(no subject)

T. J. Maxx/Home Goods is a dangerous place. Every time I walk in there, I walk out with something I didn't intend to purchase. Last night I went in looking for a light shawl for touring cathedrals, and I walked out with a flat-pack umbrella, a cute white blouse, and a black blouse with fluttery sleeves. No wonder the dry cleaning lady knows me by name. XD We got our patio set from Home Goods, and the other week, husband brought home a lime-green porch umbrella that had been marked down from $300 to $100. Fantastic!

The garden is looking very nice this time of year. We bought a goldfinch feeder and filled it with thistle seed, and the locals have found it to be to their liking. There are at least two male and two female goldfinches who have been making use of the feeder, and every morning, we see them flit in, have a drink at the birdbath, and then have their breakfast. The deer have so far been unable to knock this feeder down, after destroying three others. I've been disappointed at the lack of butterflies after planting two butterfly bushes, butterfly weed, bee balm, and black-eyed susans (all butterfly favorites) but we've been rewarded with some customers in the past week or so. It's nice to have a garden that the locals like to visit!

Half day tomorrow before we leave. Yikes!

Exactly what were you expecting?

Chinese news service reported that gold medal gymnast was 13

There's a good deal of huffiness going on in the American sports press asking why the IOC isn't doing anything about this when the rule is that gymnasts must be 16 or older. Well, the Soviets had underage gymnasts back in the old days, and so did the Romanians, and so did the North Koreans, so why would anyone expect the IOC to suddenly come to life?