first day of summer

i don't want it to sound like i'm boasting, but i'm almost certain i live in one of the most beautiful towns in the south of england.

granted, that summer in this country is a great leveller. the merest ray of sunshine falling on a dark, dingy corner of inner london, for instance, can be enough to renew your faith in city life.

out here in the sticks though, it's a different story. we're woken before sunrise with a dawn chorus that is so vigorous, varied and loud that when you're done with beauty of the sound it, the townie in you is thinking "can't they turn that down?".

it's also full on hay fever country out here. while i don't suffer, the hubs gets it bad. big sneezes, lots of hankies, lying on the sofa and insisting on having the windows shut, all accompanied by his regrets that "it's too bad we don't have AC". but this is england, darling. we'd only switch it on for 8 days a year.

but the provinces prove their worth when it comes to spending summer leisure time. country pubs, walks, tea rooms, farmer's markets, drives out into nowhere. stately homes if you're feeling cultured, fish and chips on the prom if you're not.

the only slight drawback is the niggly feeling i get on the first day of summer each year. i get it when i see People In Convertibles.

there was a survey done recently showing that although sales of open top cars were at an all high in the uk, our average days of sunshine only total 21. tee hee. all that money to drive around with the top down for just 3 weeks of the year ?

well, yes. on the first day of summer it seems like a perfectly justifiable idea. i'm sooo green with envy at all those yummy mummies and their audis and mercs. damn. yummies 1, slummies 0.