Besides working, I did spend a lot of the day doing other patriotic things, like watching baseball and listening to the Beach Boys. And laundry, I did a huge load of that, but not because it was a holiday. I did laundry because I was down to my last pair of socks. I even found some time to read this wonderful book, The Interestings, by Meg Wolitzer. It's about a group of friends who meet at summer camp in the mid-1970s and how they stay in each other's lives through the decades that follow. It sort of miraculously captures the tone of each era of recent history as it seamlessly melds into the next. Having lived through it, I feel qualified to make that judgment.

The fact that I woke up to a light sprinkling of late spring rain didn't dampen my spirits, since I wasn't planning a picnic or barbecue today anyway. We got enough rain to fill the birdbath, but by early afternoon a hazy sun was forcing its way through the overcast. It was a little breezy outside, but the fire danger is lower after the rain. And anyway, I've had the yard cut back again recently, so I don't fear the flames.

Grilling was out of the question, with the rain and wind, even if I'd been so inclined. No, that's probably wrong. People who like to cook outdoors will do it in a monsoon if they can. There was no need for me to cook at all today, since I'm loaded with leftovers from the last few days. I have leftover minestrone, leftover chili, and of course enough risotto to last a month. And it will, because it freezes well and reheats even better than when it first comes out of the Dutch oven.

Plus, I always have potatoes and onions on hand, and I never hesitate to make a quick hash of them, if there's nothing else in the fridge.

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Baseball: The Giants crossed the Bay to play that team in Oakland, that pretty good team with pretty good fans. The Coliseum was rocking last September, but it's almost always a dead zone for the Giants, as it was again today. They lost, 4-1. And they have to play there again tomorrow, before coming home for two against the Athletics.