This week was also most like a case of déjà vu all over again. A month or so ago, I talked about the start of the festival season when the first weekend was unseasonably hot, but was followed almost immediately by a cold snap which kept temperatures low throughout the rest of the fall festival season.
In a Memorex moment (older folks will understand the reference) this past weekend was unseasonably hot as the festival season opened in Amsterdam, but now its time to fire up the furnaces. I had hoped that since last Saturday was going to be a warm sunny day that wearing shorts and a short-sleeved shirt I might manage just a hint of a final suntan to bid adieu to the days of summer. My plan worked as I sunburned both knees. Nothing else, no tanning, no burning anywhere else, just my knees.
Cool weather is supposed to be the norm for the next couple of weeks, although warmer temperatures may return by the middle of the month, meaning this weekend’s events probably will require jackets, but those in the middle of the month may be milder.
This weekend’s calendar includes events in Harrisonville, Drexel and Butler. I doubt I will log time at all three, but I do plan to visit at least two. Regardless of where I start the day, I know my early afternoon is going to be spent in Drexel where I have been invited to once again judge the pumpkin pie contest. My hope is for many entries so I have a chance to consume plenty of gourd fruit to kick off the season correctly.
The chilling temperatures are also an invitation to enjoy the fall sports season. Many games up to this point have been played in warm and muggy conditions so fall temps could be a welcome change.
It is also fitting that the warm breezes have subsided as the curtain has fallen on the baseball regular season and now some wacky playoff system is set to occur. While my objections to this farce of a baseball season remain, I did relent and watched the Royals as they stumbled through the abbreviated season. Much like when they play full seasons, the locals were bad most of the year, but improved just enough in the final days to give optimism for next year. Optimism is usually just a precursor to
disappointment.
While I normally don’t write about things I read on social media, I did see one item which gave me pause and I thought I should share it, primarily because so few media outlets reported the story. The item noted: “Tragedy struck Major League Baseball today when an errant foul ball flew into the stands and struck a cardboard spectator. The victim was rushed to a local hospital and was tragically pronounced dead of COVID-19.” I read it on the Internet, so it must have happened.
I am still attached to an oxygen tank as I continue to rehab from COVID. However, someone must have reacted to my recent complaints or my scheduled torture period expired, because this week I finally got fitted with new, smaller tanks which I can carry in a shoulder bag. I am greatly appreciative of the development because I was feeling rather conspicuous walking the sidelines of football games dragging a three-foot-tall bottle of oxygen behind me.
My dog is equally excited about the development because I no longer have to load my backseat with the torpedo-length bottles, so he can freely return to riding with me as I run daily errands. He had been missing his treats at the pharmacy and bank.
He wonders why the treats there are always full length while the ones at home are mysteriously broken into halves. I think he suspects foul play.
It will be a fun weekend with lots of activities and I hope everyone enjoys getting out and about, but I sincerely hope everyone considers those around them and wear a mask.
Learning the festivities were completed without a surge in Coronavirus cases would be great news.