Thursday…

Sunrise from the Old Bat Cave
Sunrise this morning at the Old Bat Cave

I operated under the delusion that it was Friday until I got to work and the computer insisted that it was Thursday. But, it was fine and warm. And sunny. If I still lived in the old digs I would be anticipating the opening of the pool. I guess I could anticipate going to the indoor pool. But, it just isn’t the same.

Note to my overseas friends: I fear there is a chance that Donald Trump could win. I am afraid. Very afraid.

Now, today’s pictures.

damselfly
damselfly

Or maybe it is a dragon fly. It is very small. And very fast. And impossible for me to photograph.

clematis

The Garden Box – Day 1

Let the growing begin.
Let the growing begin.

Well, I spent the afternoon rounding up some perennial herbs. It took a walk and a bus ride. Then I Ubered back to the OBC. I can only carry so many plants. And, I didn’t want to squash or fatally injure any of these expensive little plants. I want a couple more herbs and plan to fill up the empty spots with basal and annual plants that are bee friendly. I planted fennel and butterfly weed for bees and butterflies today. But, bees need all the help they can get.

Speaking of bees –

Today's Bee
Today’s Bee

Yes, Laurent – the Garden Boxes are one of the “recreational activities” here at the asylum. There are about 30 boxes and about 500 residents… So, gardening isn’t a real popular activity. Way more than 30 people show up at the bar for Happy Hour 🙂 And, I think your buried treasure theory is the best explanation about the vanishing herbs. I went on a search for them – didn’t find them. Herb has left the building.

Most of the garden boxers try to grow tomatoes. But, I have heard there are tomato rustlers. Not squirrels, deers, or turtles – but other residents. So, I’ll most likely pass on the tomatoes. Beets, carrots, or chard might be safe.

Lunch got missed today – what with all the garden shopping. Just got an email saying today’s special is: Pan Seared Corvina with Parmesan Potatoes, Asparagus Slaw and Black Rice. Sounds good.

There is no free herb

Box 4 - Yesterday
Box 4 – Yesterday

Yesterday, I happily signed up for Garden Box #4. Half of it was full of wonderful herbs. Silly me. I assumed this was what I was going to get. I emailed my request for #4 and said I wanted the herbs. Well…

Box 4 - Today
Box 4 – Today

This is what the box looked like this afternoon. The herbs did not convey. My guess is the groundskeeper wanted them. Now I have 11 square feet of dirt. I don’t think I would have taken the box if I had known it was going to be just dirt. There is no free herb.

Ladybug larvae
Ladybug larvae

Yesterday’s post had a picture of a sweet ladybug. This is a not so sweet looking ladybug larvae.

THE SUN!

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Ballston

Yes, blue sky, puffy white clouds, the sun, shadows… for a couple of hours. Oh it was warm too.

So, after lunch,,, I went bug hunting.

 

Does this pollen make my thighs look fat?
Does this pollen make my thighs look fat?
Lady Bug
Damp Lady Bug

It is still raining…

Bat from American Samoa
Bat from American Samoa

I loved those bats!

Made a SERIOUS mistake this rainy Sunday morning. I decided to read all the “news” parts of the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday Washington Posts. (In the dead tree paper – not on line.) There wasn’t a single cheerful, optimistic or even neutral article, column or op-ed piece. The cheeriest part of the papers were the obits – where I happily noted that people younger than me die all the time from various cancers that you get just because you have bad luck.

So, there is hope that I’ll not live to see how this mess of radicalized selfish weapons packing bomb tossing humanity plays out over the next 30 years. I guess things were this bad in the 1930s. But, the 1930s didn’t end so very good.

I am not afraid from my physical safety. We live in a dangerous time. (Aren’t all times dangerous? Plague, famine, smallpox, polio, enslavement, debtor’s prison, electroshock treatment, lynchings, nuclear bombs… the list goes on and on.) I can deal with the physical dangers – it is the total fraying of civil society that distresses me.

And, there is nothing at all that I can see that a little old lady can do to slow this march to madness.

Maybe we need to be invaded by aliens.

Oh, on a lighter note – in one of the “not news” sections of the paper a question was asked: “How long will cannabis infused butter last in the fridge?” – now that question is as silly as asking how to use up leftover dark chocolate truffles. Somethings just aren’t going to happen.

It rained.

My World View
My World View.
A closer look.
A closer look.

Rain. Not great torrents of rain. No lightening. Nothing exciting. Just wet. And more wet. Seattle without legal weed, great coffee and assisted suicide.

Note to Carlton: I am happy to report that you would absolutely hate the green beans that they served at the asylum today. Nice and crunchy. Just like you hated them!

There was a memorial service this afternoon at the asylum for a departed resident. The dearly departed lady was Resident #1 when the asylum opened 39 years ago. For the last couple of years she was in poor health. She was in her early 60’s when she moved in.

Having drinks yesterday one of my 90 something neighbors stopped by to share a glass of wine… When she was in her late 70’s she went around the world on a several freighters (alone). She encouraged me to do likewise before I hit the 79 year old mark – because after 80 one is declare too old to travel by freighter.

A lot of interesting and adventurous old ladies live here.

I, however, was neither interesting nor adventurous today.
I, however, was neither interesting nor adventurous today. I was old.

 

Finally…

yellow rose of the asylum
yellow rose of the asylum

Finally. The Employee Health Computer system is back. At 1300 today – the IT department threw in the towel and rolled the network back 7 days. And by 1301 – it was all good again.

Finally. I got out of the office before 1400 hours.

Finally. When I got home – it was warm and sunny.

Finally. It’s Aloha Friday.

Note to Carlton: I saw Lelia yesterday – she still works at the hospital. She is over 80. And she is still as happy and perky as ever.

It is supposed to be cold and rainy tomorrow. But, that is then. Nobody is promised tomorrow – so I should welcome tomorrow – rain and all.

some sort of a wasp.
some sort of a wasp

Glad I got some photos today. Don’t think there will be any tomorrow.

Eat More Cheese.

The Asylum birds eat very well - nothing but the best thistle and sunflower seeds.
The Asylum birds eat very well – nothing but the best thistle and sunflower seeds.

Still chilly and cloudy. But, I didn’t deploy the umbrella today. I had it with me.

Reading the WJS – big article about the US Cheese glut. All of the cheese warehouses are stuffed. So, we are all called on to eat an addition 3 pounds of cheese this year. I can do that. And apparently it is all kinds of cheese – so – eat up boys and girls.

peoney
peony – not too very fond of this image after all.

The Rain – IT’S BACK.

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“LIVE” Health? As opposed to “DEAD” Health, maybe?

No bees today. The rain is back. And, I spent the afternoon “prettifying” a flyer for work.

So, it is chilly and rainy. In honor of Mr C – it is time for a little gratitude list.

  1. Uber – got me home this afternoon. 3 minutes after firing up the app, I was in the car. And 11 minutes later, I was walking in the door at the asylum. ($8.32 Carlton – deal with it!)
  2. The wonderful spinach and tomato soup the asylum had on tap for me when I came in for a late lunch.
  3. Cara Cara oranges – season is almost over.

Three is good. Let’s not overdo this gratitude business.

This is just wrong!
This is just wrong. A dog has a better life than most people.

I like signs almost as much as bees. And, I got these two on Sunday.

This fine event was this afternoon:

Our fashion show and shopping event with Taylor Marie’s Apparel is taking place on Tuesday, May 17. Watch the Atrium and Rotunda transform into a clothing boutique featuring racks of fashionable women’s clothing and accessories from respected, high quality brands! The store will feature the latest spring styles in petite, missy, and women’s sizes. 

Unfortunately, I missed it. Was planning on checking it out to see “What Not To Wear”. I think I know.

Where is my Robot Cat?

Colors and Bees

The day got off to a colorful start
The day got off to a colorful start – Sunrise from the OBC

Glorious sunny day. A little chilly. They had snow not so very far from here. And, we’ll be back in the rain tomorrow. But, today was grand.

Pink.
Pink. Lots of Pink.

And, everyone knows I love bees… I was able to sneak up on a couple in the OBC garden this afternoon.

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“honey bee”
"bumble bee"
“bumble bee”

Settling into the OBC. I thought it would be like moving into a new apartment. Done that lots of times. But, moving into the OBC is more like moving to a new universe. It is OK. Just different. I am more than a “renter”. And, it really isn’t like being in boarding school. Because, you don’t “graduate” from the Asylum. (Nobody gets out alive.) So, it is more permanent. And for those of us who are mentally and physically with it – we can leave anytime we want to. (Never mind that it will cost a lot of money to leave.)  So, it isn’t like being a lifer in prison.

For me, this is a good place to be. It is home – Home is the place where, when you have to go there, they have to take you in. (Robert Frost) But, it is still strange.

The Hōkūleʻa

The Hōkūleʻa in Alexandria
The Hōkūleʻa in Alexandria

It is almost impossible to overstate the importance of the HōkÅ«leÊ»a to Hawai’i and the Hawaiian renaissance. In 1976, the HōkÅ«leÊ»a sailed – using no modern/western navigational aides – from Hawai’i to Tahiti. When she arrived in Tahiti half the population showed up to welcome the HōkÅ«leÊ»a and her crew. So, it was only fitting that every Hawaiian, Samoan and Maori in the area showed up to welcome canoe and crew. She will hang around until next weekend. Then she sails north to NYC.

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Lots of Maile Lei
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I was honored to be allowed on board.
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The fireboat is the “John Glenn” – sort of sweet. 

The excellent HōkÅ«leÊ»a adventure took a couple of busses, two metro rides and some walking and most of the day. Also did my normal Sunday laundry chores. And, I applied for the “Global Entry Program”. Time to get my traveling boots on.

It’s the Weekend!

Asylum Rose
Asylum Rose

Lazy rainy day off from work yesterday. Then happy hour, dinner and a chick flick with the “Bar Belles”. One of our group has a major DVD collection. She says DVDs are cheaper than a therapist and get one through bad times. I think for me it is audiobooks.

The sun was actually out this morning. So, I was out too. Took a little walk to a “gourmet grocery”. Which – since I have no one to cook for and I live in a place that feeds me seem a little silly. But, I love grocery stores. Even if I couldn’t cook anything – I would still love grocery stores.

I did not come away empty handed.
I did not come away empty handed.
Turned the fresh stuff into lunch
Turned the fresh stuff into lunch.

And a pretty fine lunch it was. Healthier than the asylum fare too. It is fun to make food from the great ingredients. Especially when you are cooking because you want to. Not because you have people that require feeding.

Note to Carlton: Your old VA Tech classmate – Irv Peddrew received an honorary degree from VA Tech the other day. I know that will make you happy. His picture was in the Post. He was looking good.