Hope you enjoyed your friends stay!!

I am such a wuss that I try not to open the door or curtains when it gets too hot (certainly not 113!) around here.

Here in Mesa, AZ, you know what we call 113?

A cooling trend. (It was 118 here yesterday. Then the monsoon thunderstorms rolled in right about 5:00 p.m. — bringing in some Tucson real estate and humidity but no rain. Or cooler temps.)

This time of year is our “winter” — the time when no one in their right mind would go outside for long periods of time. (I case you’re wondering, I try to leave The Dog Who Ate My Home with plenty of water and as much shade as possible. But being the Devil Dog she is, she manages to use the chain to spill all the water, and tangle herself up to limit the shady places she can get to. Fortunately, I can get home for lunch to untangle her and refill her water bowl. I’d put a kiddie pool out there for her to sit in, but she’s even more afraid of water — her previous owner tried to teach her to swim by throwing her into the deep end of a swimming pool — than she is of being left alone in the house.)

The difference between our “winter” and everybody else’s is that in Montana, the worse winter gets the more clothes one can put on if they need to venture out. Here, there are laws against taking off as much clothing as you can to remain comfortable. (And the sight of me with no clothes on would most definitely be a fashion capital offense, I can assure you. Even though Das Mutt — when she sees me in my birthday suit — has trouble stifling a yawn, as have most of the other women in my life — when they aren’t pointing and laughing, that is.)

Kirk (looking to make sure I don’t see someone with horns and a tail asking, “Smoking or Non-Smoking?”)