Take It Easy

6:17

6:26

It's hard not to take it easy these days  Our days are mostly of our own making.  For me, it's usually fun, kayaking, then either yoga, hiking or biking, and a few other chores either in or out.  Evie is more practical in that she enjoys working in the garden most days, cutting the lawn, then thinking about and making our dinner.  We are fortunate to have simple lives,  to live on a lake and do what we want most days.  

Kayak Morning

Great Blue Spreading His Wings

Preening On Woodlawn Creek

I was out for an 80-minute paddle, stopping to talk with our neighbors, Tina and Jim, just as I was paddling home.  It was a quiet morning as traffic seems to have ebbed somewhat as August begins. I photographed a sole heron feeding at the Woodlawn creek and that was it for wildlife.

Brick Walk At Chautauqua Institution

Sunday was a strange day weather-wise as it would cloud up, drizzle for ten for fifteen minutes, then clear up, and a couple hours later, we would have a downpour.  All told, we had a half-inch of rain counting last night. We had a typical Sunday morning, of kayaking, blog, and breakfast. And like most of the year, we took a walk around the Chautauqua Institution for a good hour.  We are fortunate to have passes good for the summer although we cannot drive in and have to park across the street.  We walk less frequently on Sundays during the summer so it was fun to see everything in full bloom.  It's a picture-postcard destination, Victorian homes, front yard gardens, great porches, and lots of trees and shade.  We had not been there since Spring so it was fun to see the seasonal change.

One Of Many Chautauqua Gardens

We were home by 12:30 and we had homefries, eggs, and bagels for breakfast and watched parts of CBS Sunday Morning as they often have reruns from previous shows during the summer.  We spent most of the afternoon on the porch because of the frequent drizzle, the cloudy skies, and wind.  I took a brief nap, joined Evie then watched some of the NBA games on TV.  I can take about 15 minutes before getting bored with them working hard to get a three-point shot! Boring.  

Fall Sky At Wine Time

Evie Taking A Photo Of Me Taking A Photo

We enjoyed a cheese and horseradish spread on crackers, on the porch with our wine, waiting for the rain that never seems to arrive, despite the weather report saying it's raining in our area. We never tire of our view, obviously, as it is never the same.  For dinner, Evie fried up butternut squash ravioli from  Joe's and made up a sage butter sauce.  We had fresh corn on the cob to go with the ravioli and peach pie for dessert. Yum.  We watched an interesting Real Time With Bill Maher as they discussed the danger of our 'cancel culture and we started a depressing series on HBO called "I Know This Much Is True" and I don't think we will stick with it.  

A Dinner Plate Dahlia

Drump's reality show is depressing enough.  As my most recent book suggests, "Lies are the new form of warfare, creating confusion and chaos," undermining trust in Government and Democracy.  As of today, Drump has told more than 20,000, yes, 20,000 false or misleading claims according to The Washington Post, starting with his assertion, also a lie, that Obama was not an American citizen.  How could anyone vote for such a dangerous and despicable human being a second time?