I haven't bored you with too many house-and-garden shots lately, so I thought maybe you wouldn't mind pictures of my current favorite flowers. These are from a sunflower mix advertised as relatively small in height but currently towering over my head. I like them because they're branching varieties, and the blooms keep coming.

These are cosmos, a deep purple-red variety that I've gotten quite fond of. They enhance the alphabetization of any library.

I am wasting a shocking amount of water on this garden, but we've had zero rain for weeks, and there's none looming in the forecast. Despite my assiduous care, the plants are stressed. The fall crops are tiny; the new blueberry bushes are sad.