JUNE

They say, “Cute as a June bug,” but let me tell you, there is nothing cute about June bugs. They bombard the screen all night and you have to sweep them away in the morning.

June is typically the month of fog known as June gloom, following May grey. The fog persists so much that I escape to inland places or other countries so I can spend Summer Solstice, with its longest day, actually in the sun. For years I went to Spain, the land of sun and week long festivals, especially for La Noche de San Juan or Sant Joan depending on where you are in Spain. The parties go on all night with dancing, bonfires, sardines, night swimming and fireworks. The events are very pagan or ancient which is my own preference. As the bonfires burn down, people jump them for good luck. Both bathing in the sea and fire jumping are ancient rituals of purification.

My last trip to Europe on the Solstice was to the French Pyrenees town of Perpignan where they came down the mountain with torches lit from the ever burning flame of the Castelet in town. It was followed by the most fantastic fireworks display off the roof of the Castelet that I have every seen. Here the beach and the town are quite separate, so there wasn’t any bathing or bonfires to jump, but perhaps at the beaches they did. Still it was an amazing display of fun and spirit.

So when the fog rolls in and blots the sun in California, it makes me want to flee. At the end of May, my husband and I drove to Palm Springs in the California desert. It wasn’t too hot yet, only the 90’s with super low humidity at least the first few days. The desert always beckons me, but once the really hot weather comes, I usually wait until it cools off in October. Our first day here we watched little wrens dart in and out of the palm trees. They were making homes in the stem of the tree with its nook and crannies left from where the leaves used to grow. I see them picking up pieces of the dried fibrous material for their nests. Its already hot here, so nesting deep into these leaf scars probably keep them cooler. They chitter away during the day. When night falls, the bats come out. It’s fascinating to watch them swoop down through the sky. There is an owl nearby hooting as well. The night is quiet except for the sounds of night birds and bats.

The next day, as we float in the pool, we watch two roadrunners hunting insects in the lawn. They run fast than stop than run some more. A desert hare with its longer ears just popped out of the bushes but the roadrunners weren’t interested in it.

Floating in a pool is a wonderful way to cool off in the desert. Today the sky is beautiful with cirrocumulus clouds streaking the sky. I love just floating and watching the clouds change and shift. Its quite lovely today, maybe a little warmer then the previous day, but still quite nice. We retreat to chairs that are mostly in the shade to give ourselves a break from the sun and just lounge and read. Today I am reading a book called The Overstory. by Richard Powers. It is a novel about trees and their relationships to humans. Each chapter has different trees interconnected with human stories. Quite fascinating, but I didn’t manage to read all the 612 pages that comprise this book.

I love the heat of summer but here on day three the humidity from a passing tropical storm off of Mexico is raising the very low humidity of 17% to about 35% or so. Its 101 today and the heat has gotten to me. I retreat inside for a bit to recover in the air conditioning. Even by evening, it is still quite hot. I am thinking I should have had a frozen drink. That might have helped.

We return home late afternoon on the fourth day. Here it is overcast with thick clouds that seem more like rain clouds than fog. It was nice to cool off and breathe easy outside. The following day it does rain a bit, just .05″ but still, rain is rare in June so we’ll take it. After the rain, the clouds stayed in force with rarely a moment of sun even peaking out. Its good weather to do some gardening work. I start with the grapevines which need pruning. They are growing out of control right now. The crows come down to watch me. I greet them and they squawk back to me. Tomorrow the sun is suppose to come out. We are hoping for that. My tomatoes would like a little heat. This weather has been quite chilly so far in June.