Random Friday

1.  We have had a wonderful reprieve from the heat of summer this past week.  The weather started cooling off, a degree or two each day, last weekend.  We spent the whole week in the 80s with wonderful cool nights; no house fan, no ceiling fan, no air conditioner.  I pulled a blanket up from the foot of the bed, where it was neatly folded,  over the sheets at night.

2.  Pistol has been coughing for a few weeks, first intermittent and now increasing a bit.  A few days ago she started up with a runny nose -- not thick nasty snotty stuff, but enough that the dust has covered her nose with black mud.  It's not very attractive.  Brett moved her to the barn where she can rest and recover without infecting Lucy or Jackson (if it is viral).  Her appetite has not abated one bit.  This is Pistol, after all.  Our local vet quit practicing and became a full-time professor, his replacement works part-time and has no availability for two weeks.  Our favorite vet, an hour away, is on vacation in Canada but responded to my text (she's awesome).  Pistol doesn't have a temperature and the runny nose seems to be clearing up.  We will watch her and when the coughing stops, we will move her to the donkey pasture where there is less dust. She has allergies, so the dust may be a contributing factor.

3.  After we moved into the house three years ago, and remodeled the kitchen, water started dripping from the ceiling onto the kitchen counter.  The master bathroom was directly above and the shower was leaking -- and had no doubt been leaking for years.  We remodeled the bathroom, putting in a new shower and new plumbing.  We haven't had any more leaks, but the ceiling paint in the breakfast nook started to bubble.  The bubbles grew until they merged and became one big pocket, a few feet long.  The house has settled over the years and is not level.  Shocking, I know.  The bubbled paint area was the lowest spot of the ceiling, so we are quite certain that water made its way down the ceiling beam and came to rest, and rot, in that spot.  Brett peeled off the paint and discovered damp, rotted wood.  Oh, joy.  Another project.

4.  A few months ago, I went to the local plant sale hosted by our local master gardeners at the college arboretum.  I bought a number of vegetable starters, including two sweet peppers.  The first one was labeled "Sweet Pickles" and it produced its first pepper a few weeks ago; a small, red shriveled thing.  I picked it, sniffed it, and put it to my lips to try but stopped when I felt the burn of a hot pepper.  I'm pretty sure it is a "ghost" pepper -- incredibly hot and very popular at the moment.  ...I've been feeding them to the chickens who don't mind the heat at all.  I love jalapeño's in guacamole and salsa but a ghost pepper is a bit too warm for me.

See that little red pepper behind the yellow squash?

5.  The events in Dallas have left me feeling discouraged and depressed.  My heart aches for the families of the slain officers.  Being the wife of a peace officer means you carry a little knot of fear and worry every time your husband goes to work; this event represents your worst fears realized.  The officers were serving and protecting their community during a peaceful demonstration.  It is almost incomprehensible; and is incredibly sad.  We need to heal this country; we need to work together to raise the bar; to earn and preserve trust -- which flows both ways; not break it down.