MID-TERM

We're sneaking up on the middle of the year. Here it is the 13th day of the 6th month.

In another week we'll welcome Summer. And a couple weeks after that, there'll be July 4th fireworks. (Those start in late June in my town, for some unknown reason.)

What can I say about the first half of this year, 2019? 
   --We had a lot of cold weather.
   --We had a lot of rain, after the cold weather.
   --We had hot days in January and February.
   --We had chilly days in May and early June.

Is that all I think about, the weather? 

Okay, here's something else. Students went back to school in January, had a number of snow days (that's old style) which have become e-learning days. Spring breaks happened. School buses parked for a couple of weeks. Then it was zippadee-doo-dah and school's out. Buses parked till August.


Apparently some folks got to plant gardens. Last night I was gifted a box of just-picked ripe Ohio strawberries, along with a couple slabs of gluten-free shortcake to keep the berries company. Makes me think of the gardeners' bounty to come: tomatoes, beans, squash, lettuce, and later on peppers of all colors.


-----
My life has been mainly dedicated to sewing for the NICU and finding music to play on Sundays at my church. 

Recently I got back into the reading habit. Finished two Maisie Dobbs mysteries (Jacqueline Winspear's creations) that I hadn't read before, and am working on The Once and Future King, by T. H. White (700+ pages; you might recognize parts of the story in the stage play Camelot).

My lawn continues to grow abundantly, as do the lawns all around me in my neighborhood. The peonies bloomed--some are ready for dead-heading--and nearly everyone has a bed of annuals or a hanging basket.

Birds are everywhere. The robin who built a nest on top of my outdoor light fixture (attached to the house) sits every day up there. Every time I hit the garage door opener button she takes off. Those babies will be neurotic.

And evenings we see walkers, runners, joggers, bike riders, dog walkers, and kids going wild.

Yes, we're gearing up for summer. We're a week early, but that's better than late.

Heirloom Tomatoes