Weekly Wrap-up 2005_25

The weather has varied from blue to grey and back again, but no rain this week.

Did you see the gorgeous full moon on the 21st? That was also the summer solstice. We had some fog that night but the moon kept peeking through.

NASA posted an article on the "summer moon illusion". That's when the rising moon looks like an enormous sugar cookie. They say "this week's full moon hangs lower in the sky than any full moon since June 1987, so the Moon Illusion is going to be extra strong.". Unfortunately, we missed seeing the moon rise this week, but we do see it often. I love the huge moon effect.

Apparently, there are many possible explanations for why the moon looks so big, but as they say at NASA, it really doesn't matter which explanation is correct. The rising moon can be huge and beautiful.

My Mom's birthday was this week. I found her a cute e-card.

Because we know I have a reaction to sodium lauryl sulfate in toothpasete, Rich has suggested I avoid face soaps that contain SLS as well. It's worth a try. Noxema doesn't have it (and I like Noxema) so I'll switch over to that for all the time. I also found a shampoo that not only doesn't contain SLS, it smells delightful.

I had a pleasant encounter with a hummingbird in the back yard Friday morning. First he came and sat on the top of the hedge near me and chirped, so we had a little "chat". Then I went to get the clippers and started trimming our ebullient rose bush (if you want roses that bloom bloom bloom, get Flower Carpet Ground cover roses - they take little care, are hardy and disease resistant and, in our climate, bloom year round ... constantly!)

As I clipped, my little bird friend came and sat in the red (ornamental) plum tree on the other side of the rose bush and chirped at me some more. Then he flew over and hovered about 2 feet from my face, cocking his head from side to side and investigating me. I do love it when they do that.

Maybe he's interested in my red hair!

We also had a teeny little grey bird with a black and white striped head at the feeder this morning. He was about hummingbird size, possibly a nuhatch, (right shape though he didn't hang upside down on the wire "cage" around the birdfeeder :-) Whatever he was, he was very cute and busy. He's take one seed, then fly off to a tree branch to eat it, then come back for another seed.

This week I (finally) finished Lost Truth, fourth in the set by Dawn Cook. This one had a more 'intense" plot so I had put it aside for a bit.

I also read Abby Cooper, Psychic Eye, first in a new series by Victoria Laurie and Drop Dead Blonde, a collection of four mystery novellas by Nancy Martin, Elaine Viets, Denise Swanson, and Victoria Laurie. We've read the series books by each author except Nancy Martin, so I went out and bought hers :-)

In between and around the rest, I've had almost enough naps and plenty of snuggles with the cats. There have been good meals and interesting conversations with Spouse and friends. I've had a few chats with my Dad (who is now able to get the photos off his digital camera and into the computer!). My Mom is busy with her summer work so mostly I send her hellos when I'm chatting with Dad.

Onward and Upward.

Weekly Wrap-up 2005_25 ( in category Gemisch/Gallimaufry ) - posted at Sat, 25 Jun, 13:27 Pacific | «e»