Bears. And summer's lease hath all too short a date... slow down, please...

Saturday! And the day began with G scaring off a very impertinent bear. Seriously, we do not put out kitchen trash, and the bird feeders are empty. Nosing about looking for things to snack on from our bins is a waste of time. But still, there it was (as I'm told, since I was still asleep), on the side step. Then it went around front, and was on the front steps. Valiant husband and trusty dog scared it off. It bolted through the lilac hedge that separates our yard from the neighbor's-- imagine their surprise, with a full-grown black bear popping out into their driveway, full tilt. Yikes. 

We live in a rural area, but it's hard sometimes to fathom that there are deer that cross our back yard, that there's bobcats up on the hillside behind our house, and yes, this damned nuisance bear that traverses our yards every night. During the day, there's traffic, dog-walkers, loud noises from the road and sidewalk construction, emergency vehicles-- all the busy-ness of in-town life. And this bear appearance was at 5am, and it's not exactly pitch dark or quiet at that time, either. We are on a main road, and people are already up and at 'em. (Well, except for me today.) 

I fully expect to have to live in tandem with the wildlife. But I draw the line at this bruin coming up the steps. Have a little respect for boundaries, friend. 

And in other news, Holly's all done with soccer camp. All done with the two art camps. So we are now down to just swimming lessons three times a week. I've been on the hop, and summer is speeding by. I'm tired, and there's so much more I've wanted to do-- but I'm not getting to it, anytime soon it seems. This weekend, though, I'm engaged in an online writing class, one that I've been looking forward to for months. I just hope that my eyes are up to it. I should be fine, but it's been a long time since I've done hours on end at the computer. Thankfully, we get writing breaks that are off screen, if we choose to draft by hand (which I will). 

And maybe, just maybe, the pool will be warm enough to get into at 2pm when class is done. I sure hope so. We have not been in it for a couple of weeks, due to cold temps, rain, and having to refill it-- there's a leak in there somewhere, and it's just annoying. The cold nights don't help at all with keeping the water temps livable. And of course it was 48 degrees last night (or this morning, when I got up). It's supposed to be pretty hot today so I'm hoping it'll warm the water. Some summers are like this, I get it, but gee whiz. 

It feels like school is right around the corner, but realistically, I have one more month. I hope that if we can slow our busy-ness down, it won't feel so rushed. I have no vacation plans at all, so it's not like I'm living for one big hurrah. But still, deck and pool time would be great. And I shouldn't complain; Holly's had a great summer so far, and she's learned a lot. I'm just hopeful that I can feel rested and organized enough to head into school on August 24th, to start classes the next day. It's funny, but I'll likely have more "me time" when I get back to work and when she starts school. Unfortunately (!?), her program doesn't start until September 8th, so there will be two weeks of transition ahead. Luckily, G and Meg both took a vacation week for the second week of the transition. And we'll cobble together the first week. It'll be fine. But let's not wish our lives away, as my dad used to say. I have a hard time living in the moment, so I have to keep reminding myself that there's still so much more summer to enjoy. 

I hope you have a great day, friends. Hugs all around. Keep the faith. There's some pretty unbearable stuff going on in the wider world, to be sure. I think I'd rather have real ones. 

C