As most of you know who follow my column, my family and I are summering on Cape Cod. I would like to say that we are having a wonderful vacation, but the truth would be that it has been less than perfect! First, the weather has been strange, at best. Either it has rained like a monsoon or, when the rain finally stopped, it was hot as places I have only read about. Right now, it is neither. If you didn’t want to go to the beach, it is quite pleasant. Not very hot and not too cold either. To sit on the porch and read, it is o.k. but for me, that isn’t exactly what I want. And although I have recovered, I think, from my stroke of 2012, I have had several minor ailments that force me to realize that I am no longer young and no longer the fun person that I always think of as myself!

But the good part is that Malclm has done just about everything that he had hoped to do, and that makes his summer a truly good one. We have also had lots of guests and visitors, which is always fun. And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that McKinley and Sebastian worked and took care of their aged grandparents the whole summer without a single complaint.

I am sure that I told you Malc and I got a new Mac laptop computer, but what I probably didn’t tell you was that neither one of us can make it work. In fact, I am not even sure how to turn it on. So, Sea Bass (Sebastian) has been a God send and not only shown us what to do, he most of the time has done it for us! In fact, when I am done typing this, I have to leave the computer on with the writing on it and when he comes home from work, he will send it for me! Truthfully, I don’t know what we will do when he has to leave and go back to school.

What I really don’t understand is this – we have a regular computer at home and both of us are able to make it work. No real fuss and no muss. Why is it that when you have to buy a new one, you really need either a tutor or to sit in a classroom to make it work. Or probably the truth is all you really need is small child, starting at about 5 years old, and that child will be able to run the whole thing without even a hiccup. Actually, once I got a new secondhand car and I had no idea how to turn on the radio. Believe me the dashboard looked like it belonged on a jet plane. Well, one of my grandchildren got into the car, fiddled around with the buttons and not only did they make it work, they got the thing to eject one of my favorite tapes which, they smirked at and threw out of the window! A window which I couldn’t make go up or down, of course.

We won’t be back in Vermont until the end of September, which is very late for us and which will make us figure out how to stay warm in a little heatless cottage. I hope you have all had a good summer and that you are actually anticipating a gorgeous Vermont fall and snowy but easy living winter. And with just a little luck, all of my parts will be working. See you all then.