Hello July

July has entered 2008 blazing hot. The thermometer topped out today at 90 degrees. Fortunately, I took my bike ride before the stroke of 10 a.m. John started bike commuting so I rode with him to his office, which took about half an hour, then continued on for another hour. The extra ten miles gave me some time to reflect on some of the awesome things I did during June, such as:

~ Star Wars exhibit—John and I took the kids to see the Star Wars exhibit at the Science Museum. The boys were thrilled to see Darth Vader’s costume, lightsabers, spaceship models, Chewbacca and his “brother” Wookies, among other items.

~ movies—The boys and I had an outing to see Kung-Fu Panda. We all loved Jack Black and the animated action! I saw Sex and the City twice. It was a predictable movie in the very worst ways, but I enjoyed seeing the gang together again. And, who could deny the awesome eye candy of clothes, shoes, and New York City.

~ bike races—As a family, we took in a few of the Nature Valley Grand Prix events, including the culminating race in Stillwater, a criterium involving a very big hill. We also caught a few races at the velodrome in Blaine, including one in which the Italian national track champion reached 41 mph in a lap around the oval.

~ meals in—grilling salmon (a first), hazelnut-green olive pesto (a surprising concoction, which I could eat by the spoonful), lamb kebabs, lamb burgers with tzatziki in pitas, green bean and golden beet salad, veggie-loaded scrambled eggs and English muffins with apricot jam for lunch

~ meals out—a very delicious bun salad at Ngon Bistro, walleye with lobster risotto at the incomparable Porter and Frye, frog leg “popsicles” at Meritage, a lackluster vodka penne with salmon at Bellanotte

~ I managed to read more books this month, finishing Shark’s Fin and Sichuan Pepper (Fuchsia Dunlop), Devil May Care (Sebastian Faulks), Then We Came to the End (Joshua Ferris), and Petite Anglaise (Catherine Sanderson).

~ My friend Jill Y. had an extra ticket to the second round of the U.S. Women's Open golf tournament, and generously treated me to a long morning walk at Interlachen. We had a magnificent time. Even though the golf course was hushed, there was a pulse of excitement. I will readily admit that I was super-starstruck by the likes of golf greats Juli Inkster, Annika Sorenstam, Se Ri Pak, and Kelli Kuehne, to name a few, as well as upcoming talent such as Lorena Ochoa, Stacy Lewis, and ’08 winner Inbee Park.

At the beginning of June, I had set a few goals for myself:

~ clean the yard (pull weeds, pick up sticks, landscape, plant herbs and flowers)
~ finalize our wills (I know, I know)
~ finish our 2007 taxes (maybe we’ll get our rebate before the end of the year?!?)
~ throw away ALL the clutter that bogs down our existence (possibly insurmountable, but now is the time to tackle)

Mostly, these are house projects that take advantage of the extra time on my hands. I managed to clean about a quarter of the master bedroom, sorting, tossing, and filing clothes, shoes, papers, and books. Sadly, this only represents about one-quarter of one-seventh of our house. I have done some yard clean up, though most of this—pulling weeds and picking up sticks—is ongoing. I planted herbs—basil, rosemary, sage, thyme, and oregano—in pots on the terrace, and I am happy to report that they are thriving. The basil and sage, especially, are growing gangbusters, progressing enough so that I may now use them in cooking. There’s always July…

Upcoming
~ Tour de France
~ more Wimbledon
~ Maine vacation