The dog days of summer have once again returned to Santa Rosa County.

As such, the dogs and their human companions are highly motivated to remain in any environment with cooler temperature readings.

The summer of 2021 appears to be developing as a period of liberation between two pandemics with restrictions on activities.

One of the many advantages of living in the panhandle Florida are the numerous choices for summer activities.

There is the often-quoted biblical admonition “By your fruits you will be known,” which commonly comes up when discussing behavior.

In other words, a reputation will ultimately be based on the deeds and accomplishments of an individual, family or group.

As July fades into August, more residents are questioning how the trees in their home landscapes would fair in a tropical storm or hurricane.

Some have a high potential to cause problems, other like the Southern Live Oak are less likely to damage structures.

Until relatively recently, traveling any distance was an arduous and difficult process. The problems compounded if there was a large baggage load.

Initially, there were two obvious options for coastal residents. A cart or wagon pulled, hopefully by a beast of burden, as the first choice and a boat or ship as the second option.

Blue is a color which usually has negative or depressing connotations and implications. For example, people feeling depressed or out-of-sorts, are said to have the blues.

Blues singers always have a sad song about love lost or some other gloomy situation beyond the control of the person suffering through the unhappiness and indignities.

The recent stormy weather, with all its potential problems, has focused many Santa Rosa County residents on alternative tools for a variety of uses to keep civilization at hand. In some cases, gasoline powered engines are necessary to achieve a level of 21st century comfort.

With the return of rain after a dry patch during May and the first half of June, lawns are actively growing in Florida’s panhandle. This results in some positive and some negative aspects.

The major positive feature is a lush, green lawn. No matter the turf species, there is a unique pride to having a yard with carpet-like characteristics to complement all the other boast-worthy landscape features.

The beginning of summer returns memories of carefree days past when school was out, and leisure hours outside were plenty. Unfortunately, today’s youth do not have the same appreciation for sweaty fun.

The family dog however is not encumbered by these contemporary electrically powered traps which occupy the mind and entomb the body.

With the onset of summer, many trees and plants have already bloomed and are settling into the green background. An exception are the Mimosa trees, Albizia julibrissin, which are blooming profusely.

These once popular small trees are commonly found in the yards of older homes in Santa Rosa County where the display of prolific pink blooms starts up as the weather warms.