it was a problem…
happily, the first extra pump I came across worked, although it didn’t have a piece extending out of the water… luckily that doesn’t matter as the water just needs to move to ensure no larvae can survive…
herbiggirlpants 