Nothing Like August

What is it about August that just makes it the guts of Summer? Maybe it's the feeling you got as a kid, knowing that school was just a few days away and you had to live it up while you could, asking your mom to stay outside just ten minutes more when she called you in at night. Maybe it's the balmy buzz of cicada filled trees, garden plants beginning to yellow after their fruit has been picked, and the way the sunlight seems to have a golden tint all day long.

Whatever it is, it's here right now, and I love it.

I'm sitting outside this evening, catching up on blogs. The little girl across the street is playing in her inflatable pool, spraying water from a garden hose and yelling things like "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!", "USA!" and "JESSE JAMES!". I'm not sure about the last one, but I remember that feeling. Walking outside is like being wrapped in a blanket, there are grass floaties in the water of your plastic pool, and you're just so unexplainably happy you feel like shouting it to the world. You want to hold on to every second of it you can because it won't be back for another nine months, which may as well be an eternity in kids years.

I was reminded of that feeling this weekend while working in the yard. As I sprayed months of grime off the side of the house, I smelled one of summer's unmistakable scents: hose water on hot concrete. That combination, to me, is the essence of August. Though it's exactly the same tap water I drink all year long, it somehow changes to something special in that scenario. The smell is metallic and earthy and humid. It's a respite for burning feet on hot pavement, it's a romp through the sprinkler or helping Dad wash the car in the driveway.

The days are already getting a bit shorter, and I really need to get the yard mowed tonight, but I think I'll just sit here and enjoy it... for ten more minutes.

(Photo courtesy tsuacctnt)

101 Salads from Mark Bittman

Ran across this article, 101 Simple Salads for the Season, by food writer and activist Mark Bittman in the NY Times.

They all sound AMAZING! Bring on the salad :)

(Photo via NY Times)

Maybe She Wanted a Cookie?

With all of the reflux nonsense going on, I haven't been sleeping well lately. I'm fairly lucky, as it doesn't often keep me up all night as some people experience, but I find myself waking up uncomfortable and shifting around several times per night. Last night I was up at 2am, tossed and turned for a bit, and eventually drifted off again.

At 3:30am I woke up again, but this time it was to the drum of running kitty feet. Ugggh. I was soooo comfy, and my usually quiet cat decided, out of the blue, that this night was good for playing. The dog was even startled awake, and jumped off the bed to go investigate. I settled in, and just as I started to doze, the racket began again. I coaxed the dog back into bed, and realized that he was shaking nervously. My goofy pup has been known to shake like this for no good reason, so I got him to lay back down, and tried to sleep...again.

Before I knew it, my cat had dragged one of her toys onto the bed and was alternately pouncing on it, and then kicking it with her back feet. (Actually just guessing on this, since it was pitch black, but this is her typical mode of attack). I sat up, rolled her onto her back, and as sternly as I could at 3:45am told her to "CUT IT OUT AND GO TO SLEEP!"

I can't lock her out of the room, because this only provokes the "cat paw under the door/door rattling" reaction, which is exponentially more noisy and annoying than "wild cat on the bed."

Mere minutes later we've started the whole cycle again, I'm going nuts, and the dog is still shaking. I decided that taking the toy away is the next best option, so I began blindly sweeping my hand back and forth across the duvet so I didn't have to turn the light on. I found the toy, and as I was lifting it off the bed realized that it was soooo soft...and....squishy. (*gulp*)

I dropped it faster than you can blink and sat there in the dark thinking, "Oh my gosh, please don't let that be what I think it is." Slowly I rolled in the opposite direction and flipped on the bedside lamp.

There, in the middle of my bed, surrounded by myself, the shaking dog, and the proud cat was A DEAD MOUSE!! No. Flipping. Way.

I've never seen a mouse, or even evidence of a mouse in my place. But there was definitely a (only minutes prior) healthy specimen laying on her back, dead as a doornail. No marks on her. I looked at the dog who seemed to say, "This is what I was TRYYYYING TO TEEEELL YOU." The cat sat across from us, calm as can be, looking like she was queen of the world.

I got up, cleaned everything up, scrubbed my hands like craaaaaaazzy, and the three of us FINALLY fell asleep for good.

(photo courtesy Natasha Sara )

Post-It Love

(via)

Skeeered!

Maybe I'm being a giant weenie, but I'm a little scared today. I went to the doctor this morning after having my second round of pretty nasty heartburn. The first time around it lasted about three months, and once I started Nexium it was gone in three days! Awesome, awesome stuff. Anyway, eventually I was able to go off, and stay off the meds for about four months. It came back a couple of months ago, and nothing is really getting rid of it this time.

My doctor told me today that...(gulp)...I need to get an upper GI endoscopy next week.

For those of you that (like me) don't really know what that means, let me tell you. While you are sedated and numbed up they put a tiny camera in a tube DOWN YOUR THROAT and all the way INTO YOUR STOMACH! Yikes!! Reportedly this doesn't hurt and you really don't remember anything afterward. Did I mention that I have to SWALLOW A CAMERA!!

Ok, ok, now I am being a weenie. Honestly, I think other than the unknown of what this will feel like (supposedly not uncomfortable) I think I am most scared of is the needles part.

Uuuugh. I get squirmy just thinking about it.

I suppose that unless I want to try this without sedation (no thanks) I'm going to have to get over it and be brave.

Anyway, think happy thoughts for me that they find the cause of all this and it's easily fixable. Oh yeah, and that I don't gag all over myself or have a total freak out. Eeeeeeeee..........

Leave me some love. Please?

(photo courtesy bredgur)

Back on the...sneakers?

I've been procrastinating for months. I know...I'm on a marathon relay team...my team is depending on me. Buuuuut...it's been really hot. I've been doing a lot of other stuff. I'm going to start later in the week. There's always later in the week.

Today is the day, though, to get back on the horse, or the running shoes. My marathon team is complete. There's no what ifs.

I even agreed to do a 5K with my Dad three weeks prior for some additional motivation. I emailed him about it today and he sounds really excited. Not going to lie, I'm pretty excited too. Doing something like this with my Dad, that's good for both of us, that we both have to work for, makes me feel really good.

That little extra push got me going. I started small, but I started. It's pretty steamy today, and I didn't get an opportunity until late, but I did it. First half-mile down, and many more to go.

(photo courtesy timtak)

Missed Connections

Who doesn't love reading the missed connections on Craigslist? There's a great missed connections blog over at Tumblr. Funny, funny stuff.

Still, today I found the doozy of all doozies, for all things MC. Illustrator, Sophie Blackall, has the most wonderful ILLUSTRATED blog, appropriately titled Missed Connections. Her hand drawn ink and watercolor pictures are fantastic and a little dream-like. Check it out. Blog love of the week!

(photo courtesy Sophie Blackall)