The not so amazing Coal Speaker summer vacation

The long, amazing summer seems to be ending. And when I say “long and amazing,” you better hear the sarcasm dripping off every word. It was short, abrupt, hot, disastrously humid, and drenching to the soul. The last few weeks here in Northeastern Pennsylvania have been dry, but before that it was nothing but a deluge from April straight through August. Miserable

I try to avoid the whole elevator-banter routine about weather, but somehow, we still end up talking about it all the time.

And speaking of weather, it suddenly turned on us again—seasonal depression hitting like a ton of bricks before the season even officially changes. That’s how it goes around here now. Probably just another “false fall.” Summer will sneak back. Maybe the heat dome returns for one last hurrah. Heck, maybe flowers will bloom in November. Who knows. It doesn’t even matter, because once the sun’s angle shifts, everything feels off.

We didn’t intend to take the summer off. In fact, we had every intention of putting together a big summer series all about beer. But, as the saying goes, the best laid plans of mice and men… Instead of talking about beer, we basically talked about nothing. The brewery series is still on tap (pun intended). Maybe this winter—when things are depressing and cold—we’ll finally roll it out. At least it’ll give us something to look forward to.

This summer was newsworthy, but mostly for the wrong reasons. Deaths came one after another—big names too. From the Cosby Show, gone. Hulk Hogan, gone. Ozzy Osbourne, gone. (And more in between.) It felt like one long midsummer nightmare. On top of that, politics were their usual circus—chaos, animosity, the Trump administration doing Trump things, ICE handing out $50,000 bonuses, immigration battles, budget fights, cities under National Guard control, Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Gaza. It all continues. But honestly, let’s not dwell on that. Nothing we say here will change it anyway.

There was one amazing summer moment when my son put his old action figures onto a table..

Oh and there was a bear sighting–not beer. Like a big giant bear that was about 20 feet away from me gnawing on garbage.. he ran into the woods after I did the WRONG thing and ran from him–he had a slice of 5 day old pizza dangling out of his mouth as he darted back to wherever it was he came from..

But most amazing was my son’s school marching band getting the chance to perform their biggest gig yet: The National Anthem at the Philadelphia Phillies vs Mariners.. The Phils won 6 to 4.

Seriously.. A proud moment for the kids, parents.. teachers.. the school.. the area..

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What we can do is focus on what’s ahead. More updates on this site. More stories. More commentaries on society. Maybe even a few strolls down amnesia lane into the nostalgia world. That’s something I actually tried to avoid this summer, but nostalgia always sneaks in.

On the home front: my son just started ninth grade. Four more years and high school’s over—schooling done. Already, I’m getting those looks, the kind every dad knows. My jokes don’t land like they used to. (Even the ones that I know are funny.) Adults laugh, but he won’t. Yes, I’m using his slang. Yes, I’m involved. But I’m not the “cool dad” I wanted to be. He’ll come around. At least that’s what I keep telling myself—it’s just a phase.

And as I write this, the weather outside has turned breezy, dark, and chilly. I don’t like when it feels that way in August. Seasonal depression, like I said before, is starting early this year. So maybe this impromptu, unplanned summer vacation from the website is over now. Writing here makes me feel a little happier, so why not do it? Straight from the deep, dark mines of the anthracite region.

At this point, unless someone out there is making plans without telling me, we’re not going anywhere. *Despite the fact no one asked where we went, all summer long..*