It really does feel like summer… In this post I actually wanna talk about 3 things… and really in no particular order. I just felt like writing a summer-like post because it’s the season. Seriously, temperatures have hit 30 degrees this past week and I feel like melting. Though it’s “supposed” to rain today… there’s no guarantee it will and I haven’t really seen any clouds since they evaporated before 9am this morning… *sighs* Bottles of beer, cold water, energy drink and roasted barley tea (mugicha) take up too much space in my fridge… there’s a bowl of rock melon chilling for an after dinner treat. Popsicles and peach ice cream in the freezer… extra trays of ice making even less room for frozen meat and vegetables in my already tiny freezer space. Ahhh… It really IS summer! And to think… a mere 2 - 3 weeks ago I was going out wearing a sweater and jacket!
Just this afternoon I saw something very interesting (topic 1), though I took no photos… pretty much impossible with my skills anyway. Just like every other day this past week it’s sweltering hot. I went out on to the balcony to check that our plants aren’t withering away from heat stroke like Gea (she’s really suffering). I noticed a ginormous (as in bigger than enormous) cloud of gnats rising from the lawn behind our apartment. You know… the kind that hovers in groups/clouds under shady trees and you don’t notice them until you walk straight into it and simultaneously inhale and swallow about 20 of them before frantically spitting, snorting and waving them away from your face? They mingle in HUGE groups sometimes and today I witnessed what was about to turn into a feeding frenzy.
photo of Swift courtesy of Wikipedia
Out of nowhere dozens upon dozens of swiftlets (they look like swallows) began dive-bombing this cloud of insects criss-crossing the air-space above the lawn repeatedly nabbing and gobbling as many insects as they can. It was quite a sight! Think: dolphins/sharks feeding from a ball of sardines/anchovies in the ocean… but in the air. I put on my sunglasses and watched for almost an hour as the insects either eventually dispersed (or all got eaten) and the number of birds flying through also went down. This kind of thing happens from time to time… though normally after a bit of rain, and I usually also witness this occurrence in reverse order. Usually I notice birds going crazy and go out to take a look before noticing them flying through a moving cloud of insects. It got too hot to stay outside any longer and I quickly retreated into the cool shade (that’s really relative term as it’s still a whopping 28 degrees indoors!) of the apartment after finishing checking and watering the plants.
Speaking of plants… (topic 2) Nearing the end of spring (late May) Kwang and I decided to buy plants for our balcony to liven it up. At the same time we also bought a cherry tomato plant…
welcome home! *water water*
The tomato plant grew very quickly and within a week of bringing it home, began to sprout flower buds… and in another week they bloomed. When the flowers withered away, teeny little globes began to grow in their place…
(click for larger view) These 3 photos were all taken about a week apart…
And now it’s the end of June. Nearing the Height of summer… I’d moved the tomato away from the balcony, away from direct sunlight as I was told by Sarah it’s not good for the tomato. It’s been about 2 weeks since the last photo session with the growing cherry tomatoes… and just look what it’s become today!
Tadaaa!!! Aren’t they lovely?! These are the same 3 pictured above 
with more siblings growing alongside. Also 4 other clusters of flowers and green globes have sprouted since then Looking forward to succulent cherry tomatoes in a couple more weeks time!!! ^__^
Lovely lovely! I’m sure we can gobble them as they are or make some wonderfully refreshing salads with them too! Summer is really the time for salads! I’m not a salad fan, but I do enjoy the cooling and refreshing feeling of fresh vegetables in the summer!
Which brings me to the last topic (3) of today’s post… as “celebration” of the (finally!) arrival of summer! I bought myself something cute to wear!
So very the summer right?!?! What did you THINK I bought?! A new bikini? LOL Nothing says “SUMMER” better than a pair of flip flops, and how about that, they make them for the ears too! ^__^
