I’m back, in town, that is. I thought I would have some time for blogging while I was in NY, but not a chance. It was a very hectic few days, with a lot of meetings, good food, a chance to see friends, and an opportunity to see my work colleagues who I only get to visit with virtually. Not that I really would want to be sitting in an office on a full time basis, but having the chance to sit down face to face and chat in real time.

New York City was hot and steamy, with a few thunderstorms thrown in. The smell of the city hit me in the face when I came out of Penn station, and not a pleasant aroma. August is not the optimal time to be visiting NY, when the city smells from heat, hot diesel, rotting garbage, and just about everything else thrown in. After you’re there a little while, you don’t notice the smell, but it sure makes an impact on arrival.

Now, when I left the Pacific Northwest, temps were in the high 80s/low 90s. We were having our heat wave. Less than a week later, It was 59 degrees at Seattle airport when my flight landed at 11:30am. That’s a full 30 degrees cooler for a daytime temp. It has remained cool, and right now looks fairly ominous outside. It is supposed to rain tonight, so I spent a good chunk of the day doing some gardening–like planting a Cone Flower and Fever Few that have been sitting in pots, waiting patiently to go into the ground. They are in full flowering now, so I wanted to get them into the garden. With several days of rain predicted, the yard is going to be muddy and not much fun to be digging in.

Well, now that you’ve heard the short version of my NY trip and today’s gardening episode, we will return to regularly scheduled programming.