The Blackboard

As summer grows old my red hot peppers ripen I need recipes! This summer the Chicago area has been a bit hot and amazingly humid. I live in the burbs, and sneak veggies into spots planting hot peppers, tomatoes and basil along the side of the house. All are doing just fine. I always grow [...]

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of AccuWeather. All opinions are 100% mine. As many climate-blog addicts are aware, weather is not climate. While we are all busy arguing whether this years DC snowstorm was caused by climate change, those in DC were probably just thankful for online services like AccuWeather [...]

The opening paragraph in Tom Skilling Blog makes me grumpy. Wow–what a July open! It feels more like May! Wednesday continues on track to become the coolest July 1 since the 65-degree high in 1930. The official high at O’Hare since midnight Wednesday as of this posting has been 65-degrees–the “normal” July 1 high here [...]

As a Chicagoan, I always chuckle when I read UK news reports about killer weather. Take this example from the UK Met office which begins Britain is turning into a pressure cooker as hot, steamy air and intense sunshine roasts the country and kicks off the first serious heatwave of summer. My reaction: July is [...]

   Rain spattered hostas enjoy cool damp spring weather. I long for summer.   Looking around the garden, I suspected it’s been cooler than normal lately. But then, I know I always think late May and Early June are cool. Today, I got confirmation from WGN’s weather man, Tom Skilling who wrote: The cloudy, chilly [...]

Strawberry shortcake a delicious June dessert. I’ll have some next week!   It’s the earliest possible Memorial day. I transplanted sedum and weeded the perennial beds. We had a hard frost Monday. Today, I planted tomatoes and peppers; I sprinkled basil seeds last Monday. Am I over eager? Well, I’m always anxious for summer to [...]

I phoned Dad in Florida and told him the weatherman is forecasting snow. As usual, Dad reported he remains pleased with his decision to move to Sarasota, FL. He also told me he spent the day swimming. I’m hoping the snow does not arrive, but the outlook does not look promising. Snow is falling on [...]