Summer is Here

I love summer. It's the biggest incompatibility between dh and I - he LOATHES heat and humidity whereas I don't mind it at all. I should probably qualify that - when I lived in the city, I hated the smog and the dirty feeling of the heat - the way that the concrete bakes and you feel like you like in an oven. When we moved out, I learned to truly love summer. I love the hum of what I think are grasshoppers and crickets, the warm, damp smell that rolls over you and I can't walk by a tree on a hot day without wanting to sit in its shade and enjoy feeling warm.

Typical for Ontario weather, we didn't waste a lot of time with spring. We tend to do that - cold, cold, cold, HOT, cold, hot... we don't seem to specialize in moderate. I read several wonderful English blogs and I get so envious of their March blog posts about gardens and outings... we don't have that but when summer comes, it comes. Today, the temperature, last I heard, was a balmy 32 degrees. Now, being 9 months pregnant that could be a bit of a problem but given that we have air conditioning (a non-negotiable condition of dh's when we bought our house), I really get to live the best of both worlds. I can enjoy the warmth outside and come in and be cool and sleep in a wonderfully moderate bedroom. The house is a bungalow which is a plus - it is very easy to maintain in terms of temperature, especially with the ceiling fan in the bedroom. I used to find it much harder when we lived in the city and the second storey of the house was always significantly hotter than the first, no matter what we did.

This morning, I got to enjoy one of the best elements of summer. My friend lives on a farm. They have almost 100 acres and while they lease the land out to a neighbour for crops, they have full run of the place. This morning, I took the dogs up for a run. It was 8 o'clock and the air had the hint of the heat to come but the grass was still wet with dew and by the time we were done our walk, the dogs were soaked and had the smell of morning - I don't know how to describe it. It isn't a nasty "wet dog" kind of smell at all, rather a slightly pollen-y, damp smell that is just so satisfying.

Even the light shining through our tree out front showed that hint of the heat of the day to come but to me, beckoned one to sit awhile and read.

I am rambling but fairly soon, I doubt there will be much rambling time. I love this time of year and being off right now and a bit lazy, I don't think it could get much better. It is such a treat to get a chance to savour the beauty of the light, the warmth and the heavenly smells.