Natalie’s Weekend Coffee Share
Hot Weather Here and Hotter in the Valley
Vince said the temperature at 7:15 was 76. Puppy Girl and I went for a walk and it felt like 90 to me. It’s 83 right now at nearly 8:00 am, forecasted to reach 94 or 34.44444444 degrees C. By comparison, it’s 93 right now in Scottsdale, forecasted to read 111, nearly 44 degrees C. In addition, there is no breeze. Sadly, Hammad, the sky is a dull blue with no clouds. I’m sorry. That makes for a poor picture. In Woodlake, which we left partly to escape the hot summers, it’s only 73 degrees F right now. LOL. Our son in Sacramento is suffering with only 63 degrees F. What’s wrong with this picture?
Week Highlights
Look at all the muck on Terri’s paddle. The water level is extremely low and we ran into this stuff even towards the middle of the lake where I front-ended a boulder. So much fun! 🙂
- Visit from Terri and Hans Schrandt – what fun they are! Like Terri, Hans doesn’t know the meaning of the noun stranger.
- My first ride on a stand-up paddleboard – not that I could stand.
- A luncheon in Scottsdale at Schmooze with four blogging friends: Second Wind Leisure – Terri, This that and the Other Thing – Janet, Wind Kisses – Donna and Jodie’s Touch of Style – Jodie, and Jodie’s wonderful husband, Rob who is her photographer.
- First time in Fountain Hills to meet Terri’s amazing brother, Dale, and his partner, Carey. Both they and their home blew us out of the water! I’ve never experienced or extended such hospitality. Carey had created a FRAMED sign on the counter next to the appetizers welcoming Hans and Terri to their home and sharing the dinner menu. It was like a 5-star restaurant. We were supposed to have attended dinner but had to go back for an appointment. But that made no difference to them. Carey gave us a gift bag he had prepared for all the guests anyway. He had filled it with a delicious spray mist, some diffusion sticks, 3 different kinds of candies, decorated prayer cards, and a journal with hearts on it. I’d take a picture but the candy is gone.
- A clear report on my yearly mammogram. YAY
- A fun evening with our pickleball friends, Jill and Gaylord last night. We played a game called Sequence followed by a rousing game of Dominos after we ate barbequed hamburgers. Vince added mayonnaise and shredded cheddar cheese to the burgers and they were scrumptious.
- I only published 3 posts this week and I’m struggling to finish this one. Blog readership is way down, but I imagine everyone, like us is super busy. Either that or I guess I’ll have to go eat worms.
- Fourth of July celebration with all our neighbors, which I thought started at 6:00 but really started at 4:00pm. Yikes! Then we stayed so long that I left my sunglasses outside somewhere. The good news is that they made it home last night.
Challenges for This Week
Thursday Doors
Cee’s BWC: Centered
These images were all centered at one time. The Gallery chops parts off. They all work for Monday Windows and Thursday Trios as well.
Monday Windows
Uncropped and in color, I thought this building’s windows were so unusual including the motifs in the blocks above them.
Thursday Trios
Lens-Artists: Treasures
There are so many treasures in this world. I picked a few of the closest ones to me from this summer’s pictures. Most important to me next to gratitude to God for my life are my relationships, which include animals. I love the beauty we see around us everywhere we go. And in the Western United States, we all treasure the rain. One of the political candidates in Arizona said, “Republicans and Democrats all drink water.” Good point even though politics isn’t one of my treasures.
- Cee’s Black & White Challenge: Centered
- Monday Windows
- Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: Treasures
- Natalie’s Weekend Coffee Share
- Six Word Saturday
- Thursday Doors
- Thursday Trios
- Water Water Everywhere #133
That’s a wrap for me for today. I’ve got to go make lunch for my starved pickleball star, Vince. See you all surfing the web. 🙂
Marsha Ingrao - Always Write 
73 responses to “Missing: Good Title for this Post”
[…] My brother-in-law is Mr. Hospitality. After all, his degree was in marketing, and he’s spent almost 20 years in the business. Not only is their house amazing, but he prepared delectable meals and desserts. Marsha shared some of their home photos in this post. […]
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I know what it feels like to get behind with blogging. I’ve been so busy with my show that I’m sometimes too tired to do anything else. Also on Friday the internet went down for 24 hours across Canada. It affected our phones, television and computers. Also a lot of stores couldn’t process debit purchases, the banks were down and the lottery terminals didn’t work. What a crazy day. Some people still haven’t got their internet up and running yet.
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That is crazy. The entire country? Wow. That sounds like sabatage.
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The cause is still very unclear.
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What a mystery – and a scary one, too. I hope you are back to normal by now.
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Hi Marsha – how fantastic to see some other blogging faces I recognized in your post. You’ve certainly been social and I love how you manage to blend all these blogging challenges into one fun post. The photos were all great.
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Yes we are. My neighbour had more difficulty taking her internet back.
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I’m glad it’s back, but I’d be leary, too.
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Great post. Really enjoyed catching up. My favorite door photo is that one with the lizard on the front. It’s fantastic. Hope you have a great week.
Best wishes,
Rowena
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Thanks Rowena. The lizard didn’t show up until I darkened the picture a little. Then voilá. Have a great week, Rowena. Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
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Great little blogger meet-up. I think I saw the photo of you and Teri on paddle boards earlier, but I guess I didn’t’ realize both of your identities.
Hope you are having a good weekend and have a great week ahead!
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Yes, that was us. We had a great time, and getting to see Janet again so soon was icing on the cake. 🙂
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I spotted the highs for the day in Arizona on the national news. Stay cool, Marsha and Vince!
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LOL Right! It’s easy inside.
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Great to see some of my blogging friends meeting up like that! The building you’ve featured for Monday Windows is beautiful. As to weather, we’re forecast 33 degrees in London this week – that’s 91 Fahrenheit! I can take that on holiday perhaps, ideally somewhere with low humidity, but it’s too much in the city 😦
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That is too much in the city. I’d be inside in the air conditioning. I loved your post, Sarah. I’m sorry I haven’t been by to read and participate in all your Friendly Fridays. I’m going back and reading them, though. They are super instructive. I have a great group of pictures sorted out that meet up yours, Terri’s and John’s challenges. So I’ll be putting that together later today. I’m excited about it.
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No air conditioning in the vast majority of UK homes, including ours! If you’re lucky you may have it in the office if you work, and in some restaurants etc. Usually in cinemas too, and on some public transport but not all 😦
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Ninety-one degrees would be pretty unbearable without air conditioning. We had no AC when we moved to California. When the temps reached 110, the swamp cooler no longer worked at all. I hope your weather cools down soon. 🙂
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Lots of fun and love in this post, Marsha.
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Yes to both of those. Isn’t blogging amazing. Your name came up several times, so I’m sure your ears were burning. 🙂
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What’s a swamp cooler? I’ve never heard that term.
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And I have no idea how this question ended up in totally the wrong place!
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Tee hee. Perhaps the comments have heat stress. 😁 I don’t know what a swamp cooler is either.
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LOL. It’s like turning your desert into a swamp. Say the temp is 36 C and the humidity is 8%. We all know that a nice rainstorm would cool down the temp, so you put this box on your roof and water runs through it. The hot air and water mix and it is pumped/blown into the house as a light mist. We had the opening in our ceiling in the back hallway just as you enter the bathroom. You go into the bathroom or bedroom to comb your hair, walk under the blast of misted air, and voilá instant tumbled hair. You never complained about the air con being too cold! 🙂
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LOL No worries!
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It’s like turning your desert into a swamp. Say the temp is 36 C and the humidity is 8%. We all know that a nice rainstorm would cool down the temp, so you put a box called a SWAMP COOLER on your roof and water runs through it. The hot air and water mix and it is pumped/blown into the house as a light mist. We had the opening in our ceiling in the back hallway just as you enter the bathroom. You go into the bathroom or bedroom to comb your hair, walk under the blast of misted air, and voilá instant tumbled hair. You never complained about the air con being too cold! 🙂At temperatures over 100 F they didn’t work at all. It was like blowing oven air into your house. In wet climates it’s useless.
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I need a lie down in a darkened room after all that activity. See you later!
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You are so funny. What do you think I did yesterday? LOL!
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🤣💟
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As are you! No wonder I love you so much! 🙂
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just what a soul needs after being separated for so long…….lots of great friends and great food!
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Amen to that. Hopefully our souls are back in tact now. It’s a little awkward walking around with a broken soul. 🙂
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love is the glue to bind and heal
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Amen to that, Tofino! 🙂
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What a fun post to read, Marsha, and partly because we did a lot of this together! We are so spoiled by Dale and Carey–their house is amazing! You took some great shots of the house (I haven’t taken any yet, better get started since Sunday is our last day!). Hans’ daughter drove over last night for dinner (her new hubby tested + for covid, so he stayed home). In true form, Carey had a “newlywed” dinner planned complete with another framed menu and gift bag for them! Vanessa brought champagne and I drank most of it, LOL! I just loved our blogger meet-up and will write more about it in a couple of weeks. Thank YOU for your amazing hospitality and for Vince’s great ideas! I shared this hilarious post with Dale and he cracked up–I need Carey to read it too. Stay safe and cool in this ridiculous heat, my friend!
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I forgot to put in our group picture – it wasn’t saved, so I edited my post to include it. This was an amazing trip. I showed Cindy all the pictures of the house. Somehow I didn’t get a picture of Dale. I’m hoping that we haven’t seen the last of them since they are so close. They are always welcome to come up our way to get out of the heat, unless they would be too disappointed in our hospitality. In comparison to them, we are hermits on a mountain that have no clue how to interact with guests! Vince used to do that kind of thing in his job, and he’s much more polished at entertaining than I am. My mom raised me to expect company at any moment and be unprepared for any contingency. LOL I learned my lessons well. 🙂 TGFV (Thank God for Vince).
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You are so hilarious 😂 I’m sure you will all be in touch. They both read your post and loved it!
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I’m so glad. 🙂
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Marsha, Thank you for your weekend coffee share. Looks like you’ve had a lot of fun social events. Glad you got great health news. Keep enjoying life and taking fabulous photos 🙂
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Thanks, Natalie. Have a wonderful week!
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A wonderful wonderful post Marsha 🙂 🙂
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Even without a good title? Thanks, BB!
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It looks like you had – and are having a great time! Terri’s brother’s house looks like it came out of a Pinterest post… so beautifully put together!
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Thank you, Janis! We have been so spoiled staying here for a few days!
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I didn’t take too many pictures inside because I didn’t want to invade their privacy. But yes, it could have been in a decorator magazine. I could talk about it for weeks! Every piece of art, every organizational tip…
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Gosh, you’ve been SO busy. But that’s a good thing. No time to get into trouble then, right?? LOL.
It was fabulous meeting you and I know we will again soon.
I love that saying by the politician….I wish there was more unity like that.
XOOX
Jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
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I’m looking forward to many more meet-ups since we are so close! I loved your post on laundry. I couldn’t believe there was that much to say about the topic. I shared it with my sister-in law because she cleans houses and runs errands for “old” people. We are both 70! LOL What is old anyway?
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Ha, old is a perspective like anything….that’s one of our jokes!!
It’s funny how laundry is something we’ve done our entire life, yet there can be improvements if we are open to them. I am trying very hard to limit the toxin in my environment (not obsessing over it, but changing that things that are easy to change), and who knew that laundry detergent had so many chemicals in it?
OXXO
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Exactly.
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So much in this post it’s hard to figure out where to start except that it hasn’t been hot here — it has been lovely. But hot weather is (supposedly) on it’s way toward the end of the week. I hope not. I’ve really enjoyed this perfect weather — except for the lack of rain. We had a wet late winter/early spring, but since May it has been dry, dryer, and very VERY dry. When your water comes from a well, it’s time to get nervous.
Even with the heat and low water, it looks like you’re having a great time! Enjoy!
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Hi Marilyn, when your side of the world gets dry, we really do need to be worried. I know exactly what you mean about wells. We had one in California. We never ran out of water, but some of our friends south of us did. We had a large aquifer running under our property. I’m glad you are enjoying perfect weather. It lifts the spirits! 🙂 Lots of love
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Worm-eating not advised! 🙂 This past week WordPress notified me that my site, which is only a month old, reached over 1000 views. I wouldn’t have known it by the lack of comments, likes–so I was cheered. I don’t blog for stats–I’m all about the writing, and connections with other folks in this strange and wonderful virtual world 🙂 From your posts it’s apparent you lead a very busy, actively enjoyable, rewarding life!
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Congratulations, my friend. That’s amazing for only being a month old. It takes a while to get started and get acquainted with people. Then it seems like a rock rolling downhill just gets faster and faster. I don’t think most people blog for stats, but the information is there in your face every second, and it is just is what it is. As a former teacher and math consultant I find statistics interesting. As a social studies consulatant I find statistics interesting from the conclusions you can infer about them, and what you can’t learn from them as well. Most of it is common sense, but some people aren’t interested in drawing conclusions from them. Anyway, I’m staying away from worms this week! Thanks for the lovely comment. Made my day!
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Happy to make your day 🙂
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🙂
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And a good time was had by all…which could be your blog title Or “Awash with fun.” Or, apropos for Arizona and cribbed totally from Sly and the Family Stone: “Hot fun in the Summertime.” 🙂
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LOL I was trying to be clever with Coffee Share in six words, and nothing came of it. Weekend Coffee Share: Awash with Fun – how’s that? Also I forgot our picture from lunch because I had forgotten to save it to my pictures. Mom always said I’d forget my head if it wasn’t attached. She might have had a point. 🙂
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Marsha, thank you for sharing your very busy week with us! Glad you had a good time and lots of fun with all the blogger friends too! Your treasures are delightful and I agree we should all treasure our lives and our relationships. Have a wonderful weekend!
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You, too Aletta. I didn’t want the week to go by without responding to your lovely challenge. You have been so faithful each week with PPAC and I wanted to return the favor as the least I could do to say thank you. I’ll never forget the kind things that Jez said about you before I even knew you well in his interview. He gave you a shout out because you have inspired him with your support of his challenges. I’m so glad we have become friends.
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Ahh, thank you so much for the kind words. I’m honored to be your friend! 😊
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Thanks, Aletta. 🙂
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Marsha, I love when a post is all highlights and bullet points. It is a sign that you are busy enjoying life! Carry on!
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Thanks, Suzanne. It’s also a sign that I don’t want to bore people to death with all my wordiness. 🙂 Thanks for reading and leaving a comment! 🙂
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Aw, yes, you saved the best for Monday Window – but all are fascinating and fabulous!
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Thanks, Ludwig. Yours were pretty fabulous, too. I loved the flag in the window. 🙂
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You have some cool photos for all these challenges. Thanks for playing along 😀
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You should write a post on how to take your photos from “good” to “outstanding.” I think I’m ready for that step. 🙂
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How gorgeous the mountains behind you.. I’d never have known it was murkey till you pointed out the paddle. Love these wonderful memories in pictures shared Marsha! 💖💖
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We had a fabulous time. Wish you could have been there. 🙂
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I can tell.. ohhhh me too! Someday maybe?!
💖💖
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Any time bloggers get together is a good day. 🙂
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awww … Yes!!!
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🙂
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