Another busy day in the heat and humidity. My morning was spent canning 4 litres of garden Tomatoes, as Tomato Sauce. There are more tomatoes coming, eventually, when they ripen. If the freezing weather arrives before they ripen, then it will be time to switch from canning tomato sauce, to canning Green Tomato Chow Chow, and Green Tomato Mincemeat. It is supposed to be a mild autumn, so perhaps this year all of the tomatoes will ripen on the vine. The other project I am working on is a batch of Naan. We like it so much that we eat a whole batch in 24 hours!
After enjoying such wonderful mild days over the last few weeks, with the windows open, the closed windows and air conditioned interior are a disappointment. The weather people say tomorrow will see the temperature fall, the skies cloud over, and rain. The garden will enjoy the rain, there are still many plants thriving out there.
It is a quiet day here, other than our projects.
Today Attila is installing the protective strips on the waterproofing, on the exterior walls of the basement. It materials for this project were purchased when the foundation was dug up, when the waterproofing material was applied to the walls. It has been waiting patiently in the garage for years, literally. He began the project yesterday, and I anticipate it will be completed today.
It has now been 7 months since I last entered a store, ventured into public spaces, or had any face-to-face contact with anyone other than Attila, with the exception of one ultrasound visit, and one visit to a retail outlet to obtain the grain needed for flour. It seems to me that this isolation will, and must, continue for at least another 7 months, if not longer. The world is changing out there, but I only read about it. Today, in Ontario where I live, there was a 42% rise in the number of Covid cases (700 new cases); this is the highest number of new cases in a day that Ontario has experienced during this Pandemic. The virus has its teeth into us now.
I am not waiting for things to go back to the way they were. For Attila and I there will be most likely be no going back, our trajectory in life is completely disrupted and rerouted, our financial resources are evaporating. The only thing for it, as far as we can see, is to move forward on this “Chilkoot Trail”, where the quest is for life itself, and coming out the other end of the Pandemic with our health, shelter, and food. If we were younger I would feel confident that in time we would rebuild a life, but time is not on our side. So here we are working hard and surviving, quite comforatably for the moment, keeping our eyes on that distant peak as we struggle to put one foot in front of the other. We have fallen through the cracks in Canada’s, and Ontario’s, attempts to financially support those adversely affected by the Pandemic. It is a bit dark down here, but we aren’t alone.
Stay safe dear friends!
What’s blooming in the Garden:
Heliopsis 
Morning Glory 
Giant Marigold 
Nastutium 
Dianthus
Worldly
Weather
23°C
Date: 2:00 PM EDT Monday 28 September 2020
Condition: Partly Cloudy
Pressure: 100.8 kPa
Tendency: Falling
Temperature: 22.7°C
Dew point: 18.3°C
Humidity: 76%
Wind: SSE 16 km/h
Humidex: 29
Visibility: 24 km
Quote
“It’s all very well to read about sorrows and imagine yourself living through them heroically, but it’s not so nice when you really come to have them, is it?”
L. M. Montgomery
1874 – 1942
Julia and I have been more adventurous than you, doing the bimonthly (every other week) grocery runs, one emergency trip to Michaels’ for embroidery thread, and one trip to Walgreens drug store (because apparently they aren’t shipping her Losartan eye drops (which must be kept very cold) anymore). While there, she got her flu shot.
It’s strange, I came across one of those fb posts saying “support local businesses”, eat out, etc., that are designed to induce guilt. I replied, “Sorry, BUT!” Yes, I know local businesses are hurting. But if I am too risky, they could lose me permanently! If they go under before the covid crisis is over, that’s sad, BUT!
Those are some beautiful flowers! Thanks for photographing them and sharing them!
Good health to both of you!
Joan, we do err on the side of caution, everyone has their own comfort zone. We are so lucky here, as we have found a pharmacy that delivers, only once a week mind, but they do deliver. The delivery woman is very friendly, and leaves our packages at the door, waiting until she sees that we know it is there. We pick up our groceries at an outdoor pickup spot. We had been ordering other types of things online, to be delivered to the house. My philosophy is the fewer potential exposures the better, but it seems impossible to avoid all exposures.
I love your response, BUT! Excellent points.
Stay safe dear friend!
I heard on overnight radio that Ontario had 700 new cases. So sorry. Somehow I feel guilty that the US – having mismanaged this whole pandemic so badly – has caused other neighboring countries to fare a lot worse. So sorry! If only we can get this lout out of office in a few months! I pray we do every day.
Dear Bex, it is very sad that the US has mismanaged the pandemic, but the choices made in the USA are not responsible for the choices made in Canada. If the cases here in Canada are rising it is down to the behaviour and decisions made in Canada, by the Canadian people and the Canadian governments. I feel your concern for us here in Ontario, I feel the same for you where you live, thank you for that. I do hope fervently that the US balances itself and moves forward. I hope the same for Canada, and every country on planet earth.
Stay safe dear friend!