Echo Beach

          We've just entered what could be called the true back yard of summer. It's the only thing August has going for it. Every other month marks time with a special holiday of some sort. Yet August has nothing.
          It's the final month before the "Back to School" rush kicks into high gear. "Back to School" is something that has been trained into everyone for almost the entire 20th century. Even now, even after being out of school for 19 years, I still get a charge of energy from fall. It's sort of a cerebral knife switch in the year, something that activates and says, "September is here! Prepare for learning!"
          Which leaves August. The days are hot. The nights are cool. The sun sets earlier and earlier each evening, so much so that you can actually notice it happening. "Hey, the sun set two minutes earlier tonight."
          August may not have any special holidays, but it's still special. People get out their barbecues and enjoy social gatherings. Seafair has hydro races. Baseball teams are jockeying for position in the race for the pennant.
          It's also a time to lie out in the grass and watch the clouds roll by. "That ones a star ship." "That ones a beach ball, or grape, or cantaloupe." "That one is the personification of classical music struggling to create the greatest symphony of all time, yet suffering from a failure to satisfy it own inflated image of perfect…never mind. I melted it."
          August is obviously a time to let your imagination run wild. It's the last calm before the pounding pulse of the fall season sets in. It's a time to relax.

          And it's all wrapped up in a Norman Rockwell bow.

          Enjoy your August.