It's been busy, this summer as always. We have had serious flooding issues in this part of the mid-west. I hope you are far enough away from that problem down there.
June brought about a foot of rain and lots of local areas under water. The western part of the state got more than two feet and is still flooded. Just north of here (near a property I have) most of the roads were under water and video was all over the national news with a lake that suddenly washed out one of it's banks and carried homes into the new river. The lake drained completely and the area is just devastated . We have done pretty well with all the rain right here, having little damage except some downed trees BUT the mosquito population is the worst ever seen. I know they were not this bad in south east Asia. They are so thick that going out requires a gallon of insect repellent and heavy clothing no matter what time of day or what temperature it is.
I never thought I would look forward to snow or at least drought but the little blood suckers are unbelivable. The dog has to be dragged kicking and screaming outside and I swear I saw a gang of mosquitos carry a crow off, the other day. The lakes around here are heavily polluted now since the treatment plants were overloaded with all the run-off. I think I saw some pythons and alligators for sure. The "water" is a bubbling mat of green and perfect habitat for them. Ha Ha, just wait until it turns to green ice this winter ! that will fix them. Other news of the real variety , I just came back from vacation, didn't really do anything special, just worked around the house doing things I've threatened to do for some time. We did go up to Carol's cottage in northern Wisconsin for a few days. The fishing and swimming was great with cooler temperatures and clear water and very few bugs. Carol's daughter and husband, three children (one new born) and their dog will be here tomorrow , for a month, oh boy ! Another daughter is coming for a week this month too so we will have a house full, to be sure. What have I got myself into ? I may have to take up residence out in the garage.Work just keeps getting tougher all the time, as the saying goes. The pace has become more intense as the economy worsens. We are in the emissions/ fuel economy research end of the spectrum and there is a frantic push for more results in a shorter time period. Oh well, it's job security.I've gone on too long, hope you are well and happy. Talk to you soon.
Ralph
