contractors were replacing the wooden community garden pathway fence with a shorter fence. they made a mistake the first time they installed it, finally coming back to make it right.
i was there to harvest a bunch of my tomatoes, mostly cherries, which don't seem to do well from the blight. i uprooted one plant entirely as it was completely dead. nevertheless, i still managed to collect two 32 oz. containers of small tomatoes.
i found GC in the kitchen working on the report he intends to give to his amherst advisor when they meet tomorrow. he had a slab of frozen fish defrosting in the sink. i knew tonight would be seafood night because that's all the food he has left in the refrigerator. i made a vanilla ice cream milk shake which i shared with him. he told me he will leave tomorrow morning (around 8:50am) with his luggage, not bothering to return home, going to amherst after their conference with a coworker friend driving back. he didn't start cooking until 10:30pm, and didn't finally have dinner until almost 11pm. i just wanted him to hurry up and eat so the fans will have enough time to blow out the fishy smell. only after a shower around 1am did he finally begin packing. there's actually no rush, especially if he comes back 2 weeks later to stay here for one night before his flight. he said he would treat me to dinner that friday, perhaps forgetting the fact that i told him i would be gone watching my sister's dog. but i thought about it, and i might be able to squeeze a few hours to visit my own house. in lieu of the additional week's worth of rent he's supposed to pay me, i will take a free meal instead, it's the least he can do. but knowing me, i will order the cheapest thing on the menu as it's often the case when i know somebody is treating me.
that 40 oz. exquis insulated bottle i bought more than 6 weeks ago is broken. it no longer insulates, so it probably lost it's vacuum-seal. i know this because ice cubes i add at the beginning of the day are mostly melted by evening. this was not the case when i first got the bottle, when ice would stay icy until 2 days later. but the most telling thing is the bottle has begun to sweat. it's still usable, but not as good as it once was. not it's just a large 40 oz. bottle without insulation. it must've broke when i banged it a few days ago, trying to get the lid unstuck when i screwed it on wrong. i never knew insulated bottles can be so delicate!
fortunately summer is just a few weeks away from ending, and once fall arrives, i will switch to drinking hot beverages again, where my container of choice is the contigo. but i still may go down to the local marshalls and get another cheap insulated bottle if i have the time. i don't know if i'd get another exquis though. one thing i discovered over the weeks i've been using it is that the metal surface actually gets rusty, despite being stainless steel. i noticed a few tiny rust spots on the outside which i was able to easy rub off with my nails. however, there's a ring of rust around the plastic retainer that keeps the lid attached to the bottle and i can't reach inside to clean it.