Saturday, September 2, 2023

September Rain!

Raindrops on Spiderwebs

It rained last night/early this morning!  Not a lot, but, enough to wet the ground!  It is unusual to get rain in September.  It's been a cloudy day, today, and the temperature never rose above 74F even though the high today was forecast to be 77F.  Even 77F is unusually cool for us at this time of the year, with our average temperature for September being 90F and the record high being 103F last year, 2022.

I still have a little pain in my hip, but, it's not too bad.  I took a small stroll around the garden in the morning, when I went out to unlock the gate for M, take the kitchen trash out, and check the mail.  

The Euphorbia tirucalli is having a new spurt of growth after the earlier rain compliments of tropical storm Hilary:

New Growth on the Euphorbia Tirucalli

At long last, the moringa tree is showing some new growth - it thrives in the hot weather and this year, the summer was too cool for it to come out of winter dormancy.  It's growing now, but, I doubt if it will have enough warm weather to grow any pods.


Moringa Leaves and Flower Buds

In the meantime, the calamondin tree has new flowers!  It's a type of citrus and the flowers smell wonderful!

Calamondin Tree and Flowers

There's always something new to see in the garden.

M was here in the early afternoon, today.  He watered the fruit trees because the amount of rain we received overnight wasn't quite enough for them and he did some tidying and weeding.  

My half sister called this morning to check on me.  I had called her, earlier in the week, but, she didn't answer and her answering machine didn't come on.  I didn't call her after that and she called, saying she hadn't spoken with me in a while, which was nice.

I put away a load of laundry that I had hung up to dry and cooked the beef chuck roast that I had bought, last week.  I had planned to make a beef curry, but, I didn't feel like standing and cutting the meat, so, I made a dish known as "ismoru" in Sinhalese or smore/smoore (it is spelled both ways) in English, which is like a spicy pot roast, cooked in coconut milk and spices.  It is a Sri Lankan pot roast with Dutch origins and usually made by the ethnic group known as Burghers, who are the descendants of the Dutch and Portuguese in Sri Lanka.  I am not a Burgher, but, my maternal grandmother was and she used to make beef smore for family gatherings:

Mas Ismoru (Meat Smore/Smoore)

Once cooked, it is supposed to be fried in ghee and then, sliced and served with the thick gravy, with rice or bread.  I am not sure if I want to fry it, yet, because I plan to portion it up and freeze most of it.  I might fry the individual portions as I thaw them, just before slicing and eating them.  

Today, I am grateful for:

- The rain we received overnight
- M tending to the garden
- New growth on the plants in the garden
- A call from my half-sister
- Old family recipes

Today's joyful activities included chatting with my half-sister, visiting a bit with M before he started on the garden, and walking in the garden.  

How was your day?

14 comments:

  1. The raindrops look do pretty. Almost jewel-like. X

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  2. Even a little rain has to be welcomed and here the sun is finally making an appearance. Your plants are looking healthy and your beef smore looks very tasty. I have a piece of pork roasting in the oven although it might be too warm to have a roast dinner this evening, I think it will be a salad instead.

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    1. Every drop of rain is welcome! I'm glad that you are having some sunshine, finally! Hope it lasts for several days. Maybe you can have cold roast pork with your salad for dinner, if it is too warm. :)

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  3. I like all of your garden pictures especially the raindrops on the spider web. I live in a different climate, and it's so different to hear the moringa hasn't come out of its winter dormancy even with the temperatures you've been having.

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    1. Thank you, June. I was afraid that the moringa might have died because it was taking so long to leaf out! Even if the pods don't form, I can pick some of the leaves and add to a lentil curry. I have some cooked moringa pods from last year in the freezer - maybe I'll take a package out for next week's meals!

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  4. It sounds delicious. Your garden is doing so well. I have been loving this light rain we just had. Our whole neighborhood feels different... refreshed and renewed.

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    1. Thank you, Stephenie. I'm glad you, too, got some rain. It's such a blessing, isn't it? Very unexpected in September, but, I think we'll have another wet winter this year.

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  5. How nice that your half-sister reached out to you. Family is a blessing (usually)...xo Diana

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    1. It really was very nice that she called, Diana. We have a bit of an age gap (15 years) and haven't been really close due to family drama, but, she has always made an effort to keep in touch with me and I appreciate that.

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  6. I love the photo of the raindrops on the spider web. I'm sure that will find a place in one of the photo challenges one day!

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    1. Thank you, Bushlady. I loved how it looked, myself. I just might use that photo for one of the photo challenges!

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  7. Very nice photos of your garden. I remember when you planted the mooringa - I think lol. Maybe 5 years ago? It is doing well.
    I don't know the calamondin tree. Please show the fruit when it comes.
    Is it like an orange?
    Your garden looks very good and I'm sure it pleases you as you walk around and notice things happening.
    That beef looks delicious! Your freezer is getting stocked with lots of goodies.

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    1. Thank you, Debra. I looked up when I bought the moringa plants - May, 2020!
      https://bless2cents.blogspot.com/2020/05/saturday.html

      I had M buy me 2 plants and only one survived,
      The calamondin is like a miniature orange - it is the size of a kumquat but round. I made jam with it, one year.
      The garden is coming along nicely, and I am loving it.
      The freezer is full! I need to start eating from it!

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