Here we are at the beginning of Labor Day Weekend and the more-or-less "end" of the summer. It seems only a short time ago we were coming out from under winter's grip as the sun warmed our earth into summer. Turns out there's perhaps a bit too much warming, if we believe our scientists. I'd have to say that here at Joe's Pond this year we had more than the usual number of really hot days. I think that may account for the maples turning already. I've been told maple trees simply don't do well in extremely hot weather, and if global warming continues, we may find our favorite glamour trees disappearing from the landscape. I think we can expect some brilliant colors this year, earlier than usual. Last year, if you remember, the leaves ran from dull to practically no change in most areas, and then they simply were gone - bare trees and snowflakes. Today I found some nice color in the woods behind our house . . .

We had a wonderful end-of-year meeting of the Joe's Pond Association on August 26th. The food was delicious, there was plenty of everything, and the company - well, good friends and good neighbors made for a merry group. It's always nice to be able to get to know our members a little better, and there was a nice turnout. The weather was just right and there was ample time to chat with new members and folks that we haven't seen in a while. The group of faithful workers who put the meal together for us deserve a huge vote of thanks. I hope they know how much they are appreciated. If you've been out on West Shore Road recently, you've noticed there's a lot going on at Bob and Dottie Noyes' camp. Bob tells us they are going to put a new foundation in and will be doing some design modifications. Chris Bissell is getting the camp ready to be lifted and moved aside for the foundation work. Once that is done and the building is back in place, Chris will start the redesign. We'll be watching the progress. In the meantime, there's a "road" across the lawn of Rene and Loretta Fillion in order to gain access to the Noyes property. There'll be some big equipment around there for a while, and it will be interesting to see the changes take place. We got a picture of Chris doing some demolition. Mrs. Chris was on the job, too.