August and Then Some

Gainesville

Just finished our third thunderstorm (complete with heavy rain) of the day-- typical August regime and then some. The first came as I was leaving Publix with a full shopping cart. The rain had not started yet, but angry black clouds were right over us, and the lightning strikes were frighteningly close-- the last place you want to be is an open parking lot with a heavy metal shopping basket: death on wheels! I made record time loading the stuff into Blue, you betcha. And, obviously, lived to tell the tale.

Writing this on my lap in the TV room, having watched my first football of the season-- a pre-season matchup for Jax with the Panthers. Jags did not look good, but hey, great to see the old pigskin being tossed around again.

Made a fish dish that involved a chili-cilantro cole slaw. The slaw and the fish marinade (same stuff in both) were wonderful, but the fish itself (mahi) left something to be desired. Next time I'll try it with grouper. Turned out to be more labor-intensive than expected: the package of haricots verts I bought turned out to have a tear in the bottom. They were a little the worse for wear, but mostly they needed to be rinsed and the stem end of each and every bean to be re-trimmed. This is not something you want to be doing in the final stages of getting all parts of a meal to come out simultaneously.

I was still packaging stuff for the freezer and slicing up celery and zucch for Bill's dipping pleasure after dinner, so the stuff I usually have done in the kitchen by now is still undone. This may be one of those rare nights when I don't leave the kitchen counters pristine. There's nothing awful, and the sink is empty, but there is at least 20 minutes worth of stuff to do in there, and I'm not sure I have 20 minutes worth of gas in the tank. And I still need to take a shower.

Finished Love & Rockets X, and Hatfield's commentary on it. There is still a lot of reading to get a real handle on L&R, but at least I think I know the lay of the land now. And a very complex land it is.

Thanks for letting Thea know where I'd been, Mom! We were reduced to playing a gussing game of "Is it north of Florida?" "Yes." "Atlanta?" "Further north." "Washington, D.C.?" "West from there." Etc. Alas, I never could get "West Virginia" through to her.