Bloggus Interruptus.

After walking around for several days flagellating myself and suffering from regular bouts of Phantom Camera Syndrome--as in '...must take picture, oh wait, arrrgh...'*--I've plunged my pale and trembling hand into my wallet and withdrawn the credit card.

Actually, my hands are less than pale, and the fingertips are stained a boozy red from picking a heaped bucket of dark cherries. The berries are now in the kitchen, and I'd take a picture, but, well, if you've read the previous post (and you have, haven't you?), you would know this is not currently within the realm of possibility. So I'm mulling over what to do with this huge pile of cherries, knowing there's simply loads more to pick tomorrow--and I don't have a cherry pitter. Dorie Greenspan loves hers, you know, and I just really believe I also need one, for a couple of weeks every year anyway. The lack of this tool is why I don't make cherry jam or cherry pie, and why I do make [a way lot of] cherry clafoutis.

The camera's been ordered, but will take some time to arrive. I won't be sitting on my hands waiting though: the last day of school is tomorrow, and nearly as soon as the final bell has rung, I'll be welcoming the first friends to our house for the official start to endless summer. My version of it, at least.

All this to say that I'm hanging up the sign "Closed for Business" until mid-July anyway, which is a couple of weeks from now. Time enough for eventual delivery delays, for fresh ideas of places to explore, recipes to try, and for doing a whole lot of nothing much with some of my favorite people.

In the meantime, do check out some of my favorite blogs. I'll be reading them as well in the lull just before bed calls, when the frog orchestra out back begins its nightly cycle of love songs for the sleepless and amphibian.

Y'all come back now, y'hear?

*Not to diminish the pain of those suffering from Phantom Limb Syndrome or any number of other, you know, actual problems.