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A The dog days of August are nipping at the ankles with fall around the corner That's Life Andy Juniper Guest Contributor 7 | Thursday, August 7, 2014 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com ugust, a friend is fond of saying, is a month of Sundays. Granted, this friend is a school teacher, a guy who views August as an enemy, who sees the calendar ip over from July and starts to see the end of the long summer holiday that once stretched out so promisingly before him. His gut turns and a sick sense of dread inches up his spine as he begins to stew about September and the inevitable start of another school year. Strangely, I share his sentiment. Always have. For me, irrationally enough, August is indeed a month of Sundays. You see, I'm a spring-summer person, which is to say, my goal through most winters is to simply survive. To turn my collar to the cold and somehow make it through the ceaseless gloom and all the slush the season throws at me, from frost quakes to polar vortexes to power outages that threaten to freeze both the pipes in the house and my vulnerable soul. Then, in springtime, I am reborn. I burst out of my cocoon. I bust out of the house and run off in a dozen different directions doing spring things -- cycling, gol ng, gardening, staring out at the grass and daring it to grow so I can hop on the old John Deere -- ecstatic to be outdoors, not wearing a parka, and not experiencing frostbite in the old extremities. My wife shares my desire to shed the surly bonds of winter and be overtaken with spring fever. Oftentimes, April nds us expediting the entire process, heading south and marvelling as we literally drive into someone else's spring, where- in the grass has already greened and owers are in early, beautiful bloom. And if I'm goofy with happiness come spring, I'm even goo er come summer. I spend most of my summers outdoors. Working (we have acreage that needs to be wrestled into submission), recreating and relaxing (snoozing on the balcony or dipping into prose at the poolside), and thinking: Life is good. And then it happens. Last weekend, the calendar ipped from July to August and, despite the fact we were having a perfectly lazy long weekend -- the kind I dream about all winter long -- I got that sinking sensation, the hint that summer would soon be usurped by autumn, which, in turn, is but a chilly prelude to winter, no? I think this sinking feeling is actually my default setting, set when I was a kid and August was nothing but the month before school started anew. I really didn't like school all that much. And the thought of having to return for another year was very unappealing. As an adult, I know this is defeatist, illogical thinking -- especially for someone who endeavors to live mindfully and in the moment. August, after all, is an epic, 31-day journey to be treasured. Hot, sunny days with plenty to do (should you be looking for things to do) and lots to not do (should you be in the mood to simply put your feet up). Yep. That's what my rational mind says. While the irrational mind of my youth counters: sure there are 31 glorious days in August, but that's... 31 Sundays before the dreaded Monday. -- Andy Juniper can be contacted at ajjuniper@ gmail.com, found on Facebook www.facebook. com, or followed on Twitter at www.twitter .com/thesportjesters. Interlocking Tumblestone, Retaining Walls, Garden Installation, Sodding & Excavating, Call for FREE Estimate Expert service always comes standard. State Farm prides itself on unmatched customer service, decades of experience and one of the world's largest claims teams. And that's just the basic package. Get to a better State®. Get State Farm. 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