I’ve experienced Shakespeare plays (one experiences his works, versus watches them—a bit pompous sounding,sorry) in a variety of forms: live on stage (several as an audience member and once as Horatio—very brief); large screen theater; small screen TV; reading, and teaching.
One favorite form is watching a performance in the park, as it is open air, much like a Globe performance. Plus there is the anticipation of lively audience response, the atmosphere being one of shared spaces and camaraderie. And the plays are usually free, at least the one that comes to our fair city is.
Every year in August the Montana company arrives and performs one of Shakespeare’s popular plays in a local park. This year they presented a As You Like It, which is one of Shakespeare’s more popular comedies.
Laughing Out LoudBard in the Park
Arriving at the park 40 minutes early I discovered the space already teeming with people, but no matter since I prefer the back for that quick exit to avoid the parking lot tangle.
As the sun drifted behind the trees the temps cooled down and the stage action heated up with runaway sons and daughters, tangled romance, and character arcs. As You Like It is a fun romp and the audience showed its appreciation with plenty of applause and laughter.
Bard in the Park signifies the transition from summer fun to back to school readiness. And Jacques mentions going to school in his famous “All the world’s a stage” soliloquy.
Anyone catch a Shakespeare in the Park performance this summer?
Recap: Part One addressed the situation of setting up a really boss BBQ area in the backyard only to have proximity issues with a new neighbor.
As Paul Harvey used to say: “Now for the rest of the story…”
Got the table-
Ready—-
Got the BBQ kettle-
Set
Got a lovely setting-
No go-
Yes-it was a No Go for the BBQ area because of the neighbors.
They had moved in right after we had arranged everything and set up their living space so close to ours it was going to be awkward to hang out in our backyard.
Plus, wanting to be good neighbors we accommodated their needs to raise a family so we moved the BBQ grill around to the other side of the yard and forwent using the cozy cafe corner so diligently decorated. The magnificent fern in the background (an annual volunteer) clinched the Feng Shui vibe and we were sad to forego the Feng Shui. We abandoned all of it for the sake of the neighbors.
Granted, we still used our backyard, and unfortunately we got into the habit of peeking over towards the neighbors before we utilized our yard. Just trying to be considerate but maybe our intentions were misunderstood.
I thought we were coexisting pretty well until we noticed it was pretty quiet on our neighbors side.
Then we realized overnight the neighbors had disappeared. Just like that. Barely a month in residence and vanished.
We wondered if it was something we did or said and then we realized that it really comes down to location, location, location.
And our new neighbors must have decided to raise their family in a more private area.
I have to say though they did overstep their sense of boundaries as I did catch them sometimes cutting through our yard.
“Don’t mind me-just passing through.”
Yes, our new neighbors were a pair of Pee Wees—no relationship to Herman. Delightfully cute little birds who decided to build their nest on top of a utility ledge just above our outdoor dining area.
Gone. No forwarding address.
Mama bird diligently stayed nest bound for a couple of weeks and though we tried to be courteous and reduce our backyard use our birdie neighbors abandoned their efforts to set up their family.
Now that they are gone we miss their presence. Isn’t that how it goes? Something that was once inconvenient becomes favorably reflected upon once absent? I haven’t seen them around in the neighborhood. I do hope their new place worked out for them.
Have you ever had to readjust your lifestyle to accommodate a bird nest?
Well, it’s August 1st and at this point I used to see the hourglass sand of summer quickly slipping away.
the sands of summer slipping away
August would be the month that all the school supplies lining the aisles of stores and all those incessant reminders to get ready to go back to school would curb my enthusiasm to embrace the rest of summer vacation. A tiny spark of anticipation would form and increasingly grow larger as each day of August ticked by until the inevitable email would land into my inbox reminding me of all of my obligation to attend all the in-service meetings at school.
Ah–but that was then and this is now.
Three years into retirement and I welcome August and recognize summer is not over. So I shall celebrate with an original poem.
July by Pam Webb
July arrives in dragonfly fashion on star-spangled wings dancing in after June’s somewhat fickle days flitting here and wandering there. The days are full of hammock reads, lazy BBQs, and required air-conditioned nights. July is the true summer month. And when its fulsome days have dwindled down to rest
Suddenly–
July forsakes glad company and speedily zooms
into
August.
How do you view August? Is it your true summer month or the nudge that summer is ending?
August used to be the beginning of the end for me since my mind began shifting away from summer fun to classroom curriculum. Going into my third year of retirement August just means summer is still summer, albeit the mornings and evenings a little cooler. BUT–I can keep on reading with no compunction to create lesson plans. Keep on keeping on reading.
I’m still finding lots of hammock time and books that go well with hammock reading tend to be ones where I am engrossed in the story and want to stay put for a couple of hours getting absorbed in the story. Here are my five star reads for August. Check out my other books here.
An unexpected find while browsing the library bookshelves. Sometimes serendipity picks are the best. A story that presents small town community without being snarky or saccharine while mixing in relationships ranging from family to friendships to neighbors to new love. The author manages to create realistic responses out of extraordinary situations while slipping in nuanced details like apple varieties and cake baking. For those looking for Mitford-type stories, ones where the characters and community share equal spotlight.
Not a perfect book, with its hyperbolic characters and fairly implausible plot—yet, who cares! A fun mystery revolving around perceptions and relationships and interconnections. Sutanto provides readers with an irascible new detective, Vera Wong. Forthcoming adventures will be duly anticipated.
Nonfiction can be oh so dry. Not so with The Cloudspotter’s Guide. The author combines prose with scientific facts about clouds to create a reference book that doubles as a delightful read. Readers can even join the Cloud Appreciation Society.
Rereading a mystery has one great disadvantage: the ending or twist is already known. Nevertheless, Tey’s story employing the pretender motif still holds interest due to her character scaffolding of Brat Farrar. He knows he is a bounder for deceiving the family, yet he still gains reader sympathy. Even as a reread with inside knowledge, Tey’s story maintained interest to the last page.
One absolutely appreciated bonus of retirement is enjoying the mellow fall sunshine. I call September weather my Goldilock Days: not too hot, not too cold—just right.
Previous to retirement (this is my second September!) I would look out of my classroom window and long to be outside. That was one commonality I shared with my students. Although I would try to tie up loose ends and get home to enjoy the remaining afternoon, I usually arrived home only to enjoy a sliver of sun before it slipped behind the mountain. My Verilux light is a poor substitute for that warm, comforting kiss of sunlight.
And so, in these fall days, these post-summer days, these halcyon days of retirement I am found sunning like a marmot on my morning patio, napping on my hammock early afternoon, and lounging on my other hammock in the late afternoon.
Lest you think all I do is lounge around, I am landscaping, cleaning, writing, reading, and stacking wood throughout the day.
Unfortunately my Goldilocks time is ending. I used to go for my morning walk by 7 am. Lately it’s 49 degrees at that time and the sun is barely up. By 9 am it’s 60 degrees which is acceptable. Just as the perfect temps of mid-seventies arrive the cold nights appear. By 6 pm there is a chill that sends me inside.
Nothing says summer is ending more than the delivery of our winter wood supply. I feel the calendar days tick down when those wood chunks fill the bins.
Two cords strong
One aspect of full wood bins is knowing I will be cozy warm by the fire reading books and sipping cocoa. For now I’m still reveling in late summer before I fall into winter.
I do so like the moon in all its phases. And the twinkly stars. And the shining planets. And all those flashy meteor showers. Oh, and I do like a good old eclipse, be it sun or lunar.
This summer I have diligently tried my best often a couple of times to venture in the wee hours to catch celestial wonder action.
I am more determined to catch a full moon, especially super moons, being that are usually breathtaking and enter the night stage with much aplomb. The past couple of years has seen a ratchet in my moon madness. My dedication is just short concern. Werewolves frighten the socks off me, so that is not an issue. I just really, like the moon.
The hubs ever happy to find a gift that brings delight (I’m not huge on stuff, being a minimalist) gave me a moon calendar this year for Christmas (not knowing I had picked one up from the Dollar Store). I was, over the moon, with his present. Especially when I heard what lengths he went to purchase it. He went on line. This from a man who owns a shirt that says “I hate cyberspace.” This is a love of true depth and devotion.
My backyard moon scape is not as profound, but still worth a watch
I have even subscribed to The Farmer’s Almanac web version to make sure I don’t miss any cool moon and planet action.
Like the planet alignment. You caught that, didn’t you? Wow! Right? I convinced the hubs to sit with on lawn chairs on our driveway and peer up into the night sky at about 4 am to catch this once in a lifetime event. Well, the next time it happens I might be too old to even care about celestial happenings, so I wanted this sighting to count.
There is nothing like getting up what seems like the middle of the night to sit outside bundled up and slightly cold and definitely sleepy, to wait for something that might show up or then again might not. I hear elk hunters experience this. No shooting is involved in star gazing unless it’s a star that took a wrong turn.
I followed the BBC Science Focus, suggested best time to see the 2022 alignment of between 3:39 a.m. and sunrise at 4:43 a.m. on the morning of 24 June 2022. At 4:30 a.m. the show began. An hour of stargazing in the early morn is one thing, but having the neighbor catch us at it is another. When we pointed to the sky at the planets queing as if waiting for their early Starbucks, he nodded and acknowledged the event with a “Cool” before going off wherever he goes at 4:30 in the morning.
Planetary alignment. Check it out:
Couldn’t quite see Mercury, yet I hear it’s a shy planet
July’s sky sponsored a super moon—the Buck Moon, the largest moon of 2022. Another required early morn venture. At 2:30ish of the a.m. that moon did rise up out the southeast as splendid as a Banksy rendering. Super, yes. More like superlative. The fact that super moons are more than once in a lifetime do not lessen their appeal.
Hey, it’s not all about you
Here it is August. What’s on the menu? The Pleiades Meteor Showers, of course. And of course they are best seen at “you want me to get up at 3 a.m.?” This time the hubs said give him the details later like after the sun and he was up.
The first night I struggled up at 2:30 a.m. Just in case the show started early. Not sure how to watch for meteors, and being sleepy, I stood up and leaned my back against the truck and watched. Nothing but a crick in the neck and an overpowering desire to go back to bed. The hubs was not impressed by my meager details.
What I hoped for…
Three nights later I found myself awake at 4 a.m. and this time I had a plan. I bundled up and went to the backyard and climbed into my faithful hammock. This is the best way to watch for anything in the night sky because if there is a starry night no show I can take a comfortable nap. A minute or three goes by. Wait—yes, a falling star. Or maybe that was a star taking a dive off of Venus, since it seemed to ever so slowly dribble downwards. Not too impressive. I’ll wait some more. Ooh—what’s that zipping across the sky with such purpose? Suddenly I feel like an extra from October Sky watching Sputnik threaten my American democracy. Okay, that was entertaining. Another minute or two. The hammock is dampish. I’m sleepy. Hungry, too. Wait—up in in the sky…Is it a falling star? Is it a satellite? A zipping vertical flash—it’s a meteor!
Fulfilled checklist. One lone meteor does not constitute the dizzying scurry of meteors I envisioned, but I’m hungry and the hammock is dampish.
and what I pretty much viewed.
This time the hubs met me at the door as I returned. What must he think about this nocturnal sojourning of mine? He’s happy that I’m happy. We read and go back to bed. I forgot to eat something. So glad for bananas on the counter.
The last super moon of the year will be Thursday, August 11th. The Sturgeon Moon will appear at the very acceptable hour of 6:30 p.m. Thank you. Consider this as my RSVP.
Nothing fishy about appreciating a full moon
And here it is September and the famous Harvest Moon is scheduled for Saturday the 10th. All this week we have watched fill in from a glowing crescent to a radiant cheese ball in the sky. It already is impressive. I am looking forward to its full prominence Saturday night.
Are you over the moon about celestial night viewing? What’s your favorite night sky item?
Neil Young helps to usher out the summer with its moon glorious adventures:
In the past I considered July to be my solid summer vacation month. Leftover schoolish stuff in June and preparing for school in August meant July was free and clear for my favorite way to enjoy summer vaycay: hammock reading.
This July was totally different. Really hot, make that extra hot, days prevented hammock lounging unless I was okay with being sizzled while I read. Secondly, after ignoring my yard for too many years I decided it’s time to revamp and recalibrate. Working early in the cool morning and roughing it out until I felt melt status approaching, I weeded, revised, pruned, and created. This did not leave as much time for reading, but I managed to read 11 books as I recuperated in air conditioning in the afternoons and ventured out again the early evening. Here are the highlights of my July reading:
Lorna Doone by R.D. Blackmore
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
(big reading commitment of over 700 pages—didn’t realize what I was getting myself into when I blithely requested it from the library)
Going against the usual maxim of “book first, then movie,” it is suggested to watch the 2000 BBC version with Richard Coyle as John Ridd first and then embrace Blackmore’s story of love, hate, justice, and politics.
Why?
The BBC version plucks out the core story of Blackmore’s sweeping adventure epic which is the romance of the star-crossed lovers Lorna Doone and John Ridd. Seeing the pure and intense romance through the camera lens helps when it comes to reading the book as Blackmore tends to digress with panache adventures beyond John Ridd’s love for Lorna.
An Incomplete Revenge (Maisie Dobbs #5) by Jacqueline Winspear
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
This fifth entry of the Maisie Dobbs series is more than satisfying—it truly is a really good read. Winspear continues some of her developed plot aspects such as Maisie’s concerns for her aging father and her schism with her mentor, Maurice. There is also long overdue closure with Simon, her wartime love. These important personal points add to the fascinating case Maisie takes on for family friends. As always, Winspear injects aspects of WWI into the story, and in this story she adds in the additional details of the gypsy culture. Be wiling to sit up and finish the last few chapters in one read since the plot twists are riveting.
The Ethan I Was Before by Ali Standish
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
An impressive debut which explores loss through different perspectives.
Ethan loses a friend through a careless accident and struggles with survivor guilt. His parents deal with his breakdown by uprooting the family from Boston to live with Ethan’s grandfather Ike as a means of starting over.
The loss of a loved one, be it a friend, spouse, parent, even a way of life is explored with genuine characterization and realistic responses. The plot provides adventure, mystery, and sage wisdom in terms of dealing with situations that are out of one’s control.
Among the Mad (Maisie Dobbs #6) by Jacqueline Winspear
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
As the Maisie Dobbs series continues, Winspear continues adding layers onto her lead character. In this book the title aptly notes Maisie is Among the Mad. Per her other books, Winspear discusses the aftermath of WWI, in this case how the majority of wounded veterans became “invisible” to society, often being ignored due to their injuries, both physical and mental. PTSD, known as “shell shock,” impacted thousands of people who were involved WWI, Maisie being among them. How people cope with trauma, not just from war, is touched on with Billy’s wife, who grieves the death of her young daughter to the point of physical harm.
A bit darker, and more philosophical than the previous titles, the plot is nevertheless intriguing in how Maisie tracks down her clues to a conclusion. The continuing development of Maisie’s character, as she heals from her own physical, mental, and spiritual war wounds adds fuller dimension to the mystery plot.
Going Postal (Discworld #33) by Terry Pratchett
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Absolutely marvelous! A standalone within the Discworld collection, and a delight. No prior Discology needed to embrace Pratchett’s genius dig at the Internet, his tribute to the Post Office, and the appreciation for an anti-hero by the name of Moist von Lipwig.
Pratchett’s creativity with character names, plot pacing, strange interjections, odd and unexpected insertions create a read worth multiple perusings.
The film adaptation has its own merits, as does the audiobook. Watching the film first firmly placed the characters in mind, otherwise how else to envision a golem (so different from LOTR spectrum). Do try reading along with the audiobook—the reader’s character voices are to perfection.
The Mapping of Love and Death (Maisie Dobbs #7) by Jacqueline Winspear
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Once again Winspear deftly combines another perspective of WWI with an unsolved crime. Her seventh entry into the Maisie Dobbs series has Maisie solving a murder in the trenches.
Winspear presents cartography and it’s importance to the war efforts with one Michael Clifton, an American who joins up to honor his father’s homeland of Britain. When his remains are discovered in a field by a French farmer years later after the war’s end, Maisie is hired by the family to find out more about his death.
In her investigation Maisie uncovers love and death, but also faces love and death in her own life. Richly detailed, perfect pacing, unexpected plot twists, and continuing character development provide a read that resonates.
The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Young Nisha, half Hindu and half Muslim, writes of her experience during the 1947 partition in India. She addresses her concerns to her deceased mother who died during childbirth of Nisha and her twin brother Amil. Nisha’s father, a doctor, makes the decision to leave all behind due to the erupting violence.
As Nisha and her family travel, her diary entries succinctly describe the trauma of the situation, of dividing India, splitting up families and friendships, and facing death.
The author provides a powerful narrative through Nisha’s eyes, illuminating the search for home and understanding oneself when the world changes overnight.
An important story based on the author’s family experiences, the book spotlights a historical event perhaps as not well known to most USA children, but is timely as current societal issues reflect what happens to a nation when it is divided due to political, cultural, and/or religious issues. Well deserving of its Newberry Honor.
Is July your need to read month? Any picks off the list? Any suggestions to add?
Included in my bio is “hammock aficionado.” Summer is not summer without setting up and reveling in the joy of my hammocks. Yes, that would be plural.
Palm trees are not included in most locations
I have two: one for the sun and one for the shade.
I’m not sure when my fascination with hammocks began. There is something so richly rewarding being suspended above the ground, being cocooned.
I’ve owned the camper’s delight (find two trees and secure it), the classic macramé weave, and currently own a deluxe double wide frame complete with umbrella (for the sun), and my portable frame (for the shade).
Summer starts once the hammocks are set up. Double deluxe takes some thought as it is so unwieldy that once it is positioned that is that. Relishing the gentle early morning sun rays is a pleasant way to start the day. The umbrella helps stave off the intensity of the afternoon sun, and there is nothing like dozing in the double deluxe in the early evening when the sun drifts behind the trees, filtering the shade so there are paths of sunlight and shade whilst I recover from my landscaping projects. Aah!
My little shade model is not as comfy, but being on a lightweight frame it can be easily moved wherever is best. From mid June to end of summer it travels all over the backyard.
It is the end of summer once I acknowledge it’s too cold to hang out in the hammock. I have been known to wrap up in a blanket to catch the last bits of the sun before acknowledging summer is done.
Isn’t this hard to resist?
Hope you enjoy Hammock Day. If you have no hammock then treat yourself to this marvelous means of enjoying the summer.
Pam Webb 