Peak

This felt like the hottest day of the year so far, and the thermometer did indeed reach triple digits. Afternoon brought a scattering of clouds to the previously hazy sky, and as they flushed pink and lavender in the sun's last light, they also thickened and multiplied. Now they are holding in the day's heat, and I only hope they are not also harboring a lurking lightning storm to start more fires.

The electricity bill arrived today, too, and even knowing how much the air conditioner was on through the last month, I was not prepared to see that our power consumption for July and early August was more than double that for the same period last year. Ouch! It's priced on a sliding scale, too, so that extra electricity we used was very, very expensive. Another reason to consider this the summer from Hell.

The good news is that mere double digit temperatures are forecast for tomorrow, with a steady decline through Tuesday. Maybe by then I'll feel like doing something other than cowering in the house by day and vegetating on the back porch as often as possible by night. Tonight, if the clouds don't get too thick, I'll be able to watch the nearly-full moon pass among them. The feral cats will be able to watch me watching the moon. Everybody will be happy. Well, everybody will be something other than entirely bored, anyway.

Go away, summer— or at least chill out.