Soaking up summer

I start to get a little bit frantic on September days when it's sunny and still warm enough to sit outside but noticeably cooler than it has been.

No matter how much time I've spent outside - and this year that's been plenty! - it feels as if my Vitamin D reserves still haven't been charged up enough for the coming grey days of winter. Or that they're draining faster than they used to and I now need to top up my levels by staying outside until the sun dips behind the hills or I get goosebumps and am forced indoors in search of a pair of socks or a hoodie.

I can feel summer slowly backing away and I'm not ready for it to go. In a year when we've had a bumper dose of sunshine and warm days, I'm still greedy for more.

More days like today: sitting in the sun, reading a good book, birds swooping and darting overhead, squirrels scampering the length of the fence, and Tux lying at my feet, occasionally prowling the garden perimeter, before coming back to our spot and bumping up against my hand for a back rub.