Thursday

 

Sunrise walk with Toby on the causeway

Calm and peaceful

a light breeze

This cloud has a bit of everything.

We could see it raining on Honeymoon Island from the causeway.

We had tostadas for dinner.

Wednesday

 

An early morning at Coachman Park in Clearwater

We walked Toby before 7:00 a.m.

I left for Coachman before 8:00.

Beautiful morning sky

I did stretching and later strength training at Weaver. After a quick stop at Walgreens, I made it home before 10:30.

Before lunch, I cut some dead leaves and blooms out of the bird of paradise.

Lots of blooms left

I cut some dead leaves in this bed.

I pruned the hibiscus to get it back into shape. I think we need to prune this lower magnolia limb, too.

We took Toby in the golf cart to the community center to walk in the shade of the big oak trees.

For dinner: We had left-over marina sauce and new spaghetti noodles with an iceberg lettuce salad.

Tuesday

 

We walked Toby at 6:30 and worked in the yard as soon as we got home.

Then we cleaned out the ferns and grass from the front bed.

We weeded the orange tree in the back.

It will all grow back soon, but for now, it looks tame. We'd like some new edging for our beds, but for now we'll settle for cleaning them up.

We finished our yard work before 8:00 a.m., just in time for pick up.

I cooled off and took a quick bike ride to Coachman Park and was home by 10:00. The heat advisory begins at 10:00 with an Extreme Heat Warning beginning at noon and ending at 7:00 p.m. The temperature was 89 degrees at 10:00, the high for the day is expected to be 91. No rain today.

Our bird of paradise plant continues to put forth blooms. John planted our basil plant for cooking between our chairs.

Summer Dinners in Under 10 Minutes

Impossible Burgers on fresh whole wheat bread and veggies

Great burger, non-greasy

From TJ's: frozen corn added to frozen peppers and onions. Ready in 7 minutes.

Impossible Ground Beef from TJ's

In my opinion, better than beef. Cooks in the oven in 10 minutes.

Easy clean up.

Monday

 

We walked Toby early, so we could exercise before it got too hot. 

I left on my bike at 7:30 headed to Coachman Park in Clearwater.

I did some stretching.

The Dock master's office.

Clearwater harbor

I stopped at Weaver Park for strength training.

We have a heat advisory beginning at noon, but we were home before 10:30. I read that Tampa reached 100 degrees yesterday for the first time in history. Our temps are always lower than the mainland because we're on a peninsula, but it's hot enough. We had a thunderstorm come through around 3:00 that lowered the temperature to 83 degrees. Our high for the day was 90 degrees.

For dinner: TJ's Spinach and Cashew Ravioli and marinara sauce (we added sun-dried tomatoes and beef-less ground beef from TJ's). We boiled the ravioli for a couple of minutes and nuked the sauce; the meal is ready to eat in under 10 minutes. 100% plant based.

Saturday-Sunday

 

Saturday, I spray painted the spackled holes, following up on Friday's project of removing more screws, bolts, and eyelets from the exterior. Today's the first day in a while without a rain shower. It was a scorcher: 92 degrees with a heat advisory.

Sunday morning, we rode our bikes out to the causeway. We parked on the near side of the drawbridge and walked to the park entrance and back.

The breeze was light, about 2-4 mph, a good day to kayak and paddle board. The sound was as still as a big lake.

We made it home before 10:00.

Our new front door mat arrived today. We got the one above back in 2019. It held up pretty well until the renovation when it got a lot of use. We've cleaned it until the fibers gave way.

The new one is not as interesting, but it may be more practical. We don't love it. It's slightly wider. It was on sale in a flash sale on Amazon.

It came rolled up, but it will eventually flatten.

Friday

 

Beautiful 84 degrees, enjoying the shade and breeze by the water in Clearwater.

I did stretching and strength training for the day.

I found more screws, eyelets, and bolts on the outside of the house.

I missed these on my first go round.

They seem to be everywhere, for reasons unknown.

I plugged the holes with spackling. 

I'll spray paint them tomorrow, if I can find them again.

While I was already outside, I scrubbed the mold and mildew off this low wall shielding the garbage and recycling bin.

Better. When I spray paint the holes, I might put a little paint down low on this wall.

I picked up these white felt circles for our new cabinets. The clear plastic ones that came with the cabinets were too thick to be used on the back of the door handles because the door wouldn't close flush. When we placed the original ones on the door itself, they were too short and the door handle clunked on the cabinet frame. I've tried other options but they were either too thick or too thin. But these felt circles that I found today are the perfect thickness. 

The cabinets have soft-close doors, but that last "clunk" ruined the effect. Now they close softly without a sound.

I picked up this new sink strainer to keep the big stuff from getting in the garbage disposal. Our old one was a different design and too small. Debris would get through around the sides.

The bottom strainer is made of rubber. To empty it, you just pull the stopper inside out and the debris gets dumped in the garbage.

Last walk of the day at Stirling Park

We made it home just in time for an evening thunderstorm.

The rain cooled things down to 78 degrees.