Blackflies

Today was another gorgeous, sunny and warm Spring day, and with it came the inevitable black flies. They are pesky, biting insects that swarm around your head and will drive you mad. Instead of coming inside to douse myself with insect repellent, I stayed outdoors like an idiot and continued to pull weeds and curse them. Tomorrow will be different. I won't go outside until after I have armed myself with bug repellent and light coloured clothing to fend them off. It was such a beautiful day I couldn't resist going out to play.

My doctor's appointment with the ENT was for 12:50 this afternoon at the hospital. Good news is that I do NOT have nasal polyps. Bad news is that I have lost my sense of smell and there isn't anything they can do about it. After that horrendous cold I had 18 months ago, I probably "burned" the nerve receptors in my nose due to the inflammation from the virus. It isn't a big deal....just an inconvenience, an annoyance. The doctor will keep my file open for 12 months in case symptoms get worse or I am worried that there is more to it than just a loss of smell. When I got home, I had some cheese and ham rolled up in Romaine leaves for lunch, changed my t-shirt, and went out to drag the lawn mower out from the shed. I cut the front lawn and then proceeded to pull weeds from the front garden beds. I also dug out some Globe Thistle plants that were slowly taking over one of my beds. I have thinned them out pretty well now. The mulch I laid down in the fall made pulling out the weeds much easier.

 Wind flowers are doing well. I have pulled all of that grass between the blocks.

Passion flower is now cleaned up and growing well.

When I first arrived in Elliot Lake two weeks ago, people were still ice fishing on the lakes. While there, Spring arrived with a vengeance and I found myself in need of more appropriate summer tops. I went to the Salvation Army and picked up these three short sleeved tops for only $7 for all three. I wore the green one today to go to my doctor's appointment. Most of my summer shirts are "outdoor work" shirts, so it was nice to pick up some nice ones for leaving the house. The price was right. Now if only I can keep them looking nice by not wearing them to work in the garden. Tonight I will be having leftover moussaka that I made last night. Yum!  It is a lot of work but so worth it.