I'm not working this summer. This is the first time in 5 years that I have not taught summer school. The only reason that I didn’t work that particular summer is that I was in the hospital. In fact, in the past 20 years, I’ve only missed 2 summers. I even taught the summer that I had carpal tunnel surgery. But this year, everyone thought I should rest. I suppose its been good for me, my hot flashes have tapered off, and my right eye has not been twitching nearly as much as it usually does. I’m not mainlining antacids either. But I miss it. So, now with a seemingly endless amount of time, I’ve had to adapt. First of all, I shouldn’t say that I am not working this summer. I’m not teaching, but I do have a summer job. I am the Doggy Doorkeeper. With three dogs, I have a lot to do. Let them out, let them in, let 2 out, let 1 back in, let 1 back out, let 2 back in, well, you can see where this is going. But I have found another pastime. Actually, it is more like a hobby. An interest. Ok, it’s an obsession. Hummingbirds. We have 12-16 hummingbirds in our yard (or maybe more-they go so fast and fly up in the trees and over the house, so its hard to keep count). They spend all day zooming around the yard; going from one feeder to another (we have four feeders at this point in time). They fuss at each other with a peculiar little squeaking sound and chase one another away from the feeders and all around the yard, sometimes getting within a few feet of us. I’ve actually spent a good deal of time wondering how much damage one would do if it hit you at full speed with that needle-like beak. Ok, watching them is fun, but I am not satisfied with sitting with my wife on the swing, enjoying the breeze, watching the hummingbird drama every afternoon. I must get a photograph. Not just any photograph. THE photograph. The absolutely best, artistically perfect, can’t wait to frame and display, award winning, magazine quality photograph. Forget that I have a fairly inexpensive, little Kodak digital camera with no extra lenses. I intend to get that photograph. So there I sit in my lawn chair (because the swing isn’t close enough to the feeders for me to get THE picture), as still as I can be, waiting for one of them to get into the exact position for that perfect photograph. But it eludes me. I will get that photograph. This is my quest. (I can hear the sounds of “The Impossible Dream” playing in the background). It might take me a while, but I will get it. And just so you will know how the project is progressing, I will post the best pictures that I have taken of the hummingbirds. And when I get THE photograph, you’ll be the first to know.