An alphabet for August

How Dry I Am --       Earth

by Pat Laster

           A is for August, originally the sixth month (moon calculations by the Romans) and called Sextilis. In 8 B.C. the Roman senate renamed this month Augustus in honor of Augustus Caesar, the first emperor of Rome. In Old English the Latin form was anglicized to August.

           Bachelor buttons’ blue blooms should brighten any garden that hasn’t already been given up for dead. Like mine.

           Cactus – spiny plants from the 1930s or earlier, when Grandmother Couch began her gardens—still exist in the southeast yard. They don’t spread much, but are tenacious. No one plays in that area, obviously, but the horseshoe court is nearby.

           Daredevils––bikers who zoom by here without helmets––are the epitome of insanity. As my sis Bev would say, “Stupid tax!”

          
        Eager for cooler weather? Join the crowd.

        Forecast, weather: The first 21 days of August, average highs will be 93 degrees. August 22-27’s averages, 92 degrees, and the remainder of the month, 91 degrees. We can expect the highs to gradually fall as autumn waits in the wings.  

        Gadgets and gizmos. An upcoming contest has this for its theme. What can I write about?

        Hymnals—books from earlier days that congregations needed to sing. No more; words on the screen make them obsolete. As my sis Barb said, “Heresy!”

        Intercession is needed by pray-ers for those who have no moral objection to killing others.

        July’s extreme heat and ensuing wildfires are now an ever-fading memory. Except to those who lost their homes.

       Karaoke allows one to perform without engaging a live accompanist. Granddaughter Emma likes that.

       Labor Day: a time to anticipate both a day off and the promise of cooler weather.

       Memoir: time to begin writing yours—before you forget.

       Naysayer: if you are one, stop and think the next time you want to ‘pooh-pooh’ something.

       Okra: if you like it, good for you. I’ll eat mine pickled, thank you.

       Puzzles will keep your brain working, even in this hot weather. Find somewhere cool to solve them. In front of the AC perhaps?

      “Quarterback hurry”—when a defender runs for the quarterback before he can throw the ball.

       Ripening times for raspberries depend on the cultivar. Brandywines should be about ready. Yum.

       School openings are fast approaching. But Kid Billy’s school time never stopped: biology the first summer term and music for elementary teachers the second term, which ends tomorrow.

       Threats of a welcome thunderstorm came through a new Saline County warning system last Sunday. I juned around and maneuvered the (new) Taurus under the shed porch. A false alarm, alas.

       Unbeknownst to me were animals whose names begin with U, except the Utah Prairie Dog, an endangered species and a pest.

       Verbena didn’t do well in my garden last year; perhaps it didn’t like the concrete-block opening it was planted in.

       “Water! Water! My kingdom for some water.” This is the plea from all the plants this year—if plants could plead.

        X-rated movies I won’t watch, but KB probably will, now that he’s over 21.

        Yuletide is still a ways off, calendar-wise, but it brings pleasant thoughts of cooler weather.

        Zinnias are a favorite of mine, but I didn’t buy any this year. Maybe next year. ‘Ztay cool!

c 2012 by Pat Laster dba lovepat press