It's a shame I haven't found a way to capitalize on this amazing ability I have to make it rain. Way back when I lived in Lake Oswego and was a runner, I could get the clouds to give way simply by lacing on my running shoes. (I should probably qualify my "running" as an activity that looked more like fast walking. I think, back then, if chased by blood thirsty wolves, I could possibly run a whole mile in under 8 minutes. But only 1. Then I'd keel over. Now, I don't know what would happen.)

This weekend the sun was out Friday and I thought what a great opportunity to get out in the yard seeing as how last weekend when I tried to go out there, it started raining. But Friday I had a zillion other activities going on. (A guy came over to give us an estimate on air conditioning and we're going for it, yay! I know it sounds unimportant now, but wait until August.) But in my mind I was thinking we'd have sun all weekend so I'd have plenty of opportunities.

Saturday was drippy but yesterday I noticed sun. By the time I finished my chores and put on my work clothes and stepped into the yard, the sky had clouded over and as I walked out there with my tools, the drops started to fall. At first I ignored it but that lasted about 2 minutes and I had to run back inside.

I started doing something else and then Bob came home and we noticed the sun was out again so we decided to go for a walk. We put our shoes on and bam, rain again.

Meanwhile, I put out a medal consideration cooking performance this weekend. Friday I did my rosemary roasted chicken with vegetables. Saturday I made a Russian style soup with potatoes, greenbeans and sour cream and sauerkraut. Yesterday I made my gumbo with cornbread. I bobbled on the dessert.

I like to make Bob a special chocolate thing every Valentines Day and this year I saved a recipe from the Oregonian for Flourless Lavender Chocolate Torte using this designer chocolate that wasn't cheap. I don't know what went wrong but the thing didn't set up in the oven. It just boiled in the pan. I left it in 10 minutes longer than the recipe called for and finally took it out and figured we'd have choco-blobs. As long as it tasted good.

It did harden in the fridge and I put it on a plate and it wasn't pretty. I generously sprinkled powdered sugar. It tasted decent. I don't think brilliant, but it was okay.

Between that and the gumbo I woke up at 1:30am and nothing would get me back to sleep. I did finish book #6 hypocrite in a poufy white dress by Susan Jane Gilman which is a memoir written by a woman my age who grew up in New York and had all kinds of funny adventures. But now I have to get through the day on about 4 hours of sleep.