Here's a happy sight that greeted us upon returning home -- blooming dahlias! After a spring in which the dahlias were cursed with rampaging slugs, I'm glad to see most of them now flourishing. There are still slugs and a few plants still look rather ragged, but I think they're all big enough now that at least the leaves will sustain the roots and they won't die.
So, yeah, dahlias! And also...
...penstemon (see the little hoverfly?)...
...and day lilies, and about a hundred other things from crocosmia to buddleia to hydrangeas. No doubt you'll be seeing it all over the next few weeks.
I did manage to stay awake yesterday, mostly, though at one point I was trying to edit photos and finding myself repeatedly nodding off. Hopefully I didn't delete anything by mistake. I got a full night's sleep last night and this morning I feel more or less normal. I was so happy to wash all my travel clothes and dry them out in the sunny garden, and straighten up the house. Now life can move forward.
When Dave and I went on the boat trip at Iguaçu Falls, there was a guy on board with a Go-Pro camera making videos to sell to the passengers. (Of course!) Dave and I bought a video and within 48 hours or so, the guy sent us a link to download it. I didn't look at it while we were traveling, but I did yesterday and was dismayed to find he'd sent a video of the wrong boat trip, with completely different passengers (and crucially, not us!).
I do not speak Spanish but I wrote the guy an e-mail using Google Translate. God knows what I actually said to him, but I tried to ask him to send the correct video link. I thought the chance was slim that he would, because how many videos must that guy make in a day and this was almost two weeks ago! But lo and behold, he responded promptly with the right one and we're in it:
So yay for Google Translate and the Iguaçu videographer!
Olga woke me this morning at 5:30 by licking my hands, as she often does when she thinks it's time for all of us to get up. It was wonderful to open my eyes and see her there, looking at me expectantly, tail wagging. I've missed that over the past two weeks!
I love the thought of you being awakened by Olga. Home sweet home. That photo of you on the boat is fantastic! And oh your garden!
ReplyDeleteMy-oh-my! What a surprise! More flowers! Kudos to the videographer who did the right thing. I wonder how he could mix the videos up?
ReplyDeleteTo my surprise, you can trust Google Translate, I corresponded for a long time in Polish with the help of Google Translate when I was looking for family roots and it worked wonderfully.
ReplyDeleteYou look pretty wet in the last shot
ReplyDeleteThe flowers are gorgeous and the dog is delighted you are back. Sounds like the perfect homecoming.
ReplyDeleteThat is a fabulous picture.
ReplyDeleteI imagine Olga was more than thrilled to see you two return as well!
ReplyDeleteGreat to come back to a flourishing garden. I'm guessing your dog helper's work didn't extend to the garden.
ReplyDeleteWe've all made tech mistakes but Go Pro man did fix the problem immediately. I wonder how Google translate works in reverse? It is not bad for us but not perfect. Maybe it is for English to Spanish. The photo is great. You are clearly having fun.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking you'd never see the video, and, again, I was wrong.
ReplyDeleteI think my drag name should be Blooming Dahlia.
Lovely flowers! I think all Olga would get from me is a grunt at that hour. Ha!
ReplyDeleteWhat good things to come home to! Sweetness and beauty. And stories like the one of the photographer just make me have a little more hope for humanity.
ReplyDeleteGlad you got the video straightened out with the help of Google.
ReplyDeleteYour flowers are so pretty, Steve!
Love that Olga woke you up this morning. Everything is back to normal. That's a great photo of you and Dave in the boat. It does look like a very wet ride. It looks like you are having a fun time.
ReplyDeleteYou two appear to be having the time of your life, though a wet one!
ReplyDeleteComing home to a garden in flower is lovely. Thank you Google Translate! I've used it too and it works well. The photo of you and Dave on the boat is a keeper. Good times captured in photos are great.
ReplyDeleteI love the photos (and never tire of your flowers!) AND the one of y'all all wet! It looks like you're having such fun. Our day lilies are the same color as yours.
ReplyDeleteSweet Olga.
Your flowers are gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteThere is no question you had a great time on your trip ... except for losing your jacket! You can replace that, you can't relive this trip!
Well done Google Translate, Well done, Olga and well done dahlias! Definitely an A-1 day for you!
ReplyDeleteDave and you look like you're having such a great (but wet) time! That is amazing that he sent you the right one; I would have been doubtful also. That's great that you've adjusted to your home time so easily; it took me longer but I was older than you and had to go back to work a couple days after I returned. THAT was brutal!
ReplyDeleteI just caught up on all of your posts. Glad you had a great trip and that you made it home with no travel drama. Things are right in Olga's world now!
ReplyDeleteBrave of you to use Google translator. I'm happy to know it worked. I really like that last photo of you all in the boat.
ReplyDeleteLove your smile
ReplyDeleteI never tire of seeing your flower pics and would have liked to see some from your trip. Love you both on the boat.
ReplyDeleteWendy (Wales)
Google Translate comes through again! Y'all look pretty darn wet in the video still!
ReplyDeleteOlga likes to wake you gently, which is better than a sudden face licking!
ReplyDeleteYour garden looks so cheerful :)
I'm glad you got the correct video in the end.
Mitchell: Home, sweet home indeed!
ReplyDeleteYP: He gives them all a number and when we got off the boat he told us our video was number 84. But it was actually number 55, or something like that! How he was so off in his numbering system I'm not sure.
Yael: I think it's gotten much better than it used to be. When it first came out the translations were very iffy!
Roentare: We were SOAKED.
Debby: Yeah, it's been great to get home. Olga is undoubtedly happy we're here.
Elle: It's just a screen grab from the video, so the video is even better! But I don't own the rights to it so I can't post it.
Ed: She has relaxed so much. We can tell that she was tense during our absence.
Boud: Ha! No, we felt asking him to mow the lawn was probably a step too far. LOL
Andrew: I bet it works better for commonly translated languages than for more obscure ones. I bet translating into Azerbaijani (for example) is more of a challenge!
Bob: Mine should be Sluggy Dahlia.
Bug: She will not take a grunt for an answer! She'll drive you crazy until you DO get up!
Ms Moon: I agree! I was so impressed that he solved the problem so quickly. If he sent the wrong video to everyone else on that trip he probably knew right away which one I needed.
Ellen D: June and July are the high points of the garden, I think!
Sharon: We were having fun but we were also a little incredulous at the amount of water!
Catalyst: Yeah, it WAS fun but we were happy to get dry later.
Susan: I wonder if people will even bother to try to learn foreign languages now that we have ever-better translating programs?
Kelly: I actually prefer single day lilies but we have doubles (which were planted before we got here).
Marcia: Yeah, the jacket was a worthwhile trade for the experience!
Jeanie: It was indeed nice to see so much going well.
Margaret: Yeah, having free time now is a huge plus. It really helps with the adjustment.
Michael: That's definitely how she sees it!
Colette: I know just enough Spanish that I could read the translated version and see that it was more or less correct.
John: It was like being on a crazy carnival ride, where you can't HELP but smile.
WendyAnn: Surprisingly, I didn't take many flower pictures in South America. It was winter there so not many things were blooming, even around Rio. At least not that I noticed.
Jim: We were soaking wet! LOL
River: Oh, well, sometimes we get a face-licking too. It depends on her mood. :)