There were only the two of us celebrating our national holiday last night, but that didn't stop Bruce and me from making, and sharing, a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. The only difference is that instead of cooking a whole turkey, I sous vide a 4-pound turkey breast for the main course, and which freed our convection oven up for making sides of corn pudding, butternut squash & Brussel sprouts, buttermilk rolls, and peach pie.

So good!

WAP found on our driveway: 11 '20

Look what we found by our garage door this morning.

We think we may have located the appropriately named weapon of mass destruction which broke our Rav's rear window.

 

 

2020 Just won't end

When Bruce stepped out the front door today to go get out mail, he had a very unpleasant surprise. 

 

The rear window of our Rav IV was shattered  

 

and there was a big hole in it.

There was glass  everywhere

inside and out

We're not sure how this happened, but we suspect

 that it was caused by a golf ball.

The good news is that our auto insurance is covering

 the cost of replacement

and will even make the repair on-site so that 

we don't have to have the vehicle towed to a repair facility. 

The HOA lumberjacks have been busy: 11 '20

We were interrupted in the middle of our breakfast by the whine of what sounded like chainsaws right outside our back door.  

We weren't far off; a crew of lumberjacks was working on cutting down a gigantic  cedar growing  20 feet from our next-door neighbor's back door.

It seemed so sad to see such a beautiful old tree cut down,  

but much of its trunk and many of its limbs were hollowed out and very brittle making it a serious hazard in the tropical storms winds which sweep through our area every summer and fall.

For similar reasons, the HOA was having the towering pine trees planted along our property line removed.   The tops of these trees snap like match sticks in strong winds.  With the prevailing winds likely to blow them right atop of our condos, our HOA decided it was best to have them removed.

I know we will miss seeing a forest at our back door, but I also know we won't miss the safety concerns those trees have created throughout every Hurricane season. 

Cranberry Hibiscus Blooms: 11 '20

 

Our Cranberry Hibiscus ( aka Hibiscus acetosella, or African rosemallow) is blooming for the first time. what a spectacular plant; it has mahogany colored leaves and branches with iridescent cranberry flowers.

We Survived ETA, 11 '20

Tropical storm ETA did her darndest to damage our yard decor last night.  The winds and rain were quite strong, but the worst ETA managed to do was tilt a couple of scarecrows.  Even the flag and Samoset  remained in place.   Considering today is Friday the 13th 2020  we feel blessed.

 

 

  

 

 

And now, it's Thanksgiving all over our Home: Nov '20

Bruce's Thanksgiving Turkey, Samoset,

has taken up residence 

in our front yard.

This year, Sam's been joined by 

a whole team of

scarecrows 

ready to welcome

visitors to our home 

and  now we are truly ready

to give thanks 

for our blessings.

And now it's Thanksgiving all over our Home.

Preparing for Thanksgiving: 11 '20

 

With  Halloween behind us, we have begun to turn our attention to Thanksgiving.

Bruce  unpacked the Thanksgiving Turkey he made for our yard last year

and has it ready to go on display in our front yard as soon as the wind dies down.

In the meanwhile, I packed away all the ghosts and goblins and other Halloween decorations but kept the all Fall foliage. 

The colors look really cheerful and very inviting with our Thanksgiving tableware.