Is summer really over?

Last Saturday marked the end of the 'official' summer at Victoria Beach, with the roads now open to the cottages and kids back to school.  We took part in the final Northern Lights Art Sale there this past Saturday, and while the turnout was a little bit lower than during the high summer days, it was still a great day.  As can be seen from this picture, Molly and Dan were welcoming folks at the table helping to raise funds for the East Beaches Animal Shelter and once again they did a great job, thanks to Molly's winning smile and Dan's friendly banter.  I am not sure how much money they raised for the cause, but I know they got several new memberships and lots of contributions.  It is sad how often the animals near the lake are treated and abandoned.  Suffice it to say that now a few more kitties and pups will be neutered and well cared for and perhaps permanent homes can be found for them. 

On another pet-related note, this marks the 10th anniversary of when we 'got' Molly.   She was nine months old at the time, and we were actually her fourth 'parents' so to speak, so it was almost like a rescue.  In actual fact, she rescued us; as I recall.  I was going through some tough times dealing with my Mom's terrible bout with shingles, my own very painful and sleep-depriving frozen shoulder, the loss of our dear Mr. Peabody, and also the loss of a dear student who passed away at the age of 18 from ovarian cancer. Even though Miss Molly was a bit of a 'live-wire' in her younger days,  she has  brought unmeasured joy to our home.  For the first time yesterday, she went to Gimli, on the other side of Lake Winnipeg supposedly to help her dad fish, but that was not the case.  It was quite windy and so instead she simply enjoyed the walk on the long pier and wagged her tail at all the folks there. 

I am not quite sure where this picture was taken while the two 'fisherfolk' were out there, but seeing the choppiness of the water I can imagine what the wind must have been like.  Normally Molly loves going in the water, but I guess she felt that surfing wasn't her style yesterday.  When she got home, she was tired, but not too tired to greet some other family members (whom she dearly loves) when they came over for a barbeque to finish off the summer.  

Now I am in high gear preparing for the fall sales.  I have a few more stints to complete at the Selkirk Waterfront Market over the next few Saturdays, and then the next big show takes me to Ontario again during the first weekend of October.  Following that, I am going to be busy on several subsequent weekends until the first week in December when I call it quits for another season.  I'll be posting the upcoming events in some upcoming blogs.  I have my schedule pretty full and am just waiting for one more confirmation before I can make the official "list".

I have often heard it said that the end of summer is like the beginning of a new year.  School resumes, the colours change and all the new 'events' get underway.  Contrary to a popular advertisement, I don't believe "It's the most wonderful time of the year", but it is an exciting time, especially for all those kids and teachers going back to school and hitting the books. 

And hitting the book is what I'll be doing this afternoon.  I have not finished reading The Girl who Played with Fire yet, and our book club is discussing it tomorrow.  So, polymer clay and computer are off limits for the rest of today.  And as for dinner...we'll have the leftover steak, corn and other goodies from yesterday's BBQ, thank you very much.