The 366 Project: July

 

It seems like July started only yesterday, and here we are in August already! July just flew by with lots of knitting, time spent in the garden and unfortunately two heatwaves. You might think that we should be used to a lot of heat in California, but while this is certainly true for Southern California it is not the case here in Northern California, especially so close to the coast. Mornings and evenings can be downright chilly thanks to the marine layer aka fog. I love the fog and don't like the heat and I was really happy when the morning fog finally returned. Such a relief. I guess many of you in North America experienced the heat as well. It is a mystery to me how someone can still deny climate change.

This was July in my world:

Just a few days into July I had my old German class over for some German Erdbeerbowle. Over the years this has become a tradition that everyone seems to look forward to. I enjoyed setting the table under the big shade tree (it was one of those very hot days).

Everybody came and we had a wonderful time together despite the heat. I will miss these people so much. This photo is my ticket for Nicole's Friday Face Off.

We enjoyed our "new" bird feeder in July, but had become a bit weary of the squirrels. The Geek was thinking about how to discourage these little rascals from ransacking the feeding tubes almost constantly. The Geek being an engineer through and through, he sat down and did some calculating and figuring out.

He then constructed a baffle out of thin metal and empty beer cans (good German beer!), some metal glue and duct-tape.

So far it has worked very well. We also turned the feeder by 90º so it's further away from the fence. Now the birds feed undisturbed on the tubes, but are kind enough to throw some seed to the ground where the squirrels then eat them. Everyone's happy and I don't have to refill the tubes every day but only every other day or even less. Like everything else, bird seed has become quite expensive as well.

Since we had so many hot days in July, I cooked very basic simple meals. I usually eat whole grain toast for breakfast - here you can see my summer version. There's hummus below the tomatoes and smoked salmon spread below the cucumbers. So delicious!

Here's dinner - clockwise from top left: Ramen noodles with tofu, fennel, red bell pepper and zucchini; marinated sockeye salmon with roasted carrots and zucchini; Teriyaki chicken with broccoli, green onion and rice; Fusilli with market fresh tomatoes and zucchini

One more thing - when the Geek built the clothesline for me in 2015 I also found a beautiful hand sewn clothespin bag. Now after nine years hanging out at the clothesline what remains of this bag is mere rags, so I decided to look for a new one. There isn't that much out there what I had envisioned. But then I found this shop on Etsy in Germany and there were the cutest hand sewn clothespin bags. I ordered one and I received it in less than two weeks. I'm so happy!

I wish all of you a pleasant, not too hot August!

Dog Days of Summer Party

I didn't write a single blog post at all last week. I just didn't have the time because I was preparing our garden party that took place on Saturday.

On the hottest day of the year up to then (Sunday was even hotter with a balmy 104 F)! It wasn't only hot, it was smokin' hot - literally. In the early morning, the smoke of the big wildfires north of us made its way down into our county and lingered the better part of the day. Thankfully it had disappeared mostly when our party started in the late afternoon, but the air is still hazy and a bit smoky. And it's still hot.

But I digress. I wanted to tell you about the garden party. Every summer I had talked about a garden party, but except for one summer quite some years back I never followed through with my plans. This summer, though, was different - and I finally had the party I was dreaming about all the years before.

Do you remember the clothesline the Geek built for me? It's perfect to change into a canopy sort of thing for shade for a party. I just threw a huge piece of sunny fabric over the lines, fastened it with my bird shaped pegs, set out a table and a few chairs beneath it - done! It was a popular spot to hang out during the party.

I had bought flowers to make little bouquets for the tables - that was the real fun part of the prep work. I love to arrange flowers in a casual way, and this is what it looked like.

I wanted to fill this lovely wire basket with flowers as well. I usually put my harvest in it when I walk around the garden picking the ripe veggies. I found these stunning gaillardias and a petunia in one of my favorite nurseries. I will plant all of them as soon as it cools down a bit.

And then we were just waiting for the friends and neighbors we had invited.

They came and most of them had brought something to eat or to drink. No one had to leave hungry!

I had made a special German drink that is very popular at summer parties, and I will tell you more about it in one of my next posts. I got a lot of ideas from Pinterest, the Geek created the wooden base for the lemonade and even Kaefer had made some of the food. Very soon the party was in full swing.

The girls had occupied a table for themselves and had such fun together.

The next morning didn't look much different than right before the party...

Hanging Out

Growing up in Germany we always dried our laundry on the line. The attic of our apartment building was a huge space where each family had an assigned area where we put up the clotheslines and hang our clothes to dry. On hot summer days it took only two hours for the laundry to dry; on cold and humid winter days it took at least a day.

As a child I loved to go up to the attic with my mom. I usually handed her the colorful clothespins while she was hanging one piece of clothes after the other. We always talked while doing this and I felt quite important as her helper.

Later, when clothes dryer were introduced they didn't find the popularity as here in the States. One reason was that our clothes weren't designed for dryers; the other was that clothes kept longer in good shape when they dried on the line. Apartment buildings usually have special laundry rooms where you can hang your wash on the line - either in the attic or in the basement. When Kaefer was born we had the laundry room in the basement and it worked out beautifully. Whenever possible I dried our clothes on a special clothesline rack on my balcony.

So when we moved to the States I was introduced to a dryer and I hated it from the very first moment. While I do see its convenience it lacks the fragrance and the freshness of clothes dried on a line. Lucky for me, our landlord came from China and there was a clothesline in the backyard. The only time I used the dryer was during the winter.

Then we moved to our home and had to leave the clothesline behind. I reluctantly threw my laundry in the dryer or I used the clothesline rack that I had brought from Germany (the one that I used on the balcony). Unfortunately that rack had become rather old and wasn't very stable anymore - it toppled over whenever there was a bit of wind, and it's quite windy where I live! It was frustrating but still better than using the dryer.

But finally I had enough! I asked the Geek whether he would built a clothesline for me. I had found some beautiful idea on Pinterest and showed him what exactly I was dreaming about.

This wonderful guy built it for me.

This is anything but a flimsy clothesline. This one is made of solid redwood (the same wood we built our fence with) and it has a height which is comfortable for me (I am not the tallest person). The Geek put clothesline tighteners up as well so that the lines are always tight. There is nothing loose here!

On one side he built a huge planting box with a trellis - those are leftovers he still had from building the rose trellis two years ago. By now there is a beautiful clematis in the box as well as a stunning rose. It looks wonderful (no photos yet).

On the other side he built a "seat" for the laundry basket (no more bending over!) that is strong enough for a person to sit on.

In this Etsy shop I found a hand sewn clothespin bag that now hangs on the line and holds almost all of my clothespins. This was the finishing touch to perfection!

I can't tell you how happy and thankful I am! Now I enjoy laundry again. Hanging the wash on the line is almost meditating. I can listen to the birds, feel the wind in my hair, smell the freshly mowed grass in my neighborhood. I am so very happy.

I do think I have the best husband in the world.