I Blinked And Missed Portland’s Summer

Via weather.com

I don’t know where or when summer disappeared. Maybe it was while I was in Corvallis the other night. I just know the five-day forecast above is not summer. And that bothers me because … it is almost June 5 and I am a Cajun!

Where I come from – Bayou Lafourche – it is already hot enough to boil a crawfish (not a crawdad) on the sidewalk. Eating crawfish, drinking Abita Amber, and swatting mosquitoes are Louisiana summer pastimes. Wearing long sleeves in early June is not, and I am destined to start tomorrow in a hoodie.

I admit this post does not have a rhyme or a reason. I just hoped if I shamed the sun maybe it would come out for more than 20 minutes this week in Portland. But alas, a man cannot shame the sun into doing anything. The sun shines on who it pleases.

And to think, Portland had two or three days in May where highs almost hit 90. Those were the days.

PS: I have now mentioned Corvallis in three of my last four blog posts. That is a record that will never be topped. It’s like if DiMaggio had hit safely in 112 straight games as opposed to 56.

Cajun Tomato's Favorite Albums Of 2011 (Mid-Year Edition)

Portland topped the 80-degree mark today for the second time this year. That’s not a misprint. While other areas of the country experience consistent 100-degree temps and drought, we in the Pacific Northwest continue to experience conditions reminiscent of late February or early March.

In honor of Portland’s second 80-degree day, which hopefully signals the arrival of summer, I compiled a list of my favorite albums midway through 2011. My Top 10 features a mix of highly anticipated releases and under the radar triumphs.

This is a favorites list. These are the albums I enjoyed the most. This is not meant to be a best of list. I encourage you to share your favorite albums in the comments section. I also encourage you to check out my favorite albums from 2011′s first quarter and my favorite songs of the first half of 2011.

Without further delay, here are my favorite albums of 2011 (so far):

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Could This Be Summer?…. Yes!!! … Heavenly Angels Sing!!!

The sun is the enemy in Louisiana

The Pacific Northwest skies are filled this afternoon with voluminous charcoal clouds that promise trouble. The air is mild, with a hint of a winter chill. Yes, a winter chill in early June. The Cajun inside me wants to scream French cuss words, but my vocabulary is so limited that’s not possible.

My father — a Cajun but not a Cajun Tomato — would find this weather phenomenon interesting, I’m sure. He doesn’t talk about the weather to waste time … he talks about the weather because he likes talking about the weather. I’m convinced he missed his true calling as a meterologist.

I am my father’s son. Yesterday, I clicked the Weather Channel app on my iPhone and saw a curious number next to Saturday’s high.

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