A mostly pictorial post today, since I don't have much news. Mrs. Russia is silent upstairs -- so silent, in fact, that I think they may be out of town, which would explain the early rising yesterday. (But not the early vacuuming.)
Here's a beautiful tree I passed on my walk home yesterday evening. I'm going to try to get a better shot of it when the sun is on it, because this shadowy picture doesn't quite do it justice.
Remember how I mentioned that a building on the high street was struck by lightning over the weekend? Well, here it is. You can see the top of that gable is blown off. I imagine that pipe, which looks like plastic but I believe is actually metal, served as a giant lightning rod. I wonder what poor soul lives in that top flat. They must have felt a jolt.
Rubble rained down in the street after the strike. It's all still lying in the gutter.
And remember how I told you Olga likes to sniff garbage on our walks? Well, here she is in full garbage mode, with her nose entirely inside that bag. I hear you saying, "Oh, Steve, you shouldn't let her do that! She might eat something dangerous!" All I can say in my defense is that she's a lot stronger than she looks and walking her is exhausting because she pulls for every garbage bag she sees. I get tired of the fight. I usually manage to keep her from eating anything, unless I'm sure it's harmless.
Finally, one of the school moms brought me some flowers yesterday -- a pink Ranunculus and a yellow tulip. She came in as I was working and wordlessly set them on my desk, which was so nice. There was an event going on so I silently mouthed "Thank you!" to her.
I showed you my desk from the other side a few days ago, so here's what it looks like from the front. Those little friendship bracelets were lost in the library and I set them there thinking someone might reclaim them, but no one ever has. I found the animals years ago in a storage cabinet and put them out for some colorful decoration. The parrot is a Beanie Baby ("Jabber"), and that little blue thing is a rhinoceros.
Your photos are most interesting. I wonder how long the rubble will remain in the gutter. Given your posh area, not too long.
ReplyDeleteYour pen mugs have reminded me of my own. I got rid of it. I now have two pens, one black ink and one blue ink at hand. The rest sit nearby in a handy drawer, after a cull of all the non working pens and marker pens.
The rubble is gone already! The pen mugs are mostly for students to borrow writing utensils as needed. I found most of the pens and pencils in the library.
DeleteI wonder if there'll be any insurance issues over having a lightning conductor pipe up that wall then suffering a strike!!
ReplyDeleteGood question! It does seem like tempting fate...
DeleteYour desk is "interesting" but not entirely professional. Don't be surprised if The Library Boss commands you to get rid of that whimsical clutter - replacing it with a simple desk name plate: "MR S.REED - Here to serve".
ReplyDeleteI do get the impression that someone would rather I not have that stuff up there! Occasionally I come in to work and it has all been shoved to one side...
DeleteIt's a wonder no-one was hit by the falling rubble.
ReplyDeleteI like your desk - something cheery to look at, though libraries are generally cheerful, comfortable places, anyway.
I wonder if they were -- people or cars. (There's parking in the street below.)
DeleteI always give Shirley time for smells on our walks. I can only imagine how strong their sniffer is.
ReplyDeleteAt this point in her life, I think Olga experiences most of the world through her nose!
DeleteI like the front of your desk -- and that was so nice of the mom to bring some flowers!
ReplyDeleteWasn't it great? I'm still enjoying them as I write this!
DeleteOlga's nose wants what it wants!
ReplyDeleteThat's for sure -- for better or worse.
DeleteI bet that mom made your day. Funny how the littlest things can mean so much- she was thinking of you and showed her appreciation.
ReplyDeleteI imagine it is difficult to get Olga away from garbage. She is all head and chest!
That's it -- even though she's older, she's built in a way that makes for powerful pulling. Plus it's a cumulative fatigue, because she pulls this way and that every few feet!
DeleteI'm glad the parents appreciate your hard work in the library, Steve!
ReplyDeleteMe too! Hopefully they'll be empathetic if I ever have to send them an overdue notice.
DeleteI remember the first time I went to England, as an adult, I was shocked to see pipes on the outside of houses. It makes sense, but it's not something that would be doable here with our winter temps.
ReplyDeleteLovely flowers.
Oh, that's true. I wonder if the engineers who came up with this external plumbing gave that any thought? I think even up in Scotland there are external pipes.
DeleteThat lightning strike must have been frightening. Glad no one was walking below at the time. I love the view of your desk. My grandmother lived there. She always talked about the other side.
ReplyDeleteYou lost me on the comment about your grandmother. LOL
DeleteWhen I was young, nearly every house had lightening rods on the top of them, sometimes several. These days, I'm not sure when the last time I've even seen a lightening rod on a house. I'm not sure if they were proven ineffective or just one of those things that fell out of fashion. I do know that the ones on our farm house would occasionally impale a squirrel that mistakenly jumped from a tree to that exact spot on our roof, requiring one of us to get the ladder, climb up and remove it.
ReplyDeleteMaybe they were deemed cruel to animals!
DeleteOLGA- it's the breed- Rosa, Olga's look alike- does the same thing and if she finds something edible she will eat the entire world and then ask for dinner! I had a beagle - same thing...It is just who they are. I must be part beagle.
ReplyDeleteLightening took the chimney right off of the house behind us- incredible sounf! Worse than six Ms. Russias at 5:00 a.m. Big badda boom-
Love your desk- Color is good, flowers are sweet- The friendship bracelets were likely not claimed because maybe the friendship turned not so friendly.
One of my friends once said her staffy was "very motivated by food." I thought that was a polite way to describe the I'll-eat-anything-instantly approach that staffies take to the world.
DeleteMost Excellent Post !!!
ReplyDeleteStay Stoked ,
Cheers
Glad you liked it! Given your experience with canines I'm sure you can identify with struggling to keep them out of garbage.
DeleteThat street scene in the top photos is lovely and the tree is beautiful. That lightening strike broke off a lot of solid things. I see broken bricks and concrete in the debris. I can't imagine how it felt inside that apartment.
ReplyDeleteI can't imagine standing on the street when all that stuff came raining down!
DeleteI don't know if Ranunculus or Peony is my favorite flower. But I guess I don't have to pick between the two. Lovely!
ReplyDeleteRanunculus is sort of peony-like, isn't it?
DeleteOur house was struck by lightning once (maybe twice) and I'm sure you were use to lightning growing up in FL. I love all your photos, especially Olga garbage sniffing and your colorful desk. Photo posts are aways good. 😊
ReplyDeleteLightning once struck our TV aerial and blew up the box in the living room that allowed us to change its direction. It was very dramatic!
DeleteThe flowers are so thoughtful! Enjoy the peace and quiet of the absent neighbors. :)
ReplyDeleteIt's heavenly!
DeleteLightning strikes are very dangerous. My neighbor was gardening and the light rain just started. Out of the blue, a large tree in front of their house was struck by lightning. All their home electrics (including appliances) were damaged and had to be replaced. My neighbor was insured but with a $10K deductible. Talk about an expensive day!
ReplyDeletePoor Olga. Poor Steve. Trash day is challenging. The sweet girl smells food and she jumps into action.
Wow! I'm surprised a tree strike damaged their home electronics. Did it strike the house too?
DeleteNever mind -- see Debby's comment below!
DeleteOur neighbor's house got struck by lightning once. What shocked me is that the static electricity from that killed our answering machine, our VHS player (tells you how long ago it was), television, our cordless phones. It was so very strange. We can only think that the charge shot in our house through the phone or electric lines. Of course, we could only guess, because the insurance company insisted on proof, which we couldn't do...except that the problems began with a huge explosion next door. It never occurred to me that a lightning strike could cause damage even without a direct strike.
ReplyDeleteOh, this answers my question to Susan above! I had no idea either -- I thought a direct strike would be needed to cause that kind of damage.
DeleteAlways interesting to see other people's desks! Mine has featured a few times on my blog, too, but it is very boring because it is as good as empty (always).
ReplyDeleteMrs Russia probably dropped a bag of flour or some other stuff and therefore simply HAD to hoover so early in the morning, before leaving for a trip. But still, things like that are just not on.
At least the little hooved animals in the attic flat above me (3 and 7 years old) wait until about 7:30 on Saturday and Sunday mornings before they start gallopping the (short) length of their flat.
I wish she'd answered the door and just said, "So sorry -- I had an accident and we're about to leave, blah blah blah." It would have made me feel less resentful. But I guess she didn't want to have to explain herself, which I also get.
DeleteI’m in London soon , a cocktail?
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely! E-mail me!
DeleteWhat a lovely gesture from that mother. Rununculus is such a beautiful bloom, like a many layered skirt.
ReplyDeleteIt is very frilly!
DeleteFrom garbage to flowers. Quite a passage, Steve, just like our lives here in America.
ReplyDeleteWell, you know, life is like that. Highs and lows!
DeleteYour desk looks nice. So kind of that mom to bring flowers.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
Thank you! Yes, it made my day. :)
DeleteNone of my ranunculus ever had that many ruffles! It's beautiful. I like the little bits that put colour on your deak.
ReplyDeleteI do too, and it seemed a shame to leave them locked up in a cabinet when people could enjoy them!
DeleteIt's a good thing no one was hurt by those flying bricks. Wow.
ReplyDeleteI don't think of Olga as being strong even though you've mentioned it before. She doesn't really work out anymore, as an elderly lady, does she? Must be just the way she's made.
What a beautiful bloom that Ranunculus is. It looks like a woman's full petticoat or crinoline from years ago.
She's nowhere near as strong as she used to be, but she still has quite a bit of pull. She's a muscly dog, even as a senior citizen!
Delete