WEEKLY CHAT (non-osprey) SUNDAY JULY 7 2024

Thanks, Annette. I was a half-hour late showing up here earlier this evening. I was closely watching an extremely large raccoon in my yard. I was checking for signs of rabies. We have an awful rabies epidemic here among raccoons and other woodland critters. This sow raccoon is the size of a bear cub! She probably weighs 40 pounds, and is the matriarch on my patch. She produces young every spring.

Hope you aren't suffering in the heat wave.

Hello to everyone.

Thank you Annette for starting the week.

Rather an 'interesting' start for you Diane, if that is the right word. What could you do if you saw signs of rabies?

It remains wet and windy here. My roof terrace is a wind trap and my tomato plants look very sad. Not the weather for tomatoes.

Hello to everyone.

Thank you Annette.

Diane - I enjoy reading about all your critters but I do hope they are not affected by rabies. 
Rosy - I know what you mean re wet and windy. I am going to eat my first home grown courgette of the year with my evening meal plus a bowl of home grown strawberries. 
So yesterday at Lady Captains Day it was very windy with some drizzle and one big heavy rain shower. Not really July weather. However, it was a very pleasant occasion. I came just below half way down the field!!!! Never mind. It is the taking part that counts. 
I will probably have a nice slow, lazy day today unless my sister rings saying she is going to their local carnival with her grandsons. If she does, I will join them even though it isn’t really my cup of tea. 

2 of my best strawberries so far. I will let you know what they taste like later. 

DIANE  Interesting to hear about the racoon, hope she is rabies free.  RUSTY  I do hope your strawberries are as delicious as they look.  We walked at the canal this morning and there was a very heavy and cold downpour while we were there.  I hadn't gone prepared so  hair was soaking.....a well, it is only rain!!!

Rusty:  Can't ID the coin to get an idea of strawberries' size, but hope they were as good as they looked.

Diane:  That's a big raccoon!   We are nowhere near as hot as it would seem from the news; in fact, we've had cool overcast mornings and breezy and pleasant afternoons thanks to fog bank that comes ashore at night and moves out over the ocean late morning - "Mother Nature's Air Conditioning" as our favorite weather guy says.  Even when we went over the hill to Santa Ynez for the fireworks on the Fourth it was much cooler than forecast.

AQ:  Are you watching the Tour de France again?  There's so much to watch this year, what with the fooball, Wimbledon (my favorite), the Tour and then the Olympics.  Oh my. 

Meanwhile, I see England won against Switzerland yesterday but not the win my BiL wanted. 

Granddaughter is heading to Arizona this Tuesday and then on to Wisconsin to bring great-granddaughter home after spending time with her Dad and step-sister. She's not looking forward to the trip and will be happy when they're both back here.

Take care everyone.

Annette - it is a £1 coin. I have measured it. It is 2.2cm in diameter. Glad it is not as hot with you as forecast. I have seen some footage of some pretty bad wildfires in California. 

Thank you to our friends from across The Pond for starting us off again. 

Trying to write whilst watching Wimbledon as Raducanu is playing today!

Rusty, they are nice big strawberries (Annette, it's a pound coin which is um .... bigger than an old shilling but smaller than a newer two pence! ) we have some tiny ones on a patch of what are really ornamental ones, but our main crop at the allotment look rather disappointing - my OH admits that they are really rather old plants which is not recommended!

Rusty/Lindybird:  Haha.  Had to Google 2.2cm - almost an inch because couldn't rermember how big old shilling/newer 2ps were/ae.  But those are large strawberries. 

Lindybird: How is your OH doing? I'm poised to watch Wimbledon...