| Today's Picture |
| July 1st |
In lang, lang days o' simmer, when the clear and cloudless sky Refuses ae wee drap o' rain to Nature parched and dry, The genial night, wi' balmy breath, gars verdue, spring anew, An' ilka blade o' grass keps its ain drap o' dew. -- James Ballantine (circa 1830) Those few lines of poetry seem appropriate in view of the hot dry summer that we're having. And ya know, those lovely words of Mr. Ballantine sound like they could have been written by Rabbie Burns, whose words I've used in these Chronicles on several occasions. Rabbie (I feel like I'm on a first name basis with him), died in 1796 at the young age of 37 (just ten years before Mr. Ballantine was born), and I can't help but think that if he had lived longer, the two Scotsmen would have been friends. They had similar early lives, they were both poets (though Mr. Ballantine was mostly a painter), and they both hung around Edinburgh during their lives. And of course Mr. Ballantine must have been familiar with, and in awe of, Rabbie's poetry. Anyway, enjoy the summer.......and those lovely lines above as well. |
| July 2nd | Click HERE |
| July 3rd | To see pictures of four small ponds in this neighborhood, click HERE. There are lots more of them in a few block area around here, and they're all totally covered with green scum like the ones in the pictures. A little local newsletter refers to them as "landlocked basins" and says that they were created by the glaciers 10,000 years ago. Since these basins have no outlet the water is higher during wet years, and at times they are a cause of concern for the home owners that live near them. A study to develop a strategy for dealing with the problem is underway, but I can't imagine what can be done about them. It'll be interesting to see what they figure out. |
| July 4th |
"When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with another.........." Click HERE.
Happy Birthday USA!!!! 245 years old and in spite of all the criticism, you're still looking great! |
| July 5th | This has been the feeling around here for quite some time now: click HERE. Thanks to Shel Silverstein for that. |
| July 6th | The earth was at aphelion yesterday (ie. the furthest it gets from the sun). That almost sounds counterintuitive, considering yesterday's entry. |
| July 7th | See the entry below. |
| July 8th | We weren't gone long but we were on the road, hence no entry. We were in Mitchell, SD.......it was a short spur of the moment trip, and if you were home Linda, I'm sorry we didn't get to stop in. |
