Rainy days and Mondays
It's been hot here in Sandpoint. Unbelievably, blisteringly hot. For weeks. In the course of a normal summer, we get our 100+ degree days, but they are not the norm. We may have two or three strung together like paper lanterns on a patio during a summer party, but rarely do we have a week of them. Our typical summer temperature is 80-ish with a few 90-ish days sprinkled in for good measure. This has not been a typical summer. We've had more 100+ degree days than we've had in the 21 years I've lived here. Our typical daytime temp has been in the mid to high 90's. Definitely not what one imagines when thinking of the Pacific Northwest.
Yesterday, all that changed. It rained. I awoke to a blessedly cool drizzle noiselessly watering my lawn, my garden, my flowerpots. It was wonderful. I'm not one normally given to odes about rainy days. In fact, as a California native who grew up on the ocean, I love the sun, summer, and hot days on the lake. But for some reason, these past couple of weeks I found myself longing for rain. Everything was beginning to look brown and dead and no amount of watering seemed to help. It's amazing how quickly cool, rainy days can change all that. It rained all day yesterday and has been raining pretty much all day today. And suddenly, the lush, green scenery is back. My front lawn is thick and green. The back lawn, which was really looking thirsty, is basking in the rainfall, returning to its normal hue. The trees seem to be reaching higher, as if to thank God for His gift. Rain.
I never thought I'd be so happy about a rainy day. Sleeping at night is so much easier. The rain pattering quietly on the deck outside my bedroom door is like a lullaby, making drifting off to sleep so easy. I don't wake up hot and sticky despite the fan going next to the bed (it's never hot long enough to justify air conditioning). The squirrels have returned from whatever cool, shady nook they take to when the temperatures rise and are playing tag on my front lawn. My cat has even started acting like herself again, running like a kitten from one end of the house to the other, chasing imaginary mice or cats. I love the rain. Now, if this keeps up too long, I won't be loving it for long. But for now, it's a welcome respite from the abnormally hot days we were suffering through. If we could just go back to sunny days in the high 70's after this little rainy spell it would be perfect.
Rainy days and Mondays don't always get me down.
