Happy Sad

Last night Dave and I went to a friend's house in Pinner, northwest of us, for a barbecue. It was a bit drizzly so in the end we all wound up eating in the kitchen, but still, it was a fun evening. Our friend Mark, a guy from work, set up a "listening room" in his house (he has a big rented house) with some very high-quality speakers and a centrally placed chair, in which we all experienced a couple of pieces of our favorite music. We all looked like that guy in the old Maxell ads. My selections: "In a Funny Way" by Mercury Rev; "God Only Knows" by the Beach Boys; "A Day in the Life" by the Beatles; "Blue" by Joni Mitchell.

In Pinner, walking to Mark's, we passed the graffiti bees above, happy and sad.

Earlier in the day, while walking Olga, I came across this very unusual plant in someone's front garden. It has utterly stumped my plant-identifier app, which first tried to tell me it was heliotrope (definitely not) and then a firecracker bush (closer but still not right). It's the first plant I've come across that the app just doesn't recognize and I still have no idea what it is. Anybody know?

Olga was funny on her walk. Because it was rainy we just wandered through the neighborhood, but she got quite obstinate about wanting to turn certain corners and go down certain streets. I suppose she was following her nose, but sometimes I don't think she knows where the hell she is -- and yet she's so CERTAIN. I ran into three more co-workers on the walk. Apparently everyone was out and about this weekend, despite the drizzle.

I mentioned earlier that we've taken to giving Olga a can of dog food every night (as opposed to canned food as an occasional treat). Dave bought a brand with a flavor called "Wild Boar with Superfoods," which just makes me laugh. Is the dog going to fly after eating that? (I read the ingredients -- the "superfoods" include sweet potato, blueberries and manuka honey.)