Summer?

It’s June 11th. In a week and a half the days will start getting shorter. After several days of rain, this morning I woke up to this:

Fresh Snow on the Mountains

Actually, that’s what appeared after the snowstorm I woke up to moved on. The mercury was down to 33°. Ok, it was a digital thermometer and used some high tech measuring system, but I like saying mercury. ANYway, it’s COLD! The house was cold, and the humidity was high, which made it worse. So I decided to fire up the sample roaster and roast up the several pounds of different coffee samples I received this week. While the roaster was warming up I brewed a double cappuccino on the Speedster and looked out to the garden. Cassin’s finches, pine siskins and juncos were swarming the bird feeders, anxious for the high calories of the black oil sunflower seeds. Buntings, robins, warblers, and the finches who weren’t eating were all singing from the poplars and chokecherries. And then a male western tanager appeared out of the drab colors of an overcast morning, a contrast so suddenly striking it was like he carried his own light source.

I like June: western tanagers appear everywhere, from the foothills of the mountains to the boulevards along the city streets, wowing everyone with their striking black, red and yellow. They will be here for a few more weeks, then head up into the mountains to nest. The appearance of this guy was effective in mitigating the mood brought on by the foul weather, and the roasting session went well. The room warmed from the heat of the roaster, the clouds moved on, and the tanager stayed, occasionally singing from the poplar. If the coffee samples turn out to be really good, perhaps a Tanager Blend will show up on the store soon.