We are now getting the same amount of daylight that we got May 21. Far better, I think, to be heading toward total daylight than away from it.

But then we are that much closer to again having total daylight.

And we are, rain sodden, bracing ourselves for another long winter.

I feel cheated. I did not get any long rides in this spring or summer. The robins are now heading south, parents and young ones. The cow parsnip is in full bloom, and the fireweed blooms are moving upward.

It was a so-so garden year. The strawberries did not mature. The bees also are seasonal nonworkers.

People worry about the state of the economy. They should be more concerned about the state of the climate. The earth will sustain us if we take care of it, but we don’t see this as a priority. Most environmentalists agree that we are going down fast.

Me, my world has become quite small in one way. I have not been far from home in a long time. But because I’m reading so much, my world view has expanded.

Alys mowing the cow parsnip

I would like to think that the world view of our now almost former volunteer coordinator expanded while working for the BLBP. He landed on his feet work wise, in getting a new job. It’s what he calls a “big boy job.” He gets to work from home. But I can imagine that he’s going to be quite lonely.

Imagine it (for anyone) working at home, at your computer, and not interacting with anyone besides your work colleagues. Maybe, for some, the prospect of earning a decent wage offsets the lack of human interaction.

Me (and this is not a bad thing), I am getting maxed out on human interaction. Let’s see, today, I interacted with one volunteer coordinator, one eBay coordinator, the three Summer in the Park(s) staff, four volunteer book cleaner/stampers, two distributors, and a potential volunteer, two tourists, and my friend Becky. Also, while in Bugge Park, several children, two parents, and the kids cupboard volunteers. This is 15 plus individuals.

Who woulda thunk it? That retrieving a few books from the local recycling center bins would lead to my having to be a people person. I talked briefly with Lydia who does eBay about the workload and she said with her usual half smile that I’m experiencing the domino effect. It’s a nice analogy, although I do wonder what the toppling effect will lead to.

Always good to get home. Always. It’s pretty calm here, although sometimes it does feel like the eye of a storm. Today I got home and I could not find Ryder. I looked around the inside of the cabin and out in the upper quadrant area – no dog. Then I got Shadow out to find her. No dog. I refrained from looking in the last place where she might be – up in the Black Hole because I thought that if I didn’t find here there that I would panic. Sure enough, she had entered the Black Hole Cabin, and then, of course, the door had closed behind her.