Blood, Sweat and Beers

Shelling peas in the heat of the day, with NPR on the radio.

I don't know about wherever you live, but June on Flat Top Mountain was stinking hot. The first few weeks of my summer vacation flew by with serious garden puttering, sweating and digging in the dirt. Then there were a few lazy afternoons spent shelling peas on the porch. And a loyal nightly 7:10 appointment with a homebrew.

And as soon as the June heat broke, July ushered in monsoons. The rain gauge clocked 4.5 inches in the past 24 hours. And that's on top of at least 3 more inches in the past week. What's good for the plants is good for Flat Top, so I can't complain. But I want to.

In between those two weather extremes, we were treated to a vacation from our summer vacation: a 4-day trip down to Beaufort, S.C., to spend several nights with friends on their fabulous 52-foot power boat. We left Nick with Mom (the first time he's been without us since February 2006), and played tourists with dinners out, beach time, a kayak adventure and a boat ride up the Intracoastal Waterway. It was all seriously lovely.

Spanish moss in full glory, in South Carolina's Port Royal/Beaufort area.

These past two months have also featured a whole lot of car repairs. As I type, Mason's got the innards of the Jeep driver-side door splayed over our kitchen island. Today, amid errands in the monsoons, the window got stuck down. Meanwhile the Honda is up on blocks for repairs to its suspension. Anyone who has driven our road would understand.

And the truck? Driveshaft fell out coming up the mountain hauling a trailer full of gravel. It still runs, but only in four-wheel-drive low -- kind of like an old person on a Rascal -- so it's restricted to mountain work only. No more jaunts into town. May she rest in peace.