Monday, July 23, 2007

summer gifts

There are some who might get upset, say, if their air conditioning broke on a Friday afternoon. I might have been one of those people, but somehow, I was so lucky. We had a cold front come through last week, and for the last few days, the temperatures have been, well, temperate. Lows in the upper 50's (Fahrenheit) and highs in the 80's. Almost like summertime in upstate New York instead of Kentucky. So, once it was determined that we couldn't fix things on our own, I opened some windows.

An old house with good cross ventilation is a joy. We lack screens for some of the windows, and some don't easily open--the weight system in the window frame broke, or it was painted shut long ago. No matter. I set up some fans. Within hours, things were deliciously cool, even upstairs.

It's hard to catch the pleasure of sunny, low humidity summer days, so these photos will have to do. Imagine the cool breezes, please...and contrast this with the heat and humidity indexes of 97-102 (40 Celsius) we had last week. Ahhh. The relief.

Today, the problem with the fan motor was fixed by some wonderful repair folk. These are my favorite repairmen. They come early, they work until the problem is fixed, the bills are reasonable and they're kind. We tested the fan and air conditioning--but in the end, I left the windows open. You have to catch these amazing days while you can.

To pass along some treats to you, no matter what your weather:
Have you seen this article about Prince Charles and his gift for Camilla's birthday?
I've linked to this sheepy photo for a hint:

While spinning and knitting, I've been listening to a free audio book from Librivox. It's a British mystery called "Whose Body?" and it's by Dorothy Sayers. You can download it here for a little summer time entertainment.

I'm waiting in line for my chance to read the latest Harry Potter...the professor has first dibs. I'm struck by something--there were lots of complaints about reviews and spoilers, yet every review I've heard or read has been so careful to keep from spoiling all the surprises for millions of excited readers. So, instead of focusing on who DID leak the book early, I'd like to turn that notion on its head. Think about how many people, in media, in your houses, or on the street, are carefully keeping Harry Potter's secrets for the rest of us. Thanks for helping us preserve our innocence for just a little while longer, until we've all had a chance to read and it enjoy it for ourselves.

6 Comments:

Blogger SueJ said...

Hmm! Its actually warm & sunny here today. We are fortunate not to have been affected by the floods that have devistated parts of Southern England though! Actually even in truly hot weather (last summer) our old stone house stays pretty cool without any air conditioning. Can we have a little of your heat please? I am also waiting to read HP -until Saturday when we land on the island of Tiree. Such restraint we both have! Love your sheepy picture!

July 24, 2007 at 6:32 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I love Dorothy Sayers, my favorites are the 4 Harriet Vane books, they start with 'Have His Carcass'. I forget the name of the second one but then you have 'Gaudy Night' and 'Busman's Honeymoon'.

There was a review in the Sun yesterday of HP - and it said in big letters in the second paragraph, THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS, IF YOU HAVEN'T FINISHED DON'T READ THIS REVIEW. Thank goodness. I have only read 7 chapters so far.

July 24, 2007 at 7:25 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

the sheep crack me up! i am savoring hp, and am so glad that fee is off camping for a few days so that she can't spill the beans!

July 24, 2007 at 11:40 AM  
Blogger annmarie said...

Well I can see just why Camilla would be, as her friend stated, absolutely "chuffed" over her gift. I would be, too! I guess it wouldn't hurt that they own half the countryside, as well. ;)

July 24, 2007 at 12:29 PM  
Blogger SueJ said...

Thank you for the lovely comments that you left on my blog!

July 25, 2007 at 4:45 PM  
Blogger June said...

Hey Joanne, love the sheep! If I could only get a couple of my own. . . just had to drop a note about the doggies in the windows - my two do the exact same thing, it's too cute!

July 26, 2007 at 2:06 PM  

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