Summer

It was hot. Looking down the road, the waves of heat rippled up off the pavement, causing the air to shimmer. The sounds of a cicada occasionally cut the heavy air, bringing some movement to the stifling day. Even the normally active boy was almost motionless, siting on the porch with an icy lemonade close at hand.
He surveyed the lawn that he had just mown, grass clippings sticking to his arms and legs. Reaching down, he picked up the lemonade and pressed the cool glass to his forehead, the almost too-cold sensation sending chills through his body.
The storm door opened behind him and the smells of home wafted out. His mother's baking, his grandmother's cooking, the smell of dust and age and books that belonged to his grandfather, the scent of fresh and youth that was his sister, and suddenly a large presence behind him that smelled of leather and tobacco and aftershave and all the scents that the boy associated with maleness and his initiation into manhood. His father sat down next to him, setting his own lemonade within arm's reach and pulling out his pipe and tobacco pouch, and with it, the sweet scent of good tobacco. He carefully packed the bowl, worm smooth by the passage of years and the gentle handling it had received and struck a match, waving it over the bowl. As he gently inhaled, the ember slowly grew and and produced the smoke that conjured images of strength and protection in the boy's mind. Nothing was said; nothing needed to be said.
The sky gradually clouded up, a storm of summer forming on the horizon and moving swiftly in, bringing rain and scrubbing the air clean. It passed quickly as those types of storms often do. In its wake it left a verdant sparkling world which smelled of fresh-cut grass and clean summer rain.
The boy drew in a deep breath, heavy with all the smells surrounding him and smiled.

*blows off dust*

Ah yes, the good ol' blog.

I've not used this for quite some time. January 20th, by its reckoning. It's most likely correct.

Welp, I've got it, I might as well use it. However, most of my life seems trivial now compared to the adventure I was having just a few short months ago. I guess this is the way of things. They come, they go.

I'll most likely be using this to post random thoughts that flit through my head. This means that some posts will be many paragraphs, and some (most likely more) will be a few lines. Quips, quotations, short vignettes, etc.

I had a date on Saturday. A real date. For the first time in over a year. My last real date was December of 2007. This most recent date was a double date. One of my friends set it up. It was him and me, and our dates were two Japanese girls. Quite a good time was had by all, indeed. I just wanted to share that news.

Now, something that I wrote on the plane over to Japan.

It was one of those too-warm days in autumn that bespoke of the summer that has so recently slipped by. The breeze gently stirred the leaves that had mostly changed but clung tenaciously to the trees. The surface of the lake mottled gently under the insistent breeze that slowly pushed the lone canoe across the water. At first glance, the canoe seemed empty, but an arm appeared over the edge, moving in the lazy arc of an exaggerated stretch as the boy in the canoe awoke from his doze and gazed at the fluffy white clouds that scuttled across the almost too blue sky. He yawned, stretched again, and carefully sat up before grabbing the paddle that had lain next to him. He dipped the paddle into the water and with practiced ease, urged the craft into motion.

As you can probably guess, I like to make images with my words. I'm a terrible painter and artist, so instead, I make you see what I can see in my head.
So, please, leave thoughts. Love you all,