Hazy Summer Days

On Tuesday, June 27, there were 66 wildland fires being tracked across parts of Ontario Province in Canada. As a result, smoke and particulate matter is spreading over much of the United States, and across the Atlantic Ocean to multiple European countries. It has rendered the air quality “very unhealthy.” What is there to do at this point but monitor our local air quality and moderate our time and activities outdoors? The underlying science and human behavior which favor conditions for the fires have been ignored so long, we transitioned to a mode of acceptance and now focus on coping with the disaster.

At least the scenery on the state park trail is nice.

I got into something while working in the yard. I believe the ailment is contact dermatitis and the little spot where I got it itches constantly. I put some ointment on it a couple times a day and should be fine after two to four weeks, according to the Mayo Clinic. I don’t know what I contacted, although I found some nettles out by the composter. I harvested the nettles and hung them in the garage to dry. There is a cup of nettle tea in my future.

The garden is really coming in. The freezer and refrigerator are almost full. I am much closer to the garden this year than previously. I never fail to marvel at what it can produce. For now, life on Earth is pretty good, despite the contact dermatitis.