These are the days I live for each year. The mornings are cool and overcast, with a baby's breath of wind.

The afternoons are warm and sunny. The evenings stay twilighted until after dinner, inviting eating out on the patio. We have nearly no mosquitoes.

The tomatoes stretch and grow in the warm sunny afternoons, the green globes slowly, slowly turning yellow; one is blushing pink and nearly ready to eat. The zucchini has produced so many offspring, it could be considered vaguely obscene.

Cats lounge and relax in the shade, waiting for the deeper shadows of evening, when it will be time to hunt for mice and other unwary little creatures. The dog just lounges, for no reason at all, except that she's keeping me company. She snores; some watchdog.

These few wonderful moments make all the stress and labor worthwhile. I can feel I've earned them and I can relax, guilt-free.

Welcome to Southern California. Soon enough it will turn into a blazing inferno, with triple digit temperatures; but for now, it's paradise enow.