Clean up aisle 7 (T, today)

You may have seen the reports on national (US) tv that showed floods, excessive rain, hail, and high winds, a weather pattern that has stalled over the midwest for nearly three weeks with no relief in sight.  Flooding has become common news, and water in basements is the norm, rather than the unique.

I knew the sooner I cleaned my yard, the better off I would be, so I started tackling one small area of my front garden.  I was nearly finished clearing one side of this front porch entrance when I realized I should take a few photos of the mess I had, along with the overgrowth of this small bed.

So I stepped back in order to show the area I haven't tackled yet on the right side of the bed.   There really ARE bricks under there somewhere.

I realize it doesn't look very good yet, because it's still so wet.  It's hard to sweep MUD away.  I need to let the mud dry a bit and sweep further.  But for now, I was being eaten by mosquitoes that moved in when the rains came.

Several of my friends call me the mosquito magnet, because, if there are several of us in the group, I'm the only one they attack.  Even with a veritable buffet of males and females young and old in front of them, mosquitoes find me and only me.

So it was time to let the mud turn to dirt, and take a much needed break with a bit of summer fun known as AriZona sweet tea.  I bought six of these cans, mostly for the artwork, so you'll more than likely see more of these in the near future.

I really love all the attention this Tuesday event has brought.  Seems like bloggers all over the globe are having a fun time coming up with ways to show a cup, mug, bottle, can, rubber stamp, stencil, etc. in their photos.  And I'm having a fun time seeing what everyone comes up with each week.  Thank you, all.

EDIT: I need to thank Jo Murray for the link she left in her comment from my Mandala Monday post.  If you didn't see her comment, the link goes to an onyx set that is exactly the same as what I had.  And yes, I have most of the white outer part of the chess board, too.  I hope you'll check it out.  One thing that bothers me is, I've never considered onyx to be marble.  Of course, I thought onyx was a stand-alone stone.  Regardless, I appreciate Jo's search which resulted in me seeing a close copy of the chess set I bought in the late 80s.  And NO, I don't consider that vintage (grin).  Hope you'll mouse over all the photos, because the color is far better in the smaller ones that show the chess pieces.

I'd love for you to join the fun, too.  Link your T post below and we'll be by to visit.