Random 5 for August 2, 2026 – July, festivals, health, visitors, farm stands

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This was the pond at our last house in July

July did it again! – Shortest month of the year. Technically that’s supposed to be February, but it isn’t.

Let the fests begin – We have a local Musikfest that started it’s run. Our weather forecast is for 10 days of rain off and on. This is always the case. Last week was gorgeous here. This coming week will be hot, muggy and rainy. In the past, the beloved husband and I used to go every year. We sat in the rain through concerts. We ran between raindrops to get to a food place that was inside. At this point these types of events don’t have the same appeal so we won’t be going. We can get rained on at home without fighting mobs of people.

My brother and his wife celebrating New Year’s Day 2024

We got good news! – My sister-in-law has been ill for most of the summer. Her primary care doctor is a “Chicken Little.” We all thought the end was near. This past week I accompanied her to a specialist. He was upbeat and positive about her health. She is 96 and he assured her that she will still be alive in three months when her son comes to visit. He also took her off a very restrictive diet (that she didn’t need). He said, “When you are 96 you get to eat whatever you want!” She celebrated with a pastrami sandwich. You go girl!

Are they gone?

Houseguests – Family visited this past week. The granddaughters are 20. I barely remember that age. It’s so young and carefree (and unwrinkly!). So much is ahead. Sometimes it feels like planning my last decade or two is what I have ahead. Of course, our cat Sasha barfed up her breakfast every day they were here. She’s not a fan of visitors. When they left, they weren’t out of the driveway when she came out to reclaim her realm. The odd thing is that these are pet people who love cats. She wasn’t having it.

Farm stands – Most farm stands are open with fresh fruit and vegetables. It’s one of the best times of the year for eating. Tomatoes taste like…well, tomatoes! Fresh corn is to die for. Local peaches are good this year. We had a hard late frost that killed a lot of the stone fruit buds but there are some late varieties available. This week I had seedless grapes that tasted like concord grapes. I love concord grapes but the seeds are annoying. These were delicious. I hope I can find them again. Usually when I find a variety I like, I never see it again.

So how was your week?

49 thoughts on “Random 5 for August 2, 2026 – July, festivals, health, visitors, farm stands”

  2. Agree on the fresh fruits and veggies! We have farm stands here as well – so much wonderful produce to be had. That is a great picture of Sasha – such a beautiful girl :) It’s weird that she doesn’t like any visitors at all. I could see if it was noisy people or similar, but oh well! The ways of cats are mysterious :)

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    • It was 3 people so there was more commotion than usual but she’s the same with one person too. The weird thing is that she can tell when they leave. The car isn’t out of the driveway and she’s out.

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  3. The weather is annoying with a capital “A” … I am six weeks ahead with blog posts because of this constant bad weather. I finished with contractors, errands and appointments and I SHOULD have done a NON-rain dance to bring on the good weather. We have the same bad weather, starting Wednesday for five days straight. We get a break tomorrow, but there could be fog from today’s all-day rain. I don’t do fog, don’t want to drive in it, nor use the camera in it. That’s wonderful news about your sister-in-law. She looks great at age 94 in the NY’s Day picture. I like the doctor telling her she’s 96 and can eat what she wants – a pastrami sandwich sounds good; for me it would be a box of White Cheddar Cheez-its. I bought a box on Friday to help in the event I need an attitude adjustment! :)

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    • I laughed at your choice for attitude adjustment! We all have our favorites. I remember when I bought their groceries during the lockdown days of the pandemic. There were Peppermint Patties on the list every week.

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  4. I love the photo of your old pond. On a trip to China (long ago), one of my favorite stops was at a huge lotus and koi pond with a curved bridge and a large open-air snack place that served lotus root pudding and tea.

    Once again our weather has been perfect this week, although the other side of the state is suffering from horrendous fires.

    It’s a shame when guests would love to be friendly with your cats but the cats won’t oblige. My daughter’s cats are moderately friendly with me but run and hide from my 18-year-old grandson who would love to make friends with them.

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    • The specialist was great. I was going to ask how long the severe diet would lengthen her life and was it worth it. She’s lost 15 lbs. in a short time (and my brother lost 10 because he eats the same stuff). That’s not good either.

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  8. Sounds like a positive week-hurray for your SIL! Love that pic of Sasha. I’ve noticed that as I’ve gotten older, I don’t enjoy events that I had enjoyed before. I’m becoming a right proper stick in the mud especially on these pizza oven hot days. I just keep reminding myself 51 days until autumn’s official arrival. It can’t come soon enough!

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  10. Love the beautiful pond, but remember how much work you had to do to keep it clean. That convinced me I didn’t need one.

    We have had a lot of rain this year. We had an awful electrical storm Friday night. It kept my son from having to water the flowers, though.

    There are a lot of farmer’s markets here, but unfortunately they do not deliver and I am too old and decrepit to shop. Your Concord grape mention reminded me of a recipe I saw for grape pie. It was made from the skins. Never heard of such a thing before.

    Enjoy your blog. My blogging has gone south this year. Wish I could get motivated again.

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    • The pond wasn’t a lot of work but once a year you had to make a water change. It took about 3 hours and you had to get the muck out. The bottom was slick and it got more dangerous as I got older. I’d have a small (really small) water feature here but my yard layout doesn’t work for that. I did a grape pie with skins once and I was disappointed. Can’t remember why. It was a long time ago.

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    • It can be a problem if someone is here long as I have to feed her before people get up and dinner whenever they aren’t here. Fortunately no one stays more a few days. The barfing was an added event this time.

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  12. Huge thankful to the specialist! Being told you can eat whatever you want at 96 had to be a very positive boost for her. And that she will be there for her son. Sometimes I think we all need a good emotional boost! Sasha knows what she likes and what she doesn’t like. She isn’t into faking it.
    Our week was wet! Thankfully!!! It’s raining right now! I hope we make a dent in the Extreme drought status we are in. Hope you and the Sassy Cats are having a lovely Sunday.

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  14. I haven’t bought seedless grapes since they rocketed in price by 80% and I discovered they were the worst fruit I could eat for my diabetes. A portion is 5 or 6, I was eating 5 or 6 ounces in a sitting.
    Glad your SIL is doing well, and a good GP!

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  16. Applause to your sister-in-law’s doctor and I hope she really enjoyed that sandwich. Grandkids are always fun, however, cleaning up barf not so much. Farm stands are wonderful this time of year. I just picked tomatoes and blueberries. I’m drowning in blueberries and will need to freeze some, and I do know that is not a real problem. :-)

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  18. Well, Kate, my week was better than average for a change. While the osteoarthritis was not kind to me, I was able to start a new book outline (about ww1 pilot aces) and accomplished some needed photo cleanup (got rid of a bunch of ancient files). If the weather is somewhat kind this coming week, we may travel to Parke County for some covered bridge photography! Have a great week, Sasha and Gus!

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  20. It was really lovely weather last week, wasn’t it! Rain ahead for this one…ah well. Good news on your sister-in-law. We were going to go to a nice outdoor concert early in July…can’t remember when…but temps were like 102 degrees. They had the event…we didn’t go. Too hot. We’re loving the fresh veges too. We get a CSA box each week and it’s always fun to see what lovely things are inside. What we don’t want from it, we give to an organization that distributes food to families with children who don’t have enough.

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  21. Oh boy – should I be fortunate enough to reach 96 I hope my doc tells me to just “GO FOR IT”…..and why the heck not I say…..good for your sis-in-law. We have a downtown farmers market with probably 30 stalls from the local farms with everything from A to Z – I just love FRESH vs. in the store stuff. We have no family and only far away friends so Ted doesn’t have to have “home invaders” often…..but he’s one to go up and give everyone a little “leg touch” then goes off in a quiet corner for a nap. Happy August!

    Hugs, Pam (and Ted)

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