Back to incredibly unbearably hot weather; somewhat cooler at night, but no windows open last night.

Ray had a long day, so he drove the red car to the Captain's apartment and took a campus bus from there. I stayed home in the morning, made a bean salad for the potluck, and went to the Land Trust in the afternoon. I talked briefly with Nancy, but spent a couple hours touring some of the sites with Kate and a class.

We visited the Council on Aging, where they are planning to build a demonstration garden on an old parking lot. The existing community garden has melons and peppers and tomatoes and cosmos and bees.

There is a five acre woods in a very urban area that has been preserved and could benefit from some trail maintenance, removing non-natives, and signage.

There is a church that has a community garden and wants to build a pollinator garden for educating young children.

And there is some work to be done at the offices, adding a vegetable garden and a bioswale.

I went along in theory because we will want volunteers at all these sites, to help the students. It was incredibly hot. I had my hat and my water and my jeans and boots. Most of the kids were in shorts and flip flops. Hopefully they did not go near the poison ivy.

I came home before 5. I was cooling off some when I got a call from a neighbor. She was about to go to the hospital for emergency gall bladder surgery and asked me to stay with her teenage daughter so she wouldn't be alone and worried. Of course, I was happy to. Said teenager was a little dismissive, but if it reassured the Mom, it was worth it. I was there less than a half hour before someone else came to take over.

Then I headed to the potluck, which I enjoyed very much. Lots of good food, although a lot of it seemed  to contain beans this time. And I love seeing everyone, especially the young ones. Anna and Mia were there. Mia is attending the film institute in New York, but home for the weekend. There were troubles with her flight, making me glad I am not dealing with that again soon. My favorite is little Ava, who sat on my lap for awhile helping me play Gin Rummy with Sky. Then I let her play the Matching Game on my iPhone. She kept saying, "I did it," every time she made a match. The enthusiasm is so wonderful and she has bright eyes and a smile that I love to see turned my way.

Ray came late and then we headed home to watch a little TV and fall asleep very early.

The hurricane is skirting the coast, so we have no rain predicted (for the next 10 days!), while they are evacuating people in North Carolina and even New York City.