MY SON THE MOUNTAIN CLIMBER

I think it's nice that grown children have hobbies, preferably ones that do not risk life and limb.

Number four son is into the latter.

He takes off for the mountain top of choice, on his own, and returns when he's met the goals for that climb.

I hope passing bears and other marauders note his agenda and leave him alone.

There is a gene running through the family--give me a lot of space, lots of fresh air and stay back--I'm busy being here right now.

Unless a passing fox obliged by taking this photo, Number Four did it himself.

Move away from the edge please.

This is your mother speaking.

Yin and Yang

This pretty well sums up the summer.

It doesn't just rain--it comes down in torrents.
The good part is that leaves more reading time and less need to get out those weeds.

Dude

This lanky dude hangs from the post, then reaches over to the feeder--but not while the camera is trained on him.

That's when he freezes into a black icicle and waits me out.

Samantha Blooms

This is Samantha, plant name unknown. I brought a cutting from my brother's place in B.C. years ago and in all these years my Samantha has bloomed twice, each time squirting out two tiny blooms.

As usual, she hibernated in the basement over the winter with precious little care, and in the spring she received fertilizer and final notice--produce or you go to the giant plant bone yard in the sky.

That got her attention and here she is, a dazzling lady.

I have no idea what her real name is, but my brother named his Samantha and I followed suit. In B.C., the things bloom profusely and they're as close to being orchids as you can find.



And here's another first--a ripe tomato.



All that rain we've been having apparently suits these inhabitants.