Tractors and bridles and hats

   It is no secret to most who know me that I long to own a small farm.  Just a few acres - 10 or so would do - to have some sheep, a few chickens and possibly a reason to own a  border collie.  We own one now, but all she has ever herded was the children.  I look through the  "farm and land" sections of the realty sites on a regular basis planning what each parcel or plot could produce.
   Currently, I am designing the costumes for a production of Pump Boys and the Dinettes. This production needs some specific things which "regular" stores did not hold, so I happily drove down the road a piece to the Tractor Supply Co.  Walking in that store your senses are bombarded with the scents of leather and cedar and oil and rubber.  There are bridles and dog beds, rabbit food and barn boots.  The tractors are out on the lot, and the only colors in the paint aisle coordinate with John Deere green or Ford engine block blue and the like.
    I went in seeking fishing hats.  You know, the silly ones you can pin fishing lures to like McLean Stevenson wore  for his character on M*A*S*H.  They had them.  Of course they did.  My daughter and I wandered amongst the barn boots - we'd already bought her a pair, and the cowboy hats - she desperately wanted one.   I looked at the equine aisle, and said no to buying a bridle on the off chance that someday we might need it.  I looked at rabbit food and imagined a small hutch with angora bunnies waiting for me to spin their fur. We left with a small dog bed and collar for Libby, as well as a straw cowboy hat for  my daughter to wear when she and her friends go "adventuring" around the town and parks.
All in all, a good trip.

The aforementioned hat - and a silly face!

What are YOU eating?

A few gifts from the garden.  All the lettuce has finished, and I have not yet put in any more.  Maybe next week.  This week the tomatoes are finally getting red.  The bushes are heavy with fruit, but most of it is green.  The trombone or trombocini squash is coming in.  Last night we managed to eat 1/2 of one.  The peppers are having a tough time of things and the cucumbers may be a lost cause due to too many cucumber beetles and a lot of wilt.
    More squash on the menu for tonight, along with some Swiss chard.  i think I will be dehydrating some of the trombocini for winter use. 

evenings in the last two weeks

     I am not a television nut.  I rarely watch it anymore because so many shows are just badly written, and because I never remember to turn on the ones I do like.  However, when it comes to the summer Olympics, I am  rabid.  Do not ask to watch another program during the evenings of the Summer games, the answer will be no.  

     Another reason I do not watch much tv is because I do not sit still well.  I feel like there is something I "should" be doing, so I will knit or stitch or spin.  During the Olympics, I did the latter.  Here are images from MY summer games. 

I hope you enjoyed the games as much as I did!