It's August. The weather man announced that we have officially ended the dog days of summer. A tinge of loss awoke in my heart as I heard him acknowledge this Benjamin Franklin-y fact. I can't really say it's even rational, I just know that the the sight of school buses and students with back packs makes me feel like I want to savor each day with more emphasis.
Fourth of July comes and then you can't walk into a store without Halloween stuff being all over the place. Retailers trying to scurry me towards fall annoy me! What about August? What about September?
In NC, the weather really doesn't change until late September. These months though seems to be odd every year. It's too hot to be fall, but school has begun. People start wearing jeans even though it's a blazing degrees outside. The summer flowers are out in full bloom, but people start planting pansies! I feel like I'm yelling in slow motion, "Noooooooo! Put those away! It's not time yet!"
I'm a lover of summer. I'm not even sure that is a 100% true seeing that summer gets so hot in July that all you can do is get a pool pass or stay inside for a month. I'm in the latter group. The sun was shining so bright and it was so hot that I spent a lot of time inside this July. No pool pass to my rescue...just an brand new air conditioner that makes life bearable. So, I don't love the super hot, but I love the clothing in summer, the tan, WATERMELON!, peach cobbler, The Beach ( in NC, it's called THE BEACH...that's how they roll..no reason to say you are going to Hilton Head or Mrytle...all you need to know is that you are going toward the beach.), Salt Water, Watermelon, Humidity ( love it, I know it's crazy), time to catch up with friends, grilling, sandels, crickets, eating outside, flowers, gardens, home grown vegetables. Need I go on?
Part of it is that I really like August, September, and October in North Carolina. I see them as pre-fall. Fall doesn't really hit here until mid October and goes all the way into early December. But the rest of the holiday planning seems to come now. As soon as school begins people, like to deem it the end of summer and start thinking about Fall like stuff. Where as I am just starting to savor the summers lasts days....
The writing is on the wall though, watermelon prices go up by a dollar. You see less of them in the grocery store. Apple Festivals start advertising themselves at the local coffee shops. So is life....summer is coming to an end. I'm sad about it...wishing I could have my favorite things all year round.
I think my next posts will be some of my favorite recipes from the summer..I always find two or three new recipes during a season that I over indulge in until I'm sick of it. These posts will be in honor of summer and in hopes of prolonging it as long as I can.
If you see me eating watermelon in October, now you won't be surprised!
