…sitting on the porch swing yesterday, dogs sprawling out on the concrete to stay cool (which, I recently learned, could be called “splooting”). They were asleep (as is usual) and I looked up from my phone for no reason and glanced at the end of the sidewalk maybe 20’ away from me. WITAF is THAT?!

It was a big-ass rodent!

He saw me as I looked up and ran off faster than I could get a picture. It looked like a capybara, but those are in South America. I think it’s a groundhog from what I narrowed it down to. I had no idea they were around here and have never seen one before. He was almost as big as my small Aussie – the one named Rumor. He ran pretty quickly too.

Seeing this animal actually may explain the two big holes in the ground I have seen by the house. They do burrow so I bet that’s what the holes are from. I don’t have any other explanation and they are the right size.

It’s turning into a wildlife refuge here. A few days ago a flock of wild turkeys started hanging around pretty close to the house; about that same time some hawks started hanging out, roosting in trees in the same area. And a few weeks before that the deer were grazing in the back.

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Nice to have some cooler weather once again. It’s a little muddy in spots and the grass is wet from a few showers so I have to wait to mow. It has been so dry that the rain just soaked right in and the muddy spots will dry out quickly. Maybe this evening when it cools down I can get out to fire up the mower.

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I took advantage of the cool this morning and finished cleaning out all of my stuff from the trailer. Everything not a part of the trailer has been removed.

I did get a call from insurance today but did not recognize the number so I didn’t answer it. I guess they have a figure in mind but I have to call them back tomorrow to get all the details and answer a few questions.

So it looks like tomorrow will be the day I find out what the outcome is.

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I’ll be getting the grill out over the next few days. I saw some Wahlburger hot dogs so I bought a pack to try one. I have not had a brat or hot dog in probably over a year. I saw these and I had to try them; their sliders in the meat department are really good so I’m hoping Nathan’s quality here. I even got a can of Skyline chili from Cincinnati to try their version of a chili dog.

I have a pizza crust to use so I’ll probably get the Ooni out as well. I have some speck ham and possibly some prosciutto, tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, olive oil and some basil. Sounds delicious.

I stopping drinking wine for a while. I was beginning to like it a little too much, plus the preservatives in it are not good for you, so I’m taking a break. I think I’m going to look for some nitrite-free wine when I start drinking it again…which I will. No one likes a quitter. 😬

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I made up a rigatoni dish for dinner that turned out really good. I put a little basil olive oil and the same amount of sun-dried tomato olive oil in a pan and heated it up.

In that oil I added some drop peppers, pepperoncini slices, sliced green olives with pimentos. I stirred that around while the data cooked.

With about two minutes left on the rigatoni, in the sauce I added some diced tomatoes and some Spice Islands salt-free Smoked Garlic spice blend. I stirred that around for a minute or two and then added a small piece of butter to get it silky.

I tossed the rigatoni in the sauce and added a little pasta water to thicken it. Final touch was some all-natural Parmesan/Romano cheese to melt in and it was done.

It was a delicious dinner, fairly healthy and simple to put together. It’s a light meal that is satisfying but filling on a hot day.

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That’s it for now. As always, thanks for reading my blog. See you next time.

Shawn