August.

And on this, the last day of August, in what is becoming something of a tradition, another update shall be provided to you, you who still occasionally read my blog.

I began the month with a trip to New Hampshire, which despite its brevity, was nonetheless enjoyable. The drive out was particularly, well, dark, especially when on the back rounds of eastern New York, Vermont, and New Hampshire, at one o’clock in the morning. Relaxing, though: Belle and Sebastian on the CD player (thanks to Anjjjjj for that one), picturesque little villages caught in total stillness. It would have been nice to have brighter headlights as we wound our way through the mountains, but we managed to arrive at our destination without encountering local wildlife (moose, for instance), so I guess I can’t complain.

The weather was fantastic, and the lake was warm. We grilled excellent burgers. We took a boat trip to the harbor for sorbet, and I managed to dock in particularly close quarters without totally embarrassing myself, which is always a plus. At night, the sounds of a nearby mountain stream gently lulled me to sleep, like one of those Sharper Image clocks with built-in nature sounds, only real. And, trying my hand at boat maintenance, I managed to clean unspeakable amounts of sediment out of the engine compartment, allowing collected rainwater to once again flow through the bilge pump, preventing the boat from sinking. And then, after an entirely too-short two days, I found myself packed and driving back to Buffalo. Ahh, the sadness of a summer vacation at end...

I also went to Ikea in Canada. Twice. The first time, I bought some rather striking orange curtains for my newly-acquired large bedroom, with the assumption that I could return them to an Ikea in the states when I go to visit my parents, if need be. And the need did, in fact, be: the curtains turned out to be too sheer to provide any sort of privacy. My assumption about returning the curtains to an American Ikea? Utterly false. Ikea, a global corporation, one that manages to sell the same merchandise, using the same nonsensical names, in something like 40 countries, will not accept international returns. So, back to Canada I went, finding things like “crossing the border” and “exchange rates” far less charming than I had the first time ‘round. Returned the merchandise. Drove an hour and a half home again. That was last weekend.

Today, (well, tonight), I am driving home to my parents’ house. Actually, I suspect my dad might be driving most of the way, but he doesn’t know that yet. He’s in Buffalo on business, and in a happy convergence of travel plans, planned to go home today. If we both take my car, his company will pay for the trip. And he’ll probably pay for my dinner. Sweeeet. I have delayed my summer home-visit until now so that I might enjoy the benefits of a newly-constructed in-ground pool in the backyard of my family’s house. Construction being what it is, however, inexplicable delays besieged the project. Disappearing contractors, half-built retaining walls, etc. Short story: the pool is not finished. Maybe by October. My whole life, I have wanted a pool in my backyard. So I shall go home, sun myself next to a very dirty hole in the ground, and dream of next year.

Oh, one more thing: also last weekend, I picked up several amazing postcards featuring black-and-white photographs of well-dressed people from the early ‘50’s doing adorably dorky dances at office parties. I cannot explain why I find these pictures so appealing. I will hang them on the wall.

Over and Out.