Frazzled

It’s so hot out today that I could barely touch the door handle after checking the temperature. It’s 37°C . I did manage what was probably a rather unlovely but very taxing chore this morning before the sun hit the hill.

We bought a new pair of ibises from Cottage Garden the other day. We should have sprayed the old ones with a clear sealer as
soon as we put them out there. They had gotten very rusty and lost quite a bit of charm, so this morning, while the new pair, newly sprayed waits in the garage, I went up on the hill to take down the old ones.

Just getting to them involves balancing on a wall, squeezing past a stand of rose bushes, and climbing a rocky slope. Once there, I had to pry their rebar feet free of the metal staples driven 8 inches into the ground and free them from the heavy rocks on top of them...all while avoiding the wicked points of the giant agave, the tail feathers of the ibis and the rampantly growing rosemary.

Once they were lowered over the wall to level ground, I carried them up to the field where they will take up residence tied to the fence. They’re over four feet tall and charmingly elegant in an ungainly sort of way.

I was hoping to photograph them in situ, but they’re not quite ready to make their debut. Instead I thought the single uncut streletzia  against the house, although a little past her prime looked rather unkempt and very indicative of how one feels in the heat. Especially when one is sorely in need of a haircut that might never come...,

The real birds carry on as usual outside the living room window, seemingly unphased by the still, hot weather. I hope it cools off outside by the time cocktail hour rolls around as Kathy and her husband are going to deliver the other length of fabric for Stephanie’s quilt.