The Afternoon of Yesterday Sept. 27

A slim chance of frost and so I put a poncho on each of the seven tomato plants. September is really such an unsettling month. The sight of ripening vegetables on warm days thread Keat's line through the grey cells: Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness! the rest of the poem is of diminishing relevance. Unless there are small, smart and sustainable household gardens. Meanwhile, like the bees, I think the warm days will never cease. Then comes the intermittent frost alerts to gear one up. Still there is a little more good weather as the geese have yet to fly south. And that is a pleasant sight on bright October skies.

Quilting my day.

A pleasant start with a nod from my number two son and a forward from my number two brother, photos from my number one son and a facebook reply from my number one brother. The real start was before 7am and caused by a 17or 18 year old cat. Scruffy will meowed continuously until I get up to give her soft food and then ,if I return to bed, she will give a second round  of meowing until I get up to turn the blob over for licking. That cat did rural service for 15 years and was then never needy. So we do what we do doggedly.
Hanging the light colored wash was not a chore in the breezing and brightening air. Lunch and then I shall read about the three toed sloth whose coat carries an algae. This algae gives the sloth camouflage coloring. Not technicolor just brown and green.                                                                                     

Something Given

My good neighbour called to say that she is going to the beach to read and would I like to come. I certainly would on this lovely pre-fall day.                                         
Her destination turned out to be Cribbon's Point. Following her lead,I opened my chair on a middle ledge of a 3 tiered and massive rocky outcrop.  I had the afternoon sun on my back and the gentle sea in front. The usual sound of the waves breaking against the rock had a solo voice in it. There is a cut in the rock at right angles to the front of the waves and this gap makes a gulping sound at intervals. More than contentment.
 Walking on the beach to the car, we realized that we had also enjoyed the heat radiated from the rock. That bubble of warmth.

The Asparagus Patch in Mid-Autumn

Weeding the patch I fell in love with it again. This spring I have nonchalantly agreed to have it ploughed under. Something must have stayed the hand of the tractor man and this morning, a delightful mid-autumn day, I went towards the fronds. One thing leads to another and I found myself clearing the surface weeds while being tickled by the waving mature fronds. The young shoots are sturdy.

Filling the Footing Tube on Labour Day Monday

On Saturday the hole for the footing tube was dug to below the frost line at a point dictated by the 2 fixed walls for the porch. The tube is 24 inches wide at one end and tapers to 8 inches over the length of 60 inches. So today we mixed concrete in a wheelbarrow. About 21/2 litres of water to a 25kg bag. Mixing is not a piece of cake. That tube took 9 bags and a bit of the tenth. The man who did the heavy lifting also added rebars to the process. The base, of the metal holder for the support beam, is inserted into the fresh concrete. The tube in the centre of the base is prevented from filling with concrete by taping a Canadian quarter to it.

It is now 4pm and a lovely breeze adds to the kind sunlight. It makes for watching concrete sets.