Labor Day marks summer's end

Heirloom tomatoes at the market

Some people might not think that heirloom tomatoes are as pretty as I think they are. They are all sizes, colors and shapes, but the way they taste is nothing like those uniform ones in the grocery store. That red one would slice up perfectly for a tomato sandwich, and I might just have to do that before the season passes away, along with the incredible harvest of this year.

I've got some pretty golden cherry-sized tomatoes in my garden, and I've been enjoying those, eaten right off the vine or slice in half in a salad. Yes, summer is coming to an end, and tomorrow is Labor Day in the United States. Do you wonder, as I have many times, just what the heck Labor Day is? Well, of course Wikipedia helped me out:

It honors the American labor movement and the contributions that workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of the country. It is the Monday of the long weekend known as Labor Day Weekend and it is considered the unofficial end of summer.

I also learned from that link that Canada also celebrates Labour Day on the first Monday of September, too. We have had a three-day weekend in September for as long as I can remember, along with it also marking the start of the school year and the beginning of football season. Yes, summer is now over, and I can start to enjoy those crisp fall days when the leaves turn magnificent colors and gently descend to the ground. The autumnal equinox this year will occur on September 22 at 7:21am here on the Pacific coast. That link from one of my favorite websites will tell you what the equinox is and when it will occur in your part of the world. It's the vernal equinox in the Southern Hemisphere, when spring begins there. Basically, though, it's one of the two days in the year when the days and nights are of equal length. The big difference for us here in the Northern Hemisphere is that then the days get shorter and the nights longer.

This morning, once I finish this post and get up to start my day, will take me in just a few hours to my yoga class, with Laifong finally back from her vacation. The substitute teacher, Lourdis, was much harder on me than Laifong, but frankly, I enjoyed being pushed a little. I've also signed up for my fourth semester with Yoga Northwest, thinking that I've found my niche for the next few semesters, with one Gentle II class on Wednesday and a Level I class on Sunday mornings. You can check out what those classes are on that link, if you're interested.

I spoke with Lourdis for a few minutes after our last Sunday class, so I could thank her for her instruction. Many of the others were quite comfortable with some of the poses that stymied me, and she had to spend more time correcting me. She also told me that I did quite well and that this level is an appropriate one for the present time, and that I would be able to benefit from continuing to expand my yoga horizons. I was encouraged and will miss her, even though I'm looking forward to seeing Laifong again.

What I notice in my everyday life is that I can move more freely and feel more balanced and upright than I did before I began this yoga journey. I'm also not sure if it's the yoga or not, but my knees both feel much stronger and gave me no trouble on our last Thursday's hike, with a thousand meters (3,280 feet) of elevation gain and loss. That's not to say that my thighs were not sore for the next couple of days, because they certainly were. But today I feel strong and ready for whatever comes next.

You might be noticing that I'm casting about here for something to compose for you, my readers, and you would be right. Sometimes I will think of the regular commenters and try to picture what should be just the right post to write for all of you, but today you must be quite an eclectic group, because nothing is coming to me. Instead, I'm sitting here thinking that maybe it's time to just end it and allow myself to get up and get started with what looks to be a wonderful day ahead.

My sister Norma Jean will probably look askance at it once she's read this post and wonder why I'm so lame this morning. But she'll just have to deal with it. We are getting close to the time of year when spooks and goblins begin to emerge, from the summer doldrums to autumn's darkening days, and (horrors!) the US Presidential Election will be everywhere to scare us even more.

With that, I'll leave you with my usual wishes for you to have a wonderful week ahead, filled with everything that makes you happy. And I have a fun short little video that I hope will make you laugh as it did me. It's only one minute long but it sure is funny. Wish I knew exactly what that kitty is seeing.