All Aboard -- Annie's Swiss Adventures, et. al.

I commented on Annie's Facebook page that her mom certainly would not "make the grade" on this train.  I would never set foot anywhere near such a "joy" ride.  

Annie did, and she's got the photos to prove that she rode on a track with a 106 percent grade.

Annie's sense of adventure has always exceeded mine.  I'm happy to look at the adventure pictures with a great sense of relief that I could view and enjoy the scene from a safe place. 

Had I been on the train, I would have missed the entire scene with eyes closed and head buried in the next person's stomach.  Jeralyn Mire will confirm my words after our ride on Space Mountain several years ago. 

Anyway, Annie's posting some wonderful scenes of beautiful Switzerland.  Her stomach didn't give her nearly the sick feeling on the train as it did when she returned to the place where, two years ago,  her huge lens fell off the camera and went for a swim and a permanent resting place in the waterfall below.

This time she must have had her camera equipment in good order to snap a picture of what she terms "the evil waterfall."  

I asked her if she could see "Precious," her big lens, down there in the bottom, but she has yet to answer. 

While Annie's continuing on her European adventure, I'm making discoveries of my own in the calm tranquility of our front yard.  

Ripe tomatoes.  Lots of them.  And, the deer haven't even eaten them.  I've heard from others this year that deer will actually eat tomatoes.  

So far, mine remain safe.  I picked a handful of the 'maters last night, came into the house, ate two whole and cut up another two for a salad----garden lettuce, garden cukes and garden tomatoes, smothered in ranch dressing.

Good stuff. 

Looks like supreme salad time has arrived, so I just need to go to town and buy up more Litehouse dressings. 

My squash are going crazy again too, so I'll be picking and begging for folks to take zucchini off my hands.

Last time I put out the word, I received a telephone call from a retired teacher who makes zucchini relish every year.

"I don't care how big they are; I'll take six or seven," she told me.  "And, if you forget to drop them off, I'll be calling."

Talk about a reversal of zucchini strategy.  That was one for the books.  

I took her at her word and delivered a box with at least 35 pounds of zucchini to her husband who happened to be in town.

"You can take the box out of my car," I told him.  "I about wrenched my back carrying these to the car."  

He complied, and as far as I know, my manure-pile zucchinis may have made it to Colorado and even Michigan cuz she was going on a trip after the great zucchini relish project. 

I like that kind of zucchini interstate commerce. 

The wind is blowing this morning, but they've promised us another hot day, so I'm heading out of here to get stuff done before retiring back to the house to work on my North Dakota story. 

Am loving it, by the way, and learning that there are a whole lot more folks from here back there than I ever imagined. 

Happy Wednesday