PORCH PONDERINGS

Things are Changing, Again

It's beginning to heat up again here. Today wasn't too bad, compared to weeks past. Only 92°, but tomorrow, oh brother. Back up near 100° and wind. Fire weather warning is out. Low humidity with wind. Couple that with tinder-dry grass, bushes, trees, and conditions are ripe for wildfires.

But it is the middle of August, so things will be changing in a few weeks. We will be getting colder nights, perhaps some rain. The kids are going back to school next week.

My garden is growing well. There are tomatoes, potatoes, and butternut squash. A small offering this year due to our yard being torn up earlier this spring. The squash are loving the hot weather. Gracious. I'll have to post pictures of these. The tomatoes so far are small. We read that the pollen doesn't do well in the high heat. And it's not just me. My gardening guru at church is having the same problems. But her green beans are gone this year - the grasshoppers ate them all. We've been using some organic grasshopper bait, so ours aren't too bad. Still a nuisance, but not like last year.

We finally finished our school supply drive. Over 70 students got free backpacks and school supplies. All supplies were provided by donations. We received the lists of what each grade needed, then ordered everything in bulk online. Much easier than running to Walmart. Then we also gave everyone a free backpack as well. All anyone needed to do was fill out a form with their child's information. No questions asked. I know some families didn't need the help, whereas some have desperate situations. Mattered not to us.

The free summer lunch program is also coming to a close when school starts. My friend heads that each year. Again, no questions asked. some families just don't want to cook while some don't have the money. You just show up and grab a meal. Breakfast and lunch daily. She served about 100 on some days.

A fun thing yesterday was the library book sale. I always buy more books. Why? Just because you can. They usually have about 4,000 to sell. And at only 25 cents per book, how can you not buy 5 or 6?

One thing about Roundup that I love is the way we take care of each other. Good times or bad times. We all work together to make life better.