Summer Days: Week 8

It’s Day 57 and I have a dozen days remaining in my summer break. I slept late this morning. Sleeping late is a luxury of summer or anytime when the following day comes without a schedule or place to be early in the morning. Sleeping late is a direct consequence of living without a schedule or maybe staying up late to watch the stars shine brightly in the summer sky, or return home from a family.

“Summer was our best season – everything good to eat, a thousand colors in a parched landscape.” ― Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird

Last night all three of us went to a concert by the band Chicago. B and I listened to them in our youth and the songs were part of the soundtracks of us growing up. O got a glimpse of the music her parents listened to as they figured out how to be adults. It was a fun concert, and the band finished their performance with one of their best-known songs, “25 or 6 to 4”, for their encore.

It was a late night and we got home well past midnight.

The past week has been full like the seven weeks before. Hikes, lake adventures, family, friends, summer, stargazing and dogs. We’ve had pleasant weather and a run of cool overnight weather with clear skies.

the Big Dipper with one star, Megrez, obscured by a cloud

Week 8 brought the end of July and the opening of the month of August. Usually, When August begins, I panic and thoughts like:

“Where has summer gone?”

“I am not done yet.”

“How can this be, I haven’t ___________, yet.”

…..flood my brain. But not this year. This summer has been full of a good balance between important and urgent, silly and serious, and focused and unfocused.

The sounds of summer at the lake – the birds chirping that the dogs are too close to the feeder or me, I’m not sure and the whump of a helicopter and clatter of automatic weapons from across the lake at the guard camp.

School will re-start whether I am ready or not, but I’ll be ready to have students in my classroom excited to learn and grow and share my passion for science. Today is gonna be an amazing day, so I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the days count, one day at a time, listening to the sounds of summer.

What are your sounds of summer?

11 thoughts on “Summer Days: Week 8

  1. We have, up to right now, quite a mild winter! Generally, everybody is complaining about the terrible weather we have this ‘non summer’ – rain every day, and night, interrupted by sometimes a few hours of sunshine. At the same time I need to go to some friends’ house every day because they have planted their tomatoes in a plastic housing where the rain doesn’t come to – good for the toms, bad for me who has to go daily to water them…. and they won’t even turn red – they just stay green!
    I wish you a good end of your summer and when you’re done, send it please over to us!

    1. Kiki…. we are at record lows for rainfall where I live. The grass is dry but the gardens are doing okay. I arrived home from our lake house late Wednesday and immediately got to watering the flower beds – wife’s orders. We had a promise of rain yesterday, but it all went north. I’d love to have some of your rain and maybe even some of the green tomatoes! Look at the bright side, watering the tomatoes gives you an added purpose. Stay well, safe, and at Peace.

    1. Sandra, thank you for stopping in. I have enjoyed my daily photograph post for the most part. There have only been a couple of days where I felt at loss for a photo, then inspiration would strike. There have also been days when I was certain that an event on my calendar would be the daily photo and it turned out something else instead. This is my 12th summer of blogging and it started as a way to show my students (and me) that you could write about anything. Along the way I have met an incredible group of people. Life is full of surprises and that is why we get out of be and face the world. Stay well, safe, and at peace.

    1. Margaret, you don’t strike me as a disorganized type. Quite the contrary. Summer is always a lesson in endurance, patience, and what could be. Someday in the not too distant future it will be summer year round and I do hope that I am mentally and physically prepared to enjoy it. Enjoy your Sunday. Peace.

  2. Chicago! I have still have their album! You’re the Inspiraaaaaaaation and and Hard for me to Say I’m Sorry. Duuuuuuude. Dude Plus you got them live for 25 or 6 to 4. Oh! That must have been an amazing day! Definitely counted. What a way to welcome August 🙂 plus I have to say I am especially digging Day 57 on your pics! My favorite seeing how the stadium was probably in sheer happiness when strike three was called and they were out! Ugh can’t stand the them, roaming around free without any consequences, so glad Blue took the win 🙂 Plus good sky photo!

    1. Thank you. It was a good concert and we enjoyed ourselves. On the way home I listened to Tuesday’s Astros-Dodgers game on the radio. The Dodgers beat the Astros that night, but Brantley took that pitch for a ride and got a single. The best though was when Carlos Correa took a Joe Kelly fastball to left field. it was fun watching Correa trot around the bases. it looks like both teams will play in the post season and who knows what will happen then. Baseball is a great game, made better by the passion of the fans and their allegiances. Stay well. Peace.

  3. Sounds like everything is on schedule even the unscheduled stuff. Excellent job of finding the balance. Resting is as necessary as working and eating so I’m glad you got in a few extra winks.

    Enjoy the remaining dozen.

    Patricia Rickrode
    w/a Jansen Schmidt

    1. Thank you Patricia. Summer is a like a lesson from Ecclesiastes – there is a time for everything under the sun. It’s been a good summer and there are a few more days left to count, then I am going to work my magic to make the school days count until summer and my annual audition for retirement restarts. Stay well. Peace.

Leave a Reply to ClayCancel reply