On the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart, my true love brought to me . . . a little Jägermeister for after dinner. I had somehow never had it before --- we've drunk plenty of chartreuse through the years, and in the last two years (since I guess we've decided to be spiritually Norwegian) aquavit, but somehow never Jägermeister. Now I think: Where has this been all my life? The taste is liquorice and raspberry-ish, though it doesn't actually contain raspberry, I don't think. Anyway, it's delicious, as the rest of the world probably already knew, but I didn't know until last night.
Beautiful evening light in the kitchen:
On today:
*dog walk
*a little writing
*housework
*wash and hang out my red skirt, because I spilled dinner on it last night, and washing the whole thing (by hand) is far easier than spot cleaning
*probably an editorial meeting, as our Substack poem calendar runs out this coming week
*something for dinner, probably involving ground chicken, because that's what's in the freezer, plus garden vegetables and fruit.
Today is supposed to be cooler, with a high of 92F. Still hot, but not as hot as 99F. I think I might take advantage of this little break in the more intense heat to wear one of my Saturday Sierra dresses (since that's what these dresses have wound up being lately: my Saturday knock-around dresses).
Wearing:
*Secondhand Wool& Sierra dress (S) in Washed Navy, bought fall 2024, last worn June 7. Wears in 2025: 13
*Secondhand Xero Oswego shoes, year 1
I prefer this dress (all dresses, really) with sandals in the summer, but I wanted to try out my new-to-me Oswegos again. I like the muted sagey green with the muted gray-blue of the dress --- you can see both colors most clearly in the second photo. I might change shoes later, but I do like this combo. It'll be perfect for the early fall, when I won't want to wear sandals all the time. But even in summer, these shoes are so nice and lightweight and less overtly sporty than my Mesa Trailrunners --- which I also should remember to wear, and which would also look pretty good with this dress.
OK, my feet are already hot. Sandals it is. Sorry, Oswegos. You'll need to wait for cooler weather.
Giving my Xero Jessies a spin, though they need a wash --- I'll do that when I take them off tonight.
I'm wearing my silver drop earrings with lapis beads, blue for Mary since it is a Marian feast day. I guess my dress also counts as blue, though it is a very gray-blue.
Day 3 hair a little rough around the edges, but it still feels clean. I did a triple lather when I washed it on Thursday, to be sure I was removing buildup from my hair and scalp --- in the hot weather my scalp can start to feel gunky fast, and doing an extra lather from time to time helps keep it fresher for longer. I like to try to make it from Thursday to Sunday before washing again, so that my hair is clean and fresh for Mass (otherwise lately I've been washing it about every other day, on a Sunday-Tuesday-Thursday) schedule. An extra lather and scrub on Thursday helps me get that extra day before it really starts to need washing again.
More storms in the forecast for today. We had another heavy rain last night, just after I got back from a short dog walk, abbreviated because Dora heard some kind of firework pop somewhere in the distance and was terrified. I got her all the way around the block, but she wasn't going any farther than that, no thank you very much. Ears pinned back, anxious pleading looks in the direction of home. When we heard this frightful sound (which I barely heard at all), we were about halfway around the block --- whether we went forward or retraced our steps, we'd be going about the same distance, so I decided we should go forward. This was not her preferred plan of action, and I really thought I might have to carry her, all 47 pounds . . . but we made it home. And then the rain came down, so it was just as well that we hadn't walked farther. But sheesh. Fireworks. We hates them, my precious. They ruins the summer, yes they do, precious.
Anyway. I've washed my red skirt and rolled it up in a towel to remove the excess water. Now I think I should hang it out, so that it can dry before we get any more rain.
AFTERNOON UPDATE
One dog walk, one editorial meeting, and one serving of pan-fried tofu marinated in Thai red curry sauce with lime juice later . . .
It is hot out there. It is, in fact, too hot for a Sierra. Sorry, Sierra dresses. You get to rest until the fall, although I will take one of you to Nova Scotia next month. July highs there are in the 70s, but here? It's too hot for wool French terry fabric. My lighter wool jersey dresses are still fine, but the Sierra is just too heavy for this weather. I came home from my dog walk and put on
*Secondhand Not Perfect Linen Smock dress (S/M) in Dark Blue-Gray, or Gray-Blue, whichever it actually is. Last worn June 24. Wears in 2025: 12, now.
This dress. Always a winner. On with the afternoon in its sultry glory.