Goodbye, July
Look, it's not like I hate summer. I don't. But this month was killer, with that heat wave that blanketed us (yes, like a thick, hot fleece blanket on your sweaty skin) earlier in the month. Some of my friends would take that kind of weather all year long. Sure, if you don't have to go to the office, deal with overheated drivers and cranky, hot kids. Deal with dinner, every night. Know that your electric bill is going to be sky-high because you had to run the A/C all the time. But no, I don't hate summer.It's just that I love fall. That first day when the morning air is...different. Cooler. Drier. You know it's coming. One of my friends tears up on that day, and again when the first leaves drop from their branches. I dance around the kitchen. I make oatmeal. I open the door to the closet and stare at my long-sleeved shirts, my fleece zip-ups. I open my sock drawer and say "Soon, soon. Just a couple more weeks."The other day my husband and I were driving home down a lovely road. The heat had broken and our car windows were open. The road was lined with big trees, leafy and green. And the shadows were long. At five-thirty. He said, "Look! The shadows are long!" We grinned at each other.So we'll head back to the beach this afternoon to enjoy another summer afternoon. Because it's summer, and we're lucky.
I finished reading "Amy and Isabelle" by Elizabeth Strout. What an excellent book; it's still resonating with me. My friend Kim tells me I should do book reviews here. I don't know, what do you think? I don't usually read books as soon as they're released ("Amy and Isabelle" was published in 2000). Maybe highlighting a book once a week would be good practice for me. And I'd be able to share with you a really good book. So, maybe.Meanwhile, I'm trying to finish up the first draft of my book about a 25-year high school reunion. I've set a deadline for myself, because that seems to work. By mid-August, I want to have it out to my beta readers. While it's out, I'll revise "Bittersweet Chocolate," the manuscript I completed this month during Camp Nano. Juggling! But it keeps me busy, and before I know it, September will be here. So goodbye to July for 2013 - and bring on August!