signs of summer in the south.

1. the return of fleas. gross.
2. the return of humidity.
3. sunflowers popping up.
4. farmers market.
5. lots of white wine with friends.
6. bug bites.
7. a beach trip.


1. fleas. they're incredible down here. seriously. we've been taken over. i spent a fair amount of time at the best pet store in memphis, pet star. the dudes there have lots of tattoos and hair, and they love them some talk about fleas and what to do about them. i heart them.

2. humidity. one morning last week i opened the door leading from the house to the porch and was hit by a wall of humidity. as i gasped for breath and wiped the sweat from my eyes, i realized something truly horrifying: it's not even august yet.

3. sunflowers. okay, maybe these aren't such a southern thing, but two of my sunflowers sprung up. and the weird people that the street who have turned their entire front yard into a veggie/flower garden? well, they're now not so weird in my book. they've got zillions of sunflowers in bloom.

4. farmers market. the memphis market is pretty kick ass. and huge. it's doubled in size since last summer. this past weekend i picked up lovely looking squash, two beautiful tomatoes (one red, one orange), a jalapeno, some fresh bread, farm fresh eggs, and a cuke. yep, summertime fresh fruit and veggies are the best. especially when you can buy them local and/or organic.

5. it's been a summer of white wine, i'm most happy to report.

6. bug bites. mosquito bites, check. weird random bites i can't identify, check. spider bites, most likely check. i have a freakish looking bite on my left pinky. betsy looked at it yesterday and said 'i sure hope that's not a brown recluse bite.' and i said 'oh, god, do you think so?' so of course i googled brown recluse bites to, you know, compare my bite to those. the good news: it's not a brown recluse bite. my finger would have swelled and burst by now. the bad news: i am scarred for life by the images i saw. anytime something needs to be lanced and drained, you know it's bad. especially when is swells to five times the normal size and causes unbearable pain. google it yourself, but you've so been forewarned. gross, gross, gross.

7. this weekend i'm heading to the beach - it's been almost a year. criminal, i know. i heart the beach. lastenia is coming, too. yay! sand, surf, friends, family...what more could a girl ask for? well, okay. there's obviously more, but you know. let's not be greedy.