Summer in Seattle

66 degrees in the house, cool and cloudy if not raining outright: that's summer in Seattle. I've had to put on the heat several times in the past few weeks. We had 20 days' worth (a long run) of sunshine in June and July, but it didn't last. Rik told me he read that the final weekend in July, which is usually the most dependably sunny weekend of the year, was the coldest in about 100 years. So I have been watching movies, reading books, taking naps under a blanket with a warm dog at my feet and hoping for more summer.

Today summer arrived again, with a gorgeous 80+ degrees. My roma and cherry tomato plants are showing fruit that I hope will ripen soon. I harvested most of the basil today and made some yummy pesto sauce, half of which I froze for winter use. I picked the first yellow crookneck squash and still have a little lettuce. The snow peas are blossoming a second time. We're still getting raspberries. The roses are blooming all over the yard, the potatoes have begun to flower, and the marionberries are reddening up (they're like blackberries without the thorns).

Now that's what I call summer in Seattle!