Part of being married and growing up together is finding how to work and compromise. We have had our rough patches throughout this summer over the house but we somehow always come to an understanding and work it out. I guess that's what love and marriage is. It certainly isn't rosy all the time. We learn new things about each other and learn to adapt to it, I think that in turn makes us a stronger force.
The bumps in the road this summer have been:
- The house and the status of it (nothing really has changed since Nov 2014)
- The foundation (that's a big load to swallow and has tore us several times). We just need to eat it and get on with it. Construction to start again this fall. Oh boy, what a joy!! Our house is literally getting a new foundation and support, which in the long run will be good because we need a safe house!
- The bugs and insects. This has been a NIGHTMARE for me. A true living HELL! It may be worse than the disagreements we have about the foundation. Fleas, maggots, fleas, flea!! Yuck!!!!!!! There's nothing more than tiny insects I hate more in this world!! Last week was literally a week from hell. We have a flea infestation from the damn feral cats that wander into our yard and the fleas cling onto our clothes and get into the house. Subsequently, I am getting eaten alive. And I have been a paranoid freak checking, cleaning, spraying everything. Kill, kill, kill!! I spray the living crap out of our yard with all sorts of chemicals and yet I am still finding fleas!! GROSS!! Then towards the end of last week, we found maggots just squirming around in our kitchen. Maggots. I literally fainted. Yes, these nasty, squirmy white bugs. All over our kitchen tile. Apparently, they'd crawl out of our trash bin from some trash! I had a meltdown, almost threw up, almost fainted, then forced the Man to clean it up as fast as possible so I wouldn't have a heart attack. Best week EVER!! Not! Lesson learned, when summer comes, be ready for bugs. Spray the yard with appropriate chemicals and don't leave trash in the bin for very long.
- Because of these freaking microscopic insects, which jump and cling onto you the moment you step foot outside (we literally pick them off our legs, pants, arms, body......ohhhhhh gag!!!), I have not been able to tend to the yard or my veggie garden. The tomatoes are about done and I need to start removing the roots and plants and clean that place up. Not to mention the monster fig tree we have. Disgusting thing drops rotten fruit onto the ground, which then leads to animals and insects eating them. We've had squirrels, possums, huge beetles around the fig tree because it's bearing so much fruit.
- Lastly, my final gripe (probably not really final) is the heat. Damn summer heat. There have been unbearable heat waves hitting LA all summer long and they are miserable!! Thank goodness the Man bought a portable AC unit, otherwise we would be toast. It is so hot, humid, muggy, stuffy and just downright uncomfortable upstairs. Mix that with parasite fleas and my gosh, it's a damn party!
 |
| (I am so proud of the Man. And the Man is so proud of this lawn! Look at the difference!! Night and day! Curb appeal!) |
 |
| (Tomato tart that I manage to make out of tomatoes not eaten by insects. Was pretty tasty and definitely tart tasting after oven baked) |
 |
| (Ok, for the Miyazaki Hayao fans out there. Doesn't this look like the cloud from " Laputa"?! Driving home I noticed how similar it look to Tenkuno Shiro Laputa 天空の城ラピュタ and couldn't believe it!One of my favorite childhood animations. Let's all dream alittle!) |
 |
| (I don't write or show enough of Fat P, mostly because he's hidden all the time but when he does grace us with his presence, he's a pretty cute and funny guy) |
The joys of summer have been:
- Long day light (like until 8:30pm)
- Hollywood bowl shows. Boy do I love the Hollywood Bowl. It's so much fun and such a nice activity to do in the summer for a fairly inexpensive price.
- BBQs. I love anything grilled, I love the smoky, charcoaly flavor on my veggies and meats. One can only BBQ in the summer. It literally is summer tradition.
- Picnics. I mean what is more perfect than a picnic on a summer night with nice fruit, maybe some drinks and easy finger food? Nothing. It's perfect and so summery.
- Cool mornings before the sun starts beating down on you. Nice time go to jogging, for example, at the Silverlake Reservoir, which we have been doing recently.
- Abundance of fruit. We are so blessed in LA to have so much fruit any time of the year but especially in the summer, fruit is so delicious! We have had a load of strawberries, blueberries, cherries, watermelon, honeydrew, grapefruit, peaches, nectarines, pears, oranges and so on!! And for so cheap too!! It's the best summer time snack!
 |
| (Hollywood Bowl with some of the Man's co-workers) |
 |
| (The Bugs Bunny show was playing that night. Very entertaining!! Fun watching cartoons to live music from an orchestra) |
 |
| (Grilling and kabobing at it's best!) |
 |
| (Yum! Shrimp skewers and our homegrown tomatoes) |
 |
| (The Man looks so happy grilling and I love spending time like this together. Such a "weekend dad" look) |
 |
| (Wish we could grill everyday! Love the mesquite taste) |
Rolling with the ups and downs of summer,
The Lady
