Monday, June 06, 2005

Summer is here

Summer always begins a little early in St. Louis. We had such a beautiful, long spring. However, we got virtually no rain, which is not going to be good as we enter the dry, dog days of summer. I also haven't seen as many baby ducklings this summer. Hope they're okay!
I knew it was summer as I walked to lab this morning. 10 a.m. high 80s, 90% humidity. I felt like I was melting. St. Louis has so many trees; their flowers have been replaced by soothing, thick green leaves. I'm going to miss that. Lewis and Clark must have really been overwhelmed by the lush, green forest in the area when they began their journey.
The peonies are done. So are the lilacs. The day lilies are in full glory. The hydrangea have just started bursting in mixes of blues and pinks. It reminds me of the scene from Sleeping Beauty (Disney) when the fairies are fighting over which color to make Aurora's birthday dress. The dasies just started and the purple coneflowers are thick with buds as is the butterfly bush. There is something about the thick, jungle heat of summers in St. Louis that is relaxing. I love being outside and drinking a cold drink in the shade and reading a book. Maybe it's like a natural sauna. It forces you to slow down. If it weren't for all the insects!

6 comments:

blake said...

Wow, I can actually picture that in my head. I love the smell of lilacs. Now you're making me miss the spring/summers of the midwest where you can actually see differences between seasons. That's also pretty cool that you can walk to your work...

Rachel said...

I love being so close that I can bike or walk. I planned it the same way in San Diego, which will be nice b/c I heard the commute is a bitch. I'm just trying to appreciate things that are nice in St. Louis before I leave. I know I will love San Diego. However, the seasons are nice.

Kevin Yates said...

i love the seasons too. i dont know if i could handle living without them...i actually like the fall transition into winter best. football and hunting seasons probably play a role with that though.

Rachel said...

I'm not going to miss winter or snow or the disgustingly hot summers.

RosieBoo said...

Of all the visuals you presented, I loved the reference to Sleeping Beauty...I'd almost forgotten that scene, and you brought it back to life and full of nature's colors!

Rachel said...

Thank you! I'll try to come up with some more similes.