The Summer Salamander

Summer solstice has arrived (3:32 a.m. in my time zone). It’s an overcast solstice that misses the whole point of having a longest day of the year by hiding the sun in haze. Solstice always feels portentous to me, as though I were just on the cusp of entering something new and better. The feeling is probably just a remnant from my school days, when solstice coincided with summer vacation. Who cares about the psychology behind the feeling, though? Life is what you make it; if I convince myself I’m on the threshold of something good, then my attitude puts me that much closer to making it happen.

When I got home last night, the Professor was in a particularly attentive mood. This attentiveness has been going on all week. Ordinarily, he doesn’t leave his computer until dinner is served, but now he abandons chip (OK, a bad pun, but I couldn’t resist) minutes after I get home. He suggested getting a movie last night, which further surprised and pleased me. We rented “Shining Through” with Melanie Griffith, Michael Douglas and John Gielgud (which dates it right there). I don’t remember this movie from the theaters, but since I tend to track the “art” and foreign films more closely than the domestic stuff, my lack of knowledge needn’t come as a surprise. I enjoyed the movie, although most of the plot was pretty transparent early on and I guess the Big Betrayer minutes after they were introduced in the film. The Professor has better taste in movies than his “Terminator” and “Naked Gun” leanings originally suggested to me. It’s my turn to pick the movie next time. I think I surprised him with my last choice of “The Tao of Steve”, and hope I can keep up my winning streak with my next pick.

I finally broke the 10,000 mark in Snood last night on “high” setting, but still haven’t gotten closer to Man-who-uses-forty-foot-ladders-to-hang-birdhouses current high. The Professor downloaded the game yesterday and immediately started getting 5,000+ scores. I like to think he simply took advantage of watching my learning curve, but something tells me that I’m not destined to be a grand master at this sport.

I’m slated to go to the big American Veterinary Medical Association conference the third week of July with a friend of mine from vet school, but she’s starting to make noises that indicate she may not be going after all. This is a real problem for me, since she originally told me she’d drive up, and we could split gasoline and toll costs. It’s too late to get my company to get me a plane or train ticket (the wheels turn s-l-o-w-l-y at this organization), which means I’ll have to drive up alone if she bails. I’m hoping to get a firm answer one way or another from her by this weekend.