my upstairs neighbors didn't seem to be home last night so their bedroom AC was off which meant a quiet night of sleep with the window opened. sometime in the middle of the night however it started to rain, so i closed the window because it was too noisy, even though it meant the bedroom started to get warm. on days where i'm running i don't sleep much and woke up early again, my body aching all over. i tried to leave early once more, but like all the other times, i didn't head out until after 10am.

the run was uneventful, i ran most of the way around the charles, stopping to walk across the two bridges and stopping to get a drink of water from the fountain. once of these days i'm going to run the whole course, but that day isn't here yet. i got back home at 11:15am, didn't bother stopping at the garden because of last night's rain. after using the bathroom, i weighed myself again and lost about 2 pounds from earlier this morning.

for lunch i had a slice of lemon pound cake and some tofu with corn salad that my godmother had made and that my mother gave me more than a week ago, that i'm finally getting around to eating. i wasn't sure if it was still good, but it tasted fine, and no ill side effects afterwards.

today was the first day where my amazon prime day purchases would start arriving, and many of the packages were getting sent to my parents' place, so in the afternoon i decided to head over to belmont to bring in the packages that'd already arrived and wait for additional items. my mother needed a few ingredients from the supermarket so i rode the motorcycle to market basket first, got some baby cucumbers, some cilantro, some baby spinach. i stopped by the cafe to drop them off first. my mother told me that the chinese kid who tried to take the whole tray of ground cherries stopped by the cafe to apologize and brought some cookies. i think he had to make amends, otherwise he wouldn't be able to eat here anymore.

speaking of ground cherries, they seem to be a hit with customers. a few were taken yesterday, and then a few more today. customers - especially those who garden and millennials who love any sort of houseplants - can't say no to some free plants. i took them outside briefly to water them, then i watered again - this time using some mosquito-bit infused water to kill some fungus gnats i saw flying around.

it was nearly 4:30pm when i showed up at my parents' place. two boxes were on the doorstep. i thought they were both solar lights, but one box contained two solar lights, and the other box had a magnetic tool holder ($21) and the outlet switches. what i was really waiting for was the 2nd knife holder - the universal one made from acacia wood ($28) - but it hadn't arrived yet.

i assembled the dozen solar lawn/garden lights ($25) and placed them strategically throughout the backyard, in areas that can get at least a few hours of sunlight a day. these lights had a cubic design, reminded me of japanese houses with paper walls. they're much smaller than the solar lights i used to have, more than 10 years ago, back when i discovered there was a sale at the local dollar store, and i bought several boxes worth. many of those lights are still probably in the garage (if they haven't been tossed out already), they just need to have their batteries replaced.

currently most of massachusetts is under a significant drought warning, and several towns have already imposed watering limits. the fact that most of our grass has turned yellow and crunchy is a testament to just how dry it is. alas, despite having so many connected rain barrels, it's still only enough to water our ever expanding assortment of backyard plants. the rain last night filled the rain barrels up to 2/3 capacity. it might rain later today so there still might be a chance we can fill the barrels today, otherwise the next rain event looks to be sunday-monday.

anyway, i was out in the backyard watering the plants. the raised bed squashes all had droopy leaves, while the ground crawling squashes on the western bed all seem fine. seems like the pileas did like being out in the sun and several of the larger potted pileas all have sun scorched leaves; i moved them out to the table on the eastern side of the yard, where it only gets late afternoon sun.

i finally left belmont by 5:20pm, bringing the magnetic knife holder and outlet switches to the cafe. i also connected a smart plug to the living room air conditioner and turned it on so the house will be cooler by the time my parents get back home.

at the cafe, one of the hairdressers saw me pulling up to the curb and said she loved the motorcycle. i found out she rides as well - a black honda rebel she bought 4 years ago used. she recently had to spend $600 to get some repairs, and her bike might need some more fixes, but she said she'll ride it to work one of these days.

my father tried mounting the magnetic strip horizontally onto the side of the refrigerator. it's a tight fit, and take out knives seem like a good chance to get accidentally get sliced. we then tried mounting the magnetic underneath the stainless steel work table surface. there's enough clear so that it'd works, but then the knife handles poke up, and there's a good chance of accidentally bumping into the handles and dislodging the knives onto the floor (or a foot). my mother suggested mounting the large magnet vertically on the fridge, which alleviates the space issue, but the knives end up hanging diagonally, which takes up space and means it can only hold 3 knives. the outlet switch was easier to install. we put one on the rice cooker (which has no on/off button, so we turn it off by pulling the plug) and the window ventilation fan (also no on/off switch).

earlier my mother packed me a box dinner, which had been sitting in my saddlebag. i wasn't worried about the food getting cold, as it was another hot day today. if anything, the food probably got warmer sitting out in the warm saddlebag. i returned home by 6:15pm. after a shower, i decided to eat my dinner: sour bamboo shoots with pork on rice with a tea egg. it was a little weird having dinner so early around 6pm; usually when i'm home i don't eat until 8-10pm.

around 7:30pm some packages arrived on my doorstep. i knew the vornado fan was coming, but i didn't realize the 2nd knife holder and the illuminated digital wall clock also shipped to my house. the knife holder i won't know how well it works until i bring it to the cafe tomorrow. the illuminated wall clock is very easy to read, but one thing i'm afraid of is glare on the window glass which will show up on the webcam footage.

as for the vornado fan, i turned it on in conjunction with the AC, using the fan to circulate the air in the living room. it felt much cooler, and i was feeling the breeze in places i never felt it before i the past, like on my feet, even though the fan was blowing upwards. i kept moving the fan, figuring out the sweet spot for the best air circulation. it has 3 settings, but other than maximum, the other speeds seem too weak to do much circulating. there's just too much obstruction in my living room for a clear air path. definitely a worthwhile purchase, even if the vornado 630 ($55) is more expensive than your typical fan of this size.