This entry’s sole purpose is to complain, whine, and grumble. If you have any loose razor blades lying around, or anything else that could do you or anyone else harm, it’s strongly recommended that you put them away before reading any further.

I’ve been trying to find something to get excited about. Specifically, I’m looking for something to look forward to (there are lots of things in the news that excite me, but not in a good way). Ordinarily would I take a vacation of one kind or another, but I sacrificed all my leave on the altar of recovery. I won’t be going anywhere anytime soon. Cheryl and I occasionally take in a movie, but I’m supposed to stay away from crowds. Sometimes we take the family out for an outdoors adventure, but this is the indoors time of year… when it’s 93 degrees outside and feels like 103 in the shade (due to the inhuman humidity and dead air).

The other day my son stuck a tentative foot out the door (making like he was going outside), and appeared to bounce off the wall of heat and humidity. He pulled his foot back inside wordlessly, closed the door, and went off in search of cooler climes. (Not even the lure of swings and sandbox could get him outside, and that’s saying something.) Even the beach offers little respite… not when the water temperature is hovering around 87 degrees. It’s like a greasy outdoor sauna and hot-tub. (The grease comes from the combination of sweat and sunblock, which combines into a fragrant, cocoa butter au jus.) We could move, but it seems like much of the U.S. is becoming a summertime anex of the deep south (though it’s usually relatively short lived).

Here’s the kicker: our iMac purchase is once again in limbo due to a growing state financial crunch (a looming $1 billion shortfall in state property tax revenue), and news that our bonus (in lieu of raise) is rumored to be vulnerable. There’s a special session of the legislature slated for this September, so we’re holding our breath. I guess a pay cut is better than losing jobs, but it’s hard to really appretiate.