I don’t know whether you can feel it but July, at least for me, is one of the toughest months to get through next to, of course, December and January. So what the days are long, it’s hot to the point that going outside means getting charred by the sun’s UV rays no matter how thick of a layer of sunscreen I lather on my skin.

I once mentioned in a post that autumn is my favorite season. It cannot be more true at the moment, at least it’s not one of the extreme seasons like summer and winter. I also think I like autumn because I was born a few days after the autumn solstice.

I feel like I’ve struggled more than usual – emotion-wise, mental health, and even the garden. It’s been so hot and dry that even if I want to hop in the garden for a quick minute, my mom would be eyeing me with disapproval.

There was also no rain in July. I think there was a little bit of rain in June but, nope, there was no measurable rain in July, at least not that I can think of. I have been needing to cover all the plants with shade cloth on a daily basis. The days I forget to cover them were the days when I would find them wilted. It is very disheartening for a gardener to see wilted plants, even if it’s temporary.

The worst thing that happened in July was when I accidentally left a tray of seedlings under a humidity dome in the heat. It fried them and all 72 seedlings perished. 😢 That was last weekend. Thankfully, things are still germinating quicker than early spring. As of this writing, most of the seeds have germinated.

The summer garden also came to fruition in July. In fact, I pulled 8 snacking mini-cucumbers yesterday. I brought some when I went into the office on Wednesday, sliced them in thin slices, sprinkled some salt, those cucumbers were so delicious.

In July, I went to some interesting new places. I drove up to Monte Cristo peak. I’ve driven up that road before in 2021 but never made it to the peak due to road closure. I attended the Colonial Heritage Festival the day after Independence Day. It was a very interesting event and it was dubbed the last colonial festival in western US. I hope I get to attend again next year.

I also crossed the state border into Wyoming twice and got to see an interesting roadside attraction on the way back. This is Devil Slide – a rock formation that, according to my mom, it’s called Devil Slide because the face of the Devil is on the right. Hmm… not sure I see it, can you?

What am I looking forward to in August? Not much as of yet. I don’t have anything planned, even during the days when I’m taking off from work. I guess we will see.