I like July in Edmonton. Global warming notwithstanding, when July is good, it is really good. I love the cool mornings, with dew on the grass, the sun still low but holding the promise of a beautiful warm summer day, not to hot, just right. The evenings cool down to jacket weather. That is classic July in Edmonton. There is less of it now, it seems, but it is still here and is to be cherished even more.

After a casual coffee this early morning, I drove down our neighborhood street. The trees have been there for years and form a canopy over the road. They cast long shadows across the street. It is so quiet, calm and sheltered.

There were a couple of people walking briskly down the sidewalk, perhaps to catch a bus. A large black dog was conspicuously answering the call of nature on the grassy boulevard. Nearby, the owner stood holding a plastic bag. I simply included the sight as part of the early morning neighborhood ambience.

Speaking of dogs, our dog Tipper was in the back seat. I was taking her for her regular bathing and grooming. Not a moment too soon. After spending a week in the kennel, she was really stinking up the place. There is no kinder way to say it. A ‘get away from me” kind of odor. A really smelly dog who, incidentally, was also in heat. Clearly, you have to be a dog lover in order to wax poetic about summer days in July.

I drove back home later in the day, a clean and groomed dog in my back seat. The groomer had attached pink ribbons to her ears. Tipper was laying down on the back seat, much to my relief, so the neighbors could not see me driving down the street with a dog wearing pink ribbons.

Tipper was laying flat in the back seat apparently because of a similar concern. She stayed low even when I stopped to let a cat pass in front of the car. She might have otherwise jumped up and had a barking fit. She bolted into the house and ran into her crate when we arrived home.

I coaxed her out so that Mary could witness this sight before we removed the ribbons. Tipper immediately slunk away and hid under a chair. It’s a trap to hide with pink ribbons still on your ears. Eventually, you have to come out still wearing them.

She finally came out but ran away each time either of us approached her to remove the ribbons. I couldn’t tell if she was still ashamed or was actually developing a liking for them.

I finally got them off of her. Each ribbon said, “ My groomer loves me!” I had gotten my own hair cut that day. Luckily, my groomer likes me but not nearly enough to send me out in the world with any similar kind of reminder.

Well, evening has arrived here in Edmonton. I am putting on my jacket and going for a bike ride. I love the feeling of the cool air on my face while cranking my recumbent through the sunlight of a long summer day of July.