SUSAN SAYS Another busy week

The hot, dry weather the past couple of weeks has just about put an end to our garden. Beans and squash vines have died, peppers and eggplants are droopy and tomatoes are almost cooking on the vine.

We’re still getting a few tomatoes and the okra continues to produce despite the heat but our abundance of vegetables has come to a halt. There are still some potatoes to dig, quite a chore with the ground so hard. There’s a good crop of wild plums on the trees in the back yard but no one seems to have the time or inclination to make jelly. I’ve picked up a few just to eat for a snack.

I worked a full day at the office Monday and did a couple of loads of laundry that evening. It’s not a chore I’d normally have done at the end of a long day but we were preparing for a little out-of-town getaway the next day. We hadn’t been away overnight in quite some time so we’d arranged for my brother Richard to come stay with Mama and made reservations at a hotel for Tuesday night to celebrate our eighteenth anniversary.

I received a nice gift from our ad manager Tuesday, a pair of lovely ornaments for my flower garden. I went home from the office at lunchtime and finished packing our overnight bag. When Richard arrived in mid-afternoon we drove to the hotel, checked into our room and enjoyed a delicious buffet meal for our supper. Jim chose cherry pie and I picked blueberry to top it all off.

We slept late Wednesday morning, then indulged in a big breakfast before heading back home. We stopped at a home improvement store on our return trip so Jim could check prices on chain link fence material. We arrived home in mid-afternoon and visited briefly with Richard. When I checked the mail, I found a pretty birthday card from Jim’s mom and step-dad.

I enjoyed a leisurely day at home Thursday while Jim went to help install flooring at a home a few blocks away. I got the clippers and trimmed some sprouts out of the peony bed, filled the fish pond and cleaned and filled the bird bath. It was a hot day but I found it satisfying to catch up on the yard work. I put on a pot of Cajun gumbo mix, added a pound of chicken sausage, a pound of bratwurst and some white rice for our supper.

I visited Aunt Leta after work on Friday and stopped by Care and Share, where I found a new picture for our patio enclosure, a lovely scene of a cowboy taking a moonlight ride with his faithful dog following along. We added some chicken broth and a can of diced tomatoes to the leftover gumbo at supper time.

I went out Saturday morning to take recyclable items to the collection point and visited the farmers’ market. I purchased some four o’clock seed and a big Black Diamond watermelon. The mailman brought a cute card and letter from my friend in Tulsa and another friend dropped by with her granddaughter to bring a bag of goodies and one of clothing. Since it was my birthday, Jim treated me to takeout chicken, potato wedges and egg rolls and I completed the meal with a big bowl of ice cream.

We made a trip to Southwest City Sunday morning and enjoyed a late breakfast when we returned. A friend from Decatur called and we had a good visit. I broiled strip steaks, cooked corn on the cob and sliced tomatoes for supper.

School started Thursday and football season begins soon. We’re looking forward to supporting the Lions this year. Read all about your favorite team in the special football tab in this week’s paper.

Susan Holland, who works for the Westside Eagle Observer, is a lifelong Benton County resident.