derorim

When Marcel does that, we think it's after a visit to the litter box, which is upstairs. We can hear him galloping across the wood floors, flying down the carpeted stairs, and leaping over the last several stairs to the wood floor below. For a cat that lays around and sleeps all day, it's impressive the amount of energy he displays for a brief moment.

I saw the sail away on the webcam just before 4 pm and was moved by the view of New York City in the background. Curious as to whether the minute of silence was observed onboard.

That actually looks like fun. Thanks for the info.

I would be interested to hear what your wife thinks about the apple peeler. Is it one of those gizmos that you crank?

That is a stunning flower. I googled the image and found that it is called a Starfish Cactus... gee, I wonder why! Mother Nature is so amazing.

Jade's expression has changed from insecure to totally relaxed and content. She's obviously a very happy kitty now.

That looks delicious.

Two more blooms opened on the night blooming cereus last night, so I tried my hand at creating a time lapse. I put a Canon Rebel T6 on a tripod and used the camera's wi-fi capabilities to connect it to the Canon Camera Connect app on my iPad. I also aimed the light from an LED desk lamp at the flower so I would have consistent light. I was hoping either the camera or the iPad app would have the ability to snap a picture periodically, but if they do, I couldn't find it. It was very hot and muggy last night, and I didn't want to sit on the porch for a couple of hours, so I sat indoors and monitored the bloom's progress from the living room via the iPad. When the flower started to open, I took a camera snapshot remotely every 5 minutes using the iPad. Next time, I should buy a power cord for the camera, since I had to change the camera battery 3 times. The camera position changed a little every time I did that. So today my challenge was finding a way to convert 56 photos into a video. I found instructions for using Photoshop (CS6), and was eventually able to create the video below. It's certainly not professional quality, but you can see the transformation take place. I'm sure there's an easier way (probably using my phone) to do what I did, but I have another year to figure it out before the plant blooms again. These five seconds represent a three-hour time period. cereus.mp4

cereus.mp4

Please do post a picture when it blooms!

Last night one of the buds on our Night Blooming Cereus decided it was time to open. The cereus is a member of the cactus family, and produces intensely fragrant flowers that open after dark and last only one night. This is what the bud looked like yesterday morning. Throughout the day, the bud began to swell into a puffy, rounded shape, and around 9 PM it started to open. After about an hour, it transformed into this beauty. I love the inside of the flower, it reminds me of a fairy garden. There are two unopened buds remaining. I am thinking of setting up the SLR and having it take time lapse photos, and then producing a video from them. I need to read the camera's instruction manual again to figure that out. One of those "if you don't use it you lose it" things.

Very nice!

Sorry you can't make the Bella cruise, but we will be joining you on the Tampa to Boston repositioning cruise. We agree, it's a great itinerary.

Yum yum yum yum yum! I couldn't agree more! I just realized that in this picture I look like my avatar, the late great Miss Priss, squinty eyes and hairstyle both! 🤣

I am happy for your daughter and her family that they have you and your wife by their side as you go through this journey together.

@Sea Dog I got this from cruisedeckplans . com, in case you want a view of the entire deck.

May the peace and calm of this beautiful view give you and your daughter strength today.

That's really rough to go through the loss of 3 parents/in-laws in such a short period of time. It's nice to be comforted by the skills they passed on to you.

Thanks for your mom's recipe, it sounds delicious. I like the fact that there are apples in the cake as well as on top. There is something special about having hand-written recipes handed down in the family. Thanks for sharing.

I don't believe I've had apple cake before, so I checked my favorite baking website for a recipe and found this one that I'd love to make. https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/apple-crumb-cake/. She also has a bundt cake that looks interesting. https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/glazed-apple-bundt-cake/ . I'd be interested in your version of an apple cake if you can get the recipe from your sister. We are in the southeast corner of Virginia, in Chesapeake. We're about 30 minutes from the Virginia Beach oceanfront, and an hour from Williamsburg. The Outer Banks in North Carolina are about 45 minutes away.

My mother made homemade applesauce every year using a Foley Food Mill, and I have continued the tradition. Depending on the color of the apple skin, the sauce would turn pinkish. If it wasn't pink enough, she would add a drop or two of red food coloring. Somehow the color made it seem sweeter. It's one of my favorite memories from childhood. A couple of years ago we went to an apple orchard near Charlottesville and bought a lot of apples. The car smelled so good driving home!

If only the Bionic Bar robot could make a martini like that!

Yummmm. What variety of apple are you growing?

I know nothing about playing the drums but they intrigue me. Now that you explained that drummers have sheet music, what about that performance by Neil Peart that @bobmaclibertyposted? Did he use some sort of guide, or do you think he make that up as he went along?

That's impressive.