The last cup hook is in place to keep the shade tarp spread out to filter afternoon sunshine and this morning the string trimmer will extend the patio space by getting rid of the weeds coming up through cracks between bricks. I need to sweep (lots of matted dog hair from over the winter) and it's set. I saved the chicken to grill today after the bricks are clear (so I can keep the grill way far away from the hanging tarp.)

Yesterday I harvested this year's garlic, cutting off the long flower stems and leaving them in a bucket outside for now (they last a long time and are lovely in the house but I need to shake off any bugs); there is a large plastic tub with all of the garlic bulbs on their hard-neck stems. The elephant garlic I grow is actually a leek and it has corms that I leave a few in the ground for next year and save the rest for people who ask about planting their own garlic. The plant stems drip pure garlic juice and the house smells incredibly strong right now. Now that the garlic is out I'll put in cucumbers and more, once I decide what that might be.

New clothesline is going up today and the sheets will go up as the first line-dried laundry of the season. I don't generally hang work clothes out there because it is almost impossible to iron out creases and clothes as stiff as planks don't look so good at the office. The kids hated it when I line-dried towels, though giving them a little air fluff in the dryer helps. When it is air conditioning season I prefer line drying to running a box of hot air in the air conditioned house to dry my laundry.