The Fleeting Permanence Of Summer Art.

Summer is leaving us.    The dry air and hot sun are giving way to rain and clouds.   I know, because I made it happen!   How?  You may ask?   Well,  I worked all day on a Mural on the sidewalk in the park.   There was no rain in the forecast and I figured it would last at least until Monday, when the kids from School would ride over it with their bikes.  But....

There was a lingering thought that if I finished a Mural I actually liked,  it would rain the next day and it would be gone.   Sure enough,  it rained this morning and clouds continue to roll in.   It has brought wind and cooler temps along with it...  And it is not so bad.

I guess I don't mind the rain.

Some murals actually APPEAR
after a rain...

I'm only slightly disappointed that no one else got to see the mural before it was destroyed.  However,  We DO need the rain and the pleasant temps are always welcome.   I figure it is a fair exchange.    I can skip a day watering he plants in the dry heat and we can actually enjoy the great outdoors without getting all hot and sweaty.

Time to go shopping. 

Running in Muscatine. 

Speaking of which, we ran in Muscatine yesterday.   The air along the Mississippi is always more pleasant than in the interior near Wellman.   We did our normal routine and completed some shopping while we were out.   The Farmer's Market offers the BEST Honey... From Wellman!   (Yes, the guy lives in our town, but sells his honey in Muscatine Farmer's Market.  Probably because of the ease of access.)

They look like a swarm. 

Bees Flood the Feeder. 

Speaking of Bees!   The lack of rain over the last 2 weeks has caused the Bees to attack and drain my Hummingbird Feeders!   They gather around like they are swarming.   At least they do not prevent the Hummers from feeding at the same time.  ( YellowJackets are the Worst!)  The hummers are able to shoo away the bees temporarily and get a sip now and then.  In fact,  the Hummingbirds themselves are the ones that do the most harassing around the feeder.   Usually to each other. 

At least they do not bother the
hummingbirds (unlike hornets!) 

So dry the bees are draining the
birdbaths! 

But when the bees DO find one of the feeders, they drain it within a day.   It was funny, because the two days of slight rain we got last week brought out the flowers.   And for two days, the bees vanished.   I'm guessing there were plenty of Thistle and Goldenrod out there to sip from instead.  ( with no annoying hummingbirds to pester you.)  But as soon as the water dried up,  the bees have returned to the feeders.   The Bee Keeper at Muscatine says his bees completely drain his bird bath every day!  You know things are dry when the bees are emptying. the birdbaths of water.

Cheryl in the patch. 

Heirloom Tomatoes.

I have been watering the Tomatoes faithfully over the summer, and they are finally producing a number of Tomatoes.    Cheryl likes to dive in and pick them.   I tend to favor the watering, weeding, and mulching part of the process.   I had wired them up on string to help them reach into the sky,  but the weight of the tomatoes has caused many of the plants to fall over.    Ah well,  with the tree shade now gone,  the tomatoes have plenty ( too much, in fact)  Sunlight to grow.   I don't have to rain them much so they can get a hit of sunlight at least once a day.

She enjoys the hunt and gather..

Hiro posts guard

As it is,  many of the heirloom HUGE tomatoes are enough for Cheryl and I.    We have been attempting to dry them, and give a few away.   I still have the other side of the apartment that have not produced any yet.   When they kick in, we will be up to our eyeballs in Tomatoes.   Judging from the farmer's Market in Muscatine, it appears many other folks are in the same situation.   It is a far better year for tomatoes than last year.

Black Tomatoes weighing down the
support strings. 

Another bowl full.  They are HUGE! 

We think Hiro is missing the "Part-Timer" cat.   Leo has been gone for a full week now and shows no signs of returning.   I'm sure his family has decided to keep him inside or take him with them.. where ever they decided to go.    In fact,   on the rain days, the other two neighbor cats did not make an appearance.   Cheryl thought there was a "Cat-Napper" out in the neighborhood.  (Like a kidnapper, only for cats....  Dog Catcher diversifying into the cat territory , maybe?) I went over to the neighbor's house and discovered that the house I thought the cats were from was now EMPTY!  Had they moved and taken their cats?   Turns out,  a day later Rocket, and later Oreo showed back up begging for food.   Either I had the wrong house,  OR the owners left them to the neighborhood.  I'm hoping I simply had the wrong house.   I'm not ready to adopt those two cats any time soon.

But Hiro welcomes Rocket inside to play and eat treats.  (Hiro does not like Oreo very much.)  Hiro  spends most of his time sleeping these days.   Sometimes he is curled up next to me.   Sometimes behind Cheryl.   But with out Leo to keep him on his toes,  he has not been in a playful mood lately.  Perhaps we will have to fix that later....   We shall see.

Hope everyone is enjoying their lazy Sunday.   If you live in Iowa,  I hope you are enjoying the rain.   We certainly seem to need it.  For the BEES!  And the flowers.   I should also mention that feeder in the photo broke after I took it down to refill it.  Looks like a new hummingbird feeder will be in the cards for the future.   I can hardly wait!   Thanks for stopping in.