a good thermos is almost like magic: you pour in your liquid, regardless if it's hot or cold, and half a day or more later, when normally through the course of thermodynamics said liquid should be at room temperature, it's just as piping hot or freezing cold as when you first started. i experienced that magic this morning when almost 12 hours later, the hot water i had in my thermos was still steaming when i poured some out.

torrential downpours drenched the greater boston area this morning. i was waiting for a lull but the blob of precipitation on the doppler radar kept getting bigger. i waited for my parents to get back from chinatown so i could get a ride. i went to star market to get some frozen peas for my sister, who was helping out at the cafe. i followed me parents to drop off supplies before going to belmont around 2:00.

i brought along my thermos bottle and poured my parents a cup of hot water in the car. they were impressed when i told them it was water from last night.

i kept my stomach empty all the day knowing there'd be food waiting for me in belmont. for lunch i had some beef noodle soup tossed with some beet greens, which tasted just like spinach (there was no noticeable beet flavor). my mother got some guava from chinatown ($2.50/lbs) but they were bland.

my mother was busy looking up knitting patterns on the ipad. my father seemed anxious for something to do but with the rain he was confined indoors. as soon as it stopped though, he was out in the backyard mowing the wet lawn.

my father had been cleaning out raised bed 1 (RB1) this weekend after he noticed that some of the arugula seeds have already begun germinating a 2nd crop. he removed all the dead stems and leaves to give the new plants more sunlight. the only other noteworthy garden news are the sunflowers in RB3. the tallest ones are well over 10 feet. so far they've still only been generic yellow ones, but i'm hoping to see some reds and oranges.

it wasn't a hot day (outdoor temperature in the 70's) but it was very humid which made it uncomfortable. my father and i brought in the kenmore air conditioner (which was still in the car) so we could install it in the living room and give it a test run. it was surprisingly light for an 8000 BTU unit. running on high, it used 650 watts of electricity. it seemed more powerful than the 10,000 BTU portable air conditioner that currently lives in the living room. window models just seem more efficient since all the hot and dripping parts are outside, while the cool parts are inside.

my father gave me a ride back to cambridge after dinner. my roommate wasn't back yet, but he was due to return tonight, and then leave again (for good) on tuesday. he still hasn't paid the rent for this month though, hope he remembers (and also return my housekey before he leaves).