Settling In for the Summer

Two days after the big 4th of July weekend. Traffic in our little town has increased to a ridiculous degree, stores are more crowded and prices are up, all the signs of the tourist invasion are present. I guess we are more or less resigning ourselves to Tourist Season once again, and the tired old joke: "Why do they call it Tourist Season if we can't shoot them?" has made the rounds as it does every year.

The locals are aware, of course, that it is the tourist who keeps our economy somewhere near a reasonable level. But we are already looking forward to Labor Day, when we can reclaim the peace and quiet of our more relaxed existence in our low key town.

The big weekend seemed more quiet than usual this year. Word was out that the police would crack down harder on illegal fireworks. That was a relief for some of us. I heard a few in the neighborhood, but not nearly so many as in past years. They are a concern in areas where homes are close together on small plots and rockets go whizzing over rooftops.


I make it a rule to stay off the roads and close to home on holiday weekends. Just too much hassle for the old lady. This was me. The handle of the spade is deceiving because I don't do much digging these days, but you get the idea. I am pleased with how the garden is coming along. Can't get out there and do weeding or stay in the sun too long, but I've convinced myself now that it isn't going to be the end of the world if I don't pull out all those weeds. Things will manage to grow and bloom without the attention I used to give them. In recent years I have put in some perennials that now do not need much more than watering. So far as annuals are concerned, sunflowers don't require a lot from me, and I planted a lot of them. I do have to laugh at the squash. I don't even know for sure what types of squash they may be. I'm sure some are pumpkins that found their way into the garden space when an old jack-o-lantern was left there, and some may be the little ornamental ones. Whatever they are, they took off like a house afire, and were crowding out everything else until I got rid of some of them. Gorgeous big blossoms though.


While I was staying quietly at home, on the other coast my family was taking off for camping in Big Sur - also to escape the noise. In California fireworks are legal, and in their neighborhood they are set off all day and all night long. They chose the peace of mountains and beach.




When my grandson wasn't busy stealing the hammock from his mother,





or flying a kite with his dad,








he was enjoying the sand and the water.



Ooooops!



Obviously, I did not take these pictures. Either my daughter or son-in-law took them. You may see some of them appear on my daughter's blog as well. But she is a busy lady, and doesn't get around to posting too often these days. I'm just very grateful that she does take lots of pictures, and puts them up on flickr, so I get to enjoy their activities vicariously.


So - the summer season begins. I longed for it during all that spring rain. Now I am looking forward to autumn. Just can't be satisfied with what is here and now. I really have to stop living in anticipation, and enjoy today!

Independence Day

It's the 4th! Have fun! Be safe doing it, please.

And at some point during your day, Maybe try to pause and think of the 4113 men and women from our country who have died in Iraq - so far - and think of their loved ones at home and how they will be celebrating.

Think of the coming Presidential election. Will you blindly vote the party line this time? Or will you give real thought to what has been going on in our country?

It's OUR COUNTRY! It doesn't belong to politicians. It belongs to US. And it will belong to our children and their children.

I was listening to Mr. McCain's political ad on TV the other day. They spoke of gas prices - a sore subject for us all today. What was Mr. McCain's answer? He has new catch words: "Energy Security". And he's talking about "Domestic Drilling". That scares the hell out of me!

Never mind. I'm not going to go on a further rant about politics. I'm really not articulate enough to get my point across anyway. I let my emotions get in the way too often.

Please, do yourselves a favor. Click on a link here. Go over to Dianne's blog, and read what she has to say about time she spent with friends at the V.A. She writes so well, and you might be interested in what she has to say, as well as some of the Vets. It will only take a few minutes. Then you can go back to the bar-b-q.