La Quinta, California: Pandemic Day #6734. It certainly is beginning to feel this terrible nightmare has gone-on that long. Or longer? How are you all doing? Without all this activity from moving, I'm sure I would have been quite over-the-top stressed and bored at the same time. I used to feel only boring people are bored, but after the past six months, maybe there needs to be a rethink of that philosophy? The grandkids are beginning on-line classes this week in Los Angeles. Poor Lisa and Lenny, having to become teachers (on top of their actual jobs!), and poor Lucy and Leo, having to see their teacher via an iPad. No friends.
Up with the chicken again, giving us an opportunity to witness another beautiful sunrise. With usual humidity in the Coachella Valley this week, we are getting all-sorts of cloud cover. It is keeping things "cooler" - as long as you consider 110° cool.
Our fake plant was delivered today. I had no idea what else to stick-up on this shelf... and honestly, every house (with this floor plan) we looked at in this country club had a fake (I assume) plant perched up on this super-high shelf. We bought the blue & white pot in Taiwan years ago. The pot with the handles on the lower shelf is a party-sized wine chiller. Pottery Barn. Much newer. Wonder how long it will sit there before we are once again able to have a party?
Maybe I should just order another fake plant for the wine chiller? Did I ever tell you about a housekeeper we had in the early 90s who watered the fake plant we had on top of an armoire?
Left-overs for lunch today: slices of the super raw flank steak from last night, along with the left-over rice, stir-fried with a chopped tomato. Not a lot of tomatoes are used in Chinese cooking, but they do appear sometimes in beef recipes.
Year and years and years ago, we bought a print of a moose and bear at a bar at the National Museum of Wildlife Art, just outside Jackson, Wyoming. (If you ever have the chance, do not pass-up this museum.) All this time, we never did a thing with this print - even though the bar at our last house was in a room entirely decorated/devoted with a National Parks theme. Finally, I had this cute print framed for the bar at our desert house. (Of course, I custom-ordered the frame online - no way was I going to a frame shop... or any shop during a pandemic... if a frame shop is even open theses days.) The frame and mat arrived today and we are in business. So cute - the bear is holding a martini shaker!
Of course, it wouldn't be a normal day unless there was some sort of mishap. We had our own national-park-worthy geyser today on our veranda. One of the sprinkler heads in a planting bed at the bottom of one of the columns blew. The water pressure was so strong, it hit the top of the eaves (14 feet ceilings in this part of the house) and was blasting-away the paint on the over-hang.
By the time I figured out how to turn-off the sprinkler, the carpet under the patio furniture was soaked - along with the both of us. Our gardener, Daniel Salazar, came right over and temporarily plugged-up the sprinkler head (and will repair it later this week) so we can continue to irrigate in this terrible heat wave. We are unfamiliar with our new irrigation system/equipment, so need to learn how to do these repairs ourselves. Next week!
And mishap #2. The chair we had ordered for the family room was delivered today (the matching ottoman is already here). When the crew unboxed the chair (on the street in front of our house), they noticed a big crack on the arm of the wooden chair. Rat farts! Back it went, and another will not be available until the end of August. Double rat farts! The clerk did take pity on me, so is expediting the shipping on the replacement chair.
(Bought it on sale several weeks ago.)
Tostadas tonight, using the rest of the bean dip served as an appetizer Saturday night on crispy tostada shells, shredded rotisserie chicken (Costco) from the freezer, sour cream, salsa, fresh tomato, sliced olives, cilantro... and I forgot the lettuce... and I had purchased (Instacart) a head of iceberg for just this evening. Dang.
Until my next update, I remain, your Roseanne Roseannadanna correspondent.
PDX could use the water from your Old Faithful. The city of Portland has stopped watering trees along the streets due to revenue loss. The trees are dying. So sad. Thank goodness fall will be here soon.
Renee, that’s awful about the trees! What’s the point in letting them die? It will cost more to replace them than to water them. Buck up, Portland! Sad.
The bins in your pantry – available on Amazon by any chance? What size are they?
Thanks
Years ago, a friend of mine would baby-sit houses while the owners were on vacation, agreeing to keep the plants watered, feed the cat, etc. One condition was she could invite friends over for happy hour. One house was overloaded with house plants. She carefully went thru the rooms, one by one. She struggled with one plant on a high shelf, only to have the water run out the bottom immediately. You’re right, it was a fake plant!
What a nice looking chair! Hopefully your next one will
arrive in good condition. These hiccups are the pits !!