Dog Days of Summer

All Activity Suspended Due to Heat

I do know that — traditionally at least — the Dog Days are in August. When I was a kid, I thought “Dog Days” literally translated to: “When the scum on the lake grows so thick you can no longer swim.”

Seriously. I really did think that.

It isn’t is it?

Maybe I shouldn’t act like I know it all…

But I do know it all. So let’s stop pretending I don’t, shall we?

Anyway. I declare that the Dog Days of Summer are NOW. Why? Because in Minnesota where I live, it is currently 93 degrees and something like 83% humidity. Maybe it’s more. I don’t know. I don’t care. What I care about is the fact that my air conditioning at home does not work.

No, it’s not stressed or taxed or anything like that. It got hit by lightning. Actually the chimney got hit by lightning and various amenities inside the house are suffering the consequences. Things like my oven. And more sadly, my air conditioning.

I can’t complain too much though, since I hardly EVER use it. Hardly, hardly ever. But when I do? You know it’s bad out. And right now, it’s bad out.

And in:

Yep. That’s the temp in my living/dining/kitchen area. The basement thermostat reads 81 degrees and — get this — 83% humidity. I didn’t even know that was possible.

Charlie is at tennis and I’m cooling my heels at Caribou with a hot latte. Seriously. I forgot to say “iced” and the lady behind the counter actually believed that I was dumb enough to want a hot latte. Needless to say, I poured it over ice.

I know I haven’t written in a while. Apologizing for not writing regularly is something I swore I would never do. And I won’t. But complaining about my life? That’s fair isn’t it?

This is the time in my year when I just about dig my own grave and hop in willingly. Anything sounding better than walking through my days. It shouldn’t be this way. Especially in summer, amid beautiful friends and weather — bugs be damned. Have I told you about the bugs we have this year?

It’s not that I’m sorry to be involved with the stuff I am involved in. I want to do the stuff I do. And by “stuff” I mean volunteer stuff. But is it too much to ask them to move their events around a bit so that I’m not so overloaded every year?

Basically I’ve just been buried amid the quagmire of life. And while I love, love, love to write, sometimes it becomes just another stress in the dark recess that is my mind. And the guilt… Have I told you about the guilt issues I have?

So instead of writing, I will call Heating and Cooling 2 for the third time in as many weeks. I will re-call the electrician who missed yet another bad GFI outlet. I will call the security system people who left saying it worked fine and not 30 minutes later it started beeping at me and driving me mad. I will drive my kids to the ends of the earth for no reason at all. I will occasionally sweep the myriad of cat hair that is swirling under the bar stools. I will apologize (again) for not making dinner. I will package up and send back the “new” replacement ipod speaker that was ruined in the lightning strike that was sent all scratched up with a used cord. I will smile when people make constructive suggestions about soccer and say “Wow! What a GREAT idea! Now, who do you think might be willing to actually RUN that little project besides ME?”

And, when I get the chance, I will come back here and start writing fun stuff again.

I want to be a cat.

Even though I don’t particularly like cats all that much.