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So here's a question for you - where did June go and can I have it back now please?

The summer is just whizzing by. I desperately want it to slow down but I know the exact opposite will happen. Tomorrow is the day I send out emails to all my new incoming students - hard to believe I'm actually thinking about and getting ready for August. Yikes...my stomach just did a big old flip flop!

So far the summer has been so full. FOUND is taking up most of my available time and so is house related kinds of things. Sadly these things are the mundane kind - cleaning out the garage (AGAIN), purging closets, cleaning, organizing, etc. It doesn't look like we'll get to any of the big things on our list for this summer. Oh well, fall is a long season, and maybe there's still the possibility we'll get a new deck and open up that wall between the family room and the living room.

Every day I make a to-do list and on top of the list is "weed something". So far I'm pretty behind in this area but now that the hydrageas are out I just want to be out in the garden enjoying them. Basil, tomatoes and lettuce are all thriving. Asparagus is still giving too. It will be another great year in the garden and I can take absolutely no credit for it, unless it turns out that things grow better because they are loved, admired and appreciated.

The oak leaf hydrangea we got as a wedding present is loaded with flowers this year. Tomorrow I'll clip 5 or 6 blooms for Sandy to use in her sister's wedding flowers. I like thinking about this wedding present becoming yet another wedding gift.

A brave and feisty little junco has taken up residence in the hanging fuschia basket on our porch. I only discovered her presence after I doused the plant (and her) with a big drink of water last week. Today I noticed there are going to be four more juncos in the neighborhood!

Tomorrow our towering white pine comes down. Both stumps will get groundand soon it'll be time to replant. I'll attempt to paint more outdoor furniture for the FOUND FLEA, try to get a little more organized inside and see if I can leave time to read and practice. I intend to spend a little quality time with the kitties and if all goes well, I'll "weed something" too.
Here's to another day!

Dreamin'

Today I taught my first lesson since school got out and to my utter amazement and delight I found I could still land a few rapid shifts into "emergency" position in tune. I have hope!

Lately it feels a little more like fall than winter around here. I actually turned on the heat this afternoon in an effort to take the damp chill out of the house. Still the cool didn't keep me away from my back burner man, Mr. Weber and our regular dinner date...marinated pork tenderloin and creamed spinach. Oh yeah...

Ken and I went to an onsite auction this past Saturday that was so amazingly craptastic and surreal it almost defies description. It was held at a Harley Davidson dealer out in the boonies,

and let's just say I witnessed more leather, ink and Magnum PI mustaches than I'd see in a very long time.

The place was loaded with rusty bike partstools,
and assorted man-tiques.
Mixed in was a little "fine" art,some excellent music selections,(In cassette and eight-track of course)

and a truck load of furniture, most of which was declared to be "A re-finishers dream".Why, it was almost a religious experience!Oy veh...

Finally

Today was a day completely free of appointments. FINALLY! Like most folks my life is completely ruled by the clock and having a little unstructured time this time of year (even if I choose to work during it) is essential to my recovery from the insanity of the school year. Lots of folks have been asking me what I'm going to do with my "summer off". Now that's a loaded question for sure. First of all, I don't have the summer off. Second of all I am pretty sure it'll take me the better part of the summer just to catch up on all the stuff I let slide from the past nine or ten months.

This time of year I always hold out hope I'll morph into a routine that goes something like this...morning yoga/meditation, immediately followed by a round in the garden, then an hour or two of viola, lunch, a nap and a delicious novel. Might as well add a leisurely dinner prep with a nice cold Riesling just to round out the day.

Ah well...for at least some of today I stretched and noticed my breathing. As I was working outside I managed to be mindful of the birds - orioles, warblers, pileated woodpeckers and hummers. I noticed a change in the direction of the wind and even took time to escort a wayward chipmunk from the garage. The garden has a few less weeds too.

This'll have to to for today.

Marked

It's only a matter of time before this one's gone too. NYSEG has been called and the neighbors have been notified about the impending power outage. Don't know if I'll watch this one come down.

Our spring was so wet that I never got the peas in this year. Oh well, guess I'll just have to plant strawberries instead (I've wanted to do this for some time). The rain has been great for the lawn and the flowers,but sadly this means the weeds are thriving as well. Oh well, I'll get to that later...Tomorrow I'm in the shop, Friday I'm at auction and Saturday is the Ithaca Festival and Ken's sis Judy arrives for a long weekend! How did it get to be June already?