OMFB, the hood, with not exactly a parallel before shot to the left. Click to embiggen.
It's grouted (in the picture it's not) and gorgeous (in the picture it is). Yes, on the right you can see where RDC didn't cut a porcelain tile quite short enough and stuck it on the wall leaving not enough room for the granite tile above it so that he had to cut a sliver off the rightmost granite. To that I say, damn good thing the range has a high stainless steel back, and there will be no more tiling one wall in more than one session. Also, I say sssh. Imperceptible, right? The grease pencil lines we will scrub away.
I tried working with the trowel and thinset. It didn't go so well. RDC has noticed this time and again when I prime or paint or stain. With thinset, my usual method--seemingly to immerse myself in the liquid and then squirm all over the surface until it's covered--is even more problematic.
Instead I left him to grouting and took a branch from the cherry tree, covered with bugs or larvae, to the Botanic Gardens so the Guy Who Identifies Stuff could see it (he's not in until Tuesday). The shoots around the trunk have always had these masses on the undersides of their leaves, but now it's up the main trunk. Last year the tree apparently was quite stressed by drought and I don't know if that has made it more susceptible to infestation now. I dropped off the buggy twig and wandered around, blissing out on plants, falling in love with Pinus bungeana or lacebark pine.
When we first visited the Botanic Gardens, I remember that the xeriscape bits didn't impress me. It took me a while to find the beauty in silvery-gray foliage and smaller flowers. Silly me.