Early summer

I'm a beetle. Not a fly, not a bug.

Fireflies are back. Okay, they're not flies. They're beetles. This is apparent from the photo above. It's summer. Fireflies (or lightning bugs, as you prefer - but they're not bugs, either) love warm humid nights. They out in the yard signaling to one another.  Other summer things we're seeing and doing: making iced tea (thank you, Fred and Beth, for the iced tea maker), going to Ikea (the only one in Ohio), and watching my calla lilies bloom.

Iced tea! Invented just for hot, humid summers.

We saw the stop sign. So, we stopped.

My pink calla lily - also have some yellow ones.

Lots of stuff to do

Busy time in Troy ... GOBA riders, then the Cincinnati Pops concert, and finally the Theatre on Ice competition. I can't keep up! We went to the Pops concert on June 21. Longest day of the year - so it didn't get dark till the concert was nearly over. Bob had his picture taken with the mezzo soprano soloist, Amanda Pabyan. On the 22nd, we watched the Theatre on Ice teams practice at Hobart Arena. Since time on the ice is a scarce resource, each team got 10 minutes to practice. That's it - no more. Final competitions started later that day. Of course, we have some pictures.

Bob and Amanda Pabyan, soloist with the Cinci Pops.

The blue skaters.

The umbrella skaters.

Don't let go!

GOBA: Great Ohio Bicycle Adventure

GOBA came to Troy on Sunday. For you Californians used to Amgen bike races, GOBA isn't like that. It's real people who ride through the Ohio countryside every June, stopping at places along the way. Obviously, to ride miles and miles, the riders have to be in shape - but they're not Tour de France material. We saw lots of tandems and recumbents. Real people bikes!

A sign at the park entrance where GOBA riders were camped.

A tandem recumbent trike. How cool.

Close up of tandem recumbent trike.

GOBA riders camped in a Troy park. Note laundry hanging on line.

California trip, part 1

I was in California June 4-10 for my niece's high school graduation. It was so good to see family and friends, as well as old haunts in San Luis Obispo (and some new ones, too!). One thing I forgot in the two years I've been in Ohio: the phrase "June gloom," which refers to summer fog along the coast. It can be cold and dismal, which most out-of-state tourists don't realize - as they go shopping for a sweater or jacket. :)

Tanja, Ryan, Lola, and Sue Ellen at Karlee's grad dinner at 10th Street Grill, Los Osos

She graduates!

Another high school grad in the family.

June gloom. Fog rolls in over the hills.

Big gas heaters for outdoor dining in the fog.