Summer Thoughts in 2019

The official start of summer is almost here although we are still enjoying moderate weather in San Diego. Our moderate weather included rain, which is very unusual for June. Not a rainstorm, more drizzle than downpour, but the streets and sidewalks were wet when I drove to work earlier this week.

I just returned from a short vacation break. I went to Spokane to visit my brother and his family for my niece’s high school graduation. I enjoyed the visit and reconnecting with my brother, his wife and his kids.  Most of the time I don’t mind the distance between myself and my siblings and parents but sometimes it would be nice to live closer. However, when I have those thoughts, I realize that there might be more disagreements between us than there are now.

My mom also flew out for the visit and helped out with my travel expenses.  We shared a hotel room and I had a good visit with her too. We enjoyed room service for one breakfast and eating in the restaurant for the other days we stayed, a nice version of girls time out. I don’t normally eat much breakfast but for some reason I like ordering breakfast when I’m on travel. When I saw hot chocolate on the menu it brought back memories of vacation trips from many years ago. I thought about ordering a cup, but decided it wouldn’t be the same thrill I had when I ordered this treat as a child.

Spokane is a lovely small city and I had a feel of going home when I flew into the airport. Although the pine forests and hills are very different from towns in Oklahoma City and Wyoming, the smaller city feeling, the smaller amount of traffic and the old trees and old brick homes reminded me of towns I lived in and drove through while growing up. San Diego is more of a home to my family and I, yet I miss some of that smaller city feel. Again, another place where I suspect I wouldn’t enjoy the small town feel if I lived there. I also am pretty sure that I would not enjoy the winters, I don’t miss the snow, and cold.

In other news, due to the positive comments about the photos I post with my blog, we have decided to sell prints of the photos. I have setup a store on-line for people who might like to order a print. The pictures can also be printed on things like coffee mugs, so there are other options if you’d like to have a copy of one of J.T.’s photos.   The store is at https://redbubble.com/people/shellcreek/.

Have a good start for your summer and I hope everyone finds time to enjoy family and friends.

Pictures by J.T. Harpster