Nina and Roasted Chickens

We're having a heatwave in New England and boy, is it a joy. This morning I tried to ignore the sting of sweat pouring down every part of my body, into the scratches made by raspberry brambles.

The good news is, while we've lost a few plants on the farm, the animals seem to be fairing well. Chickens, it turns out, are hilarious when they're hot. They pant like dogs, with their mouths open, and walk around with their wings lifted halfway up, as if airing out their little chicken arm pits.

I'm not doing much better myself. I spent an hour yesterday lying on the gorgeous parquet kitchen floor, in front of the fan, with a bag of frozen tater tots under my neck.

Things got better today with the arrival of Nina Simone's It Is Finished on vinyl in the mail. I couldn't be more pleased. It's out of print and difficult to find but I just found a cheap, brand new repress. I fell in love with the album while staying with my girl Laura after Green Corps in 2008. Thanks L - Dog. The whole album is rad. It's got both sad and happy, crazy Nina on it. And, with sitar, hand drums and Spanish guitar, it's got some neat instrumentation too. Highlights include "Funkier Than A Mosquito's Tweeter" and "I Want a Little Sugar in My Bowl."

Girlfriend don't give a f**k.


Both my garden plots are stayin' alive so far. Zucchini and summer squash is in, and the first tomatoes ripened this week.


Fourth of July was neat. This was my third year in a row watching fireworks from a city rooftop. New York, then D.C. and this time Boston. I'm a fan. This time we watched from a rooftop in the harbor and had a 360 degree view of approximately 10 million fireworks displays. AND, before that even happened, we were greeted by a happy little rainbow.


Does this photo make anyone else want to ride Falcor from Neverending Story off into the sunset?