There is an eerie stillness in the air this morning. No bird songs. Not even a flicker of movement in the trees. Haven't seen a bird at a feeder or sitting on a branch. No sign of our two chipmunks. Each morning I scatter a small handful of seeds containing various kinds of nuts on the back porch. Within minutes chippy pouches as many as she/he can until the cheeks are lumpy then scurries home to deposit them in storage. This morning the seeds remain on the porch. We're hoping a snake or other predator hasn't eaten our chipmunks. The only sound and sight is the three hummingbirds that never cease feeding and fighting, even during a heavy rain. It's said that animals sense approaching storms. TS Ida is a huge storm now and we're under flash flood warnings again for Tuesday and Wednesday. At 9:45 the temperature is 70 degrees with a 97% humidity. Cliff has his chemo appointment this morning at 10:45. I bring a book, a magazine, my iPad and sneakers so I
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The final rain total from Fred was 5 inches. And where did the hurricane experts come up with "Fred"? It's not Greek or Latin. Fred Flintstone? The University of Central Florida sends out their Pegasus Magazine four times a year. Since I graduated from UCF in 1987, the university has grown by leaps and bounds. One UCF grad led the charge to create Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine that opened up the possibilities for the future of medicine. UCF's Modern(a) Man, Darin Edwards class of '97, was the leader who rolled up his sleeves with his hard-working team to get the vaccine that changed the world. My thanks to scientists and medical personnel for their sleepless night and perseverance. Cliff had his 4-week follow up appointment with our doctor this morning. The doc spent over an hour listening to Cliff, answering questions and reassuring him that his body is following his personal pattern. By the time we left Cliff felt more comfortable and reassured. This is
Tropical storm Fred is slowly changing our atmosphere as it makes landfall in the Florida panhandle. Yesterday my joints, wrists, and hands told me there was a barometric change happening. Motrin is my friend. Cliff had his chemo this morning. Blood platelets were very good. He's trying to include more fresh steamed greens with his lean meats and other natural platelet building foods and plenty of water. When he goes into the clinic for his treatment, I usually stay in the parking lot, put my feet up and read. When he first started going, I'd wander around Home Depot or pick up a few items at Ingles but with the high increase of the Delta variant, it's safer to sit in the clinic lot. If his appointment is an early one, I sit in a rocking chair way down the end of the porch at the Sawmill Restaurant with a coffee and my book. The restaurant is only about two miles from the clinic. This morning I looked like I was going away on vacation with my flip-flops, my iPad, T
Just a quick update......... Cliff did not have his chemo treatment today because the platelet count was too low and unsafe. He had a choice to have it today and skip the next one and made the smart move by skipping this one. We both feared today's chemo would have put him back at Piedmont Atlanta. So we had bacon and eggs at the Sawmill instead of chemo. Much more fun, too!!
4:30 pm Weather channel app on my cell phone predicted a 24% chance of rain today. It's been raining since about 11 am. Not hard, just a continuous gentle rain. I worked in the yard anyway. Raked some leaves and put down new mulch in a few areas. Pulled up the green and yellow bean plants in the garden. They seem to be tired and are producing alien-looking beans. The Swiss chard I planted in the spring is finally growing. I planted a small area of beets for fall. Carrots look like they may ready soon. The summer squash plant showed rot from the lack of sun and the overly moist soil so it's been uprooted and thrown deep into the woods. I picked another zucchini this afternoon and because the plant has a few more blossoms it's earned a reprieve. The majority of the garden if full of red salvia and holy basil herbs that reseeded themselves from last years flowers. Moon flowers and morning glories climb inside the garden fence so the bunnies and deer can't eat