Over? Not Here. Not Yet.

"Summertime, time, time. Child, the livin's easy..."

Janis Joplin singin' away - can ya hear it? "Don't you cry..." It is a pity, though, that Universities (and Midwestern school districts) don't know it. New York says summer's not over until the Great New York State Fair is. There are still fresh tomatoes ripening on vines. Farmers are still selling their wares at countless roadside stands. The sky is blue, the sun is shining. There are kids running free around my house and yard.

So I had to spend a couple hours doing school work. But we're having BLT's, watermelon, peaches, and of course corn on the cob out on the deck tonight. I will hang on to summer as long as I can. I do love fall with the crisp air and changing leaves and apples and all. When you live in the Northern part of the country, though, you don't shoo summer out the door too soon. (So that part of the song about cotton doesn't apply. But the mama's good lookin' part is, right?! ;) )

When I lived in Cincinnati, oh I desperately wished for summer to end, especially when my air conditioner was running in October. (One of my friends just posted something on Facebook about 100 degrees? No offense, people, but that's a hell temperature!) Michigan and New York have made me learn to love summer again. I will wholeheartedly enjoy fall when it comes. I will even enjoy winter for the first few months. But summer is a sweet, sweet reward to be enjoyed until the last drop. Things grow and fresh food is everywhere. Lakes are invitingly clear and sparkly. Days are warm and long and nights are breezy. I have taken my cue from my neighbors who never work full Fridays in the summer, are off at "camps" most weekends or grilling in their pimped garages or next to their pools: Savor Syracuse Summer. Even if I have papers to turn in, chapters to read, I will relish these last days of summer. Even when the kids are officially in school and Jeff's evening classes start, I will be reluctant to give up the slow, easy, bluesy yet rockin' rhythm of summer.