There is an often quoted phrase or story in Sweden about a shoemaker who in the month of May put up a sign on his door saying “closed between bird cherry blossoms and lilacs” (‘stängt mellan hägg och syren’). Well, the shoemaker did not get a very long holiday this year. I noticed Bird cherry blossoms last week and now the lilacs are out too!
We’re still enjoying summery temperatures here - actually some of us are already beginning to complain a little about the heat! Not very serious complaints yet, since the novelty of it is still welcome after the long winter! But hot enough now to make many want to seek shadow rather than sun in the afternoon…
The indoors temperature in my flat (and so I suppose most of the others in this neighbourhood) reached 26° Celsius yesterday, which is just about the limit for what I feel “comfortable” with. This morning with open balcony door it’s down to 24 on the shady side though, so “so far so good”.
But in the afternoon hours when the sun hits the balcony, even with the parasols up it gets much too hot out there. And in the Study as well.
Yesterday I went outside for a while and sat in one of the gazebos in the park.
What is bothering me at the moment is that longer walks are out of the question this weekend because of a blister I got from a new pair of shoes the other day. They seemed soooo comfortable at first… but then after walking into town in them… I got this blister in an unexpected place on top of the foot. Yesterday I thought I’d be okay with a band aid and different kinds of shoes when walking to the supermarket. But when I got back home I was bleeding… ouch. So I guess I do best in “putting my feet up” over the weekend, letting it heal properly… Meanwhile, I’ve also put a pair of shoe blocks in the shoes, hoping that will stretch them!
A piece of good news is that for the first time since my additional eye problem two months ago, I’m reading a book on paper again - The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen. I have an audio book going too, though.
11 comments:
Really glad you have managed to start a book again.
The lilac is well out here and our garden one (white unfortunately) is even beginning to drop. Hopefully your shoemaker will get a second holiday some time later in the year.
happy for you that you can read a book, i would so miss that if i could not. i can't wear shoes cut like the one here because my feet are wide at that part and it rubs. i hope these stretch for you. can't count the times from the past that i got blisters from new shoes.
I adore lilacs and the smell! We have a big lilac bush right outside our kitchen door, and the small when you open the door and there is a sight breeze...divine. Sorry about your foot, ouch! But I like the shoes. I have found that the uglier shoes are, the more comfy they are. And the prettier they are, the more they hurt. I can't read Celsius, but I get the idea that it is really hot there. Do you have air conditioning? This will be the first really hot weekend here, too. 90 degrees.
Lilac season has been already over here for a good week or so; roses are in full bloom, and it's all very beautiful at the moment. And finally warm enough for my liking!!
There is a C/F thermometer in my sidebar. 26C would be around 80F. I don't like it when it gets up much higher 'around the clock' so that there is no escape from the heat. (We're not quite there yet though!) Most private homes don't have air condition. I do have two table fans but they only circulate the air. The heat is not likely to last all through summer though, we'll probably have cooler weather again already next week ;)
Well this is not exactly the first time for me either, it was in an unusual place for me though. Usually it's on the heel or my little toe ;)
I thought the line about the shoemaker was from a poem by a specific poet but when I did research it seems it is an old story and no one knows the exact origin. But it would be from before the days of working hours and holidays regulated by law!
I'm glad to be reading a book again too. Seems that reading outside with sunglasses on I'm less bothered by the black spots. My chair on the balcony gives quite a good reading position too. So able to sit and read there a bit today - although not during the hottest hours!
Yes that sounds about right, since you live further south than I do! :)
The lilacs are so very gorgeous!
26 deg is just about the start of my comfort zone. So long as it's not humid I'm happy with another 10 deg on top of that. Mind you I do like a cold bedroom so living on Lewis is good and I can always put the air conditioning on in NZ.
So glad about the reading but a bummer about the blister. Jandals?
We don't call them jandals here but flip-flops, but whatever the name that strap too still goes over my sore spot, so no good! Usually I only wear mine in the shower and changing room etc at the rehab pool. I could never walk any distance with that type of shoe (too flat and 'flip-floppy' for me + I'd probably just end up with another blister between my toes!). The only shoes I've been able to wear over the weekend is another type of sandal with separately adjustable straps.
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