Late August sunshine
Making soup on an initially damp day while anticipating revisions.
That was yesterday's morning weather, much the same today without the overt drizzle. Again I made soup, split pea, same as yesterday. Not that I ADORE pea soup, though I do enjoy it. Merely that yesterday's batch went in the freezer and today's is in the fridge, and will last the next couple of days.
What's different is that today is still cloudy. That's one beauty of living on the North Coast; how weather alters from day to day. Yes we most often begin with the marine layer, but when the sunshine emerges, and for how long, can't be predicted, and that's not taking into account the microclimates depending on how close one resides to the actual ocean/bay.
Point in case: Yesterday it was almost RAINING, so heavy was the mist! Perfect weather for soup, as it felt like October and not the end of August. However by ten a.m. the sun was nudging its kind way through the clouds and by noon it was as if drizzle had never occurred. By three thirty the clouds were back in a super-stealthy sort of manner, like you blinked and WHOMP, there was the marine layer! Yet it wasn't cold, nor was it chilly this cloudy morning as again I measured eight cups of water into an eight-quart pot, added the peas, chopped the onion and celery, added those, let them cook, added three cups of cubed ham, let it cook, then a whole lotta sliced carrots, perhaps a smidge too many, let them cook, then a couple of stalks of celery diced, let them cook, then....
Then it was still cloudy but the soup was done! I like mine with some cooked rice, tortilla chips, oooohhhh, now that's a fine lunch. And after placing curtain fabric on the work table, I decided to wash a wee bit more, as well as writing this entry and it's STILL CLOUDY outside. Go figure!
Yet, I can recall the slant of that late August sunshine from yesterday, and previous days. Like summer is slipping away, but as stealthily as the clouds swoop in from the north, flowing seamlessly south along either the east or the west, or at times both edges of the horizon. Telling me the days of capri pants and short sleeved t-shirts are waning. I'll need to look for new thick socks soon, putting away my flip flops. Have to dig out thermal PJ pants, that sort of thing. Make more pots of soup, lol! But maybe switch it up instead of the same recipe two days running.
Our warm summer window cracks open about early July, slamming shut mid-September, though then there's the Last Nice Day competition that runs from mid-September through the end of October, even the first week of November as one adjusts to the end of Daylight Savings Time. Because if the rain is delayed, autumn is often one of our most sunny seasons, even first thing in the morning. Of course the morning feels later and later as daylight lessens, but clear skies allowing sunrises over the eastern tree line are pretty spectacular after a summer spent under the marine layer. As Mark Twain noted that the coldest winter he ever endured was a summer in San Francisco, five hours north by car it's a similar situation. And the Last Nice Day competition is mostly a running joke with my spouse; as days mount past the equinox, a nice day merely means it's not dark, wet, and cold out. Or as cold as we get here in Humboldt County.
But I'm getting WAY ahead of myself, for it is still August, still summer, two straight days of homemade soup notwithstanding. Yet, the minutes steal away, it's nearly two p.m.! A small panel for the curtains is in the dryer, as I chose to wash the last hunk of Traverse by Shell Rummel, which I'll sew onto the end of the short piece, hopefully making it long enough that I don't need to tack on more. Time will tell and we shall see and a tiny sliver of sun is calling my name! I see shadows on the ground, brightness in the sky, summer aching for my attention. Have a lovely rest of the day and a great weekend if I don't pop back here before Monday.
