The other day, out of the blue, my email stopped working. I didn’t notice it at first. Heck, I didn’t think I was that into email, but you know what? I am. My routine is, I check my email right after breakfast, and read my daily inspirational quote from Martha Beck. She writes that column in the Oprah magazine. I like her because she’s not too woo-woo with that New Age-y stuff.

Well, me and the girls went to see that new movie, “Eat Pray Love” in Bangor the other day. Or “Eat Snooze Love,” as we called it. For the two of you who don’t know the plot, why don’t I completely give it away? It doesn’t matter. You’ll want to see it anyway for the hunk factor alone.

The movie is based on the real life book by this gal Elizabeth Gilbert, who gets divorced, then spends a year traveling around living in Italy, India, and Bali.

Went down to the Wally Mart with my friend Celina the other evening. Since her husband Henry died, we try to get together once a month or so and do something. Celina was looking for a new lipstick, and I was acting as her beauty consultant, you know, providing moral support. Plus, I’m always up for a little browsing.

Spent the weekend up to Dot and Tommy’s camp on Moose Megantic Lake. It was just Dot and Tommy, of course, Charlie and me, and Shirley and Junior. Rita had to work down to Smitty’s hardware. She runs the store with her husband, Smitty. Betty and Pat were off golfing in Bethel, I think. And Celeste and Bud were visiting their grandkids in Veazie.

The 19th annual Antique Tractor and Engine Show took place up to the Bouchard Brother’s Farm last weekend. Hoo, boy! Charlie was like a kid, he was so jacked up.

“Three more days ‘til the tractor show, Ida!”

I finally managed to clean the house this weekend. It was rugged, what with the heat and humidity, but I just couldn’t stand it anymore. It was making me even crankier than I was before: beyond cranky! Enough already! Can’t do nothing about the heat, but I can clean the house. Even though it’s not as hot as it was last week, let me tell you, I was sweating buckets by the time I finished. But I took a shower, changed into some dry clothes, popped open an ice-cold Moxie and my spirits improved considerably.

I can’t remember ever being this cranky hot. I know, last week I was feeling all nostalgic about hot summer days, fishing with Grampy Gilbert, but this is too much! We’re in Maine, for God sakes! It’s not supposed to be this hot for this long. We’re not equipped to handle it. It’s like when some place down south gets an inch of snow, and it puts a monkey wrench in everything. That’s what it feels like here in Mahoosuc Mills. Everybody’s discombobulated.

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about my grandfather, Frederick Gilbert. Maybe it’s because school’s out, and we’ve been having that lazy kind of summer weather. The kind of weather where it’s pushing 70 degrees when you wake up in the morning, and you just know it’s gonna be a scorcher.

Days like these, Grampy and me would go fishing. I’d set my alarm for 5 a.m., my fishing clothes all laid out the night before. He’d drive up in his battered old pickup, I’d grab my gear, my lunch bag, and off we’d go.

You ever take a vacation, come home and think, It’s just not worth it? You’re out there getting all rested up, having a great time with your husband, eating good food, joking around. Then you get home, and wham! Zero to sixty: doing laundry, returning emails, calling people back, menu planning, grocery shopping, and trying to resuscitate the hanging plant outside the front door. Oh, and apparently the power went out while you were gone, and all the clocks need to be reset. Phew!

Well, it’s been a little over a year since we got our little dog Scamp from Poodle Rescue, and I just want to report how much our little guy has blossomed. It’s amazing! Why, I can’t remember the last time he destroyed one of his doggie toys. (Granted, we know better than to give him one of them soft toys. That’s just asking for trouble!) Scamp hasn’t chewed up any socks or slippers lately, either. Course, we’ve gotten better at picking them up off the floor.