Dog Days

At one point I knew why they were called "The Dog Days of August."  Not any more.  And it doesn't matter because, as we all know, it isn't even August.  Yet.  One lives in uncomfortable anticipation.  The July '10 Heat Wave Near Philadelphia continues.  I've lost count of how many consecutive days we've had the air conditioning on.  Most summers it is a total of ten days, spread over three months.  It's been at least that long for this particular stretch.  And it isn't even August.

But as long as we're talking Dog Days, here's my favorite dog -- look how big he's getting!  He's his daddy's best friend, and still fancies himself a lap dog, though that particular thinking will need to be revised soon.  I wish I knew how to get that reflection out of his eyes.  It doesn't suit him.  He's had black as well as honey-colored freckles pop out at the rate of one or two per day for the past few weeks, and has begun to grow some fringe on his arms and chest.  Oh, he's going to be gorgeous, Lord Hazelmere of Blackberry is!

When I got home from White Oak, I started in on a gift quilt from some French General fabric I'd picked up, and was moving merrily along until I discovered that I needed more.  I went right to the Old Country Store website and ordered some.  I think that was yesterday.  Or possibly Tuesday.  Not sure.  Anyway, it came today already!  OCS's price for French General was quite a bit less expensive per yard than Hancock's of Paducah's.  Just sayin'.

Anyway, while I was waiting for the shipment to arrive, I finally cut into the batik strips I'd bought from Wanda ages ago.  The blocks came together so quickly, and I'm liking this effort pretty much.  Needs another vertical row yet.  It's the same design as "We The Purple" was.  It seemed like the colors were reflective of autumn and I was thinking of calling it "November Morn," but this afternoon, as the temperature reached the 90s yet again, I thought it might really be about the heat of July, 2010, and oughta be named "Dog Days."