The 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris came to their very-French closing yesterday, closing the chapter on the summer Olympics until they arrive in Los Angeles in 2028. Will this blog still be going at that time? I never promised you a rose garden. On with the weekly recap as we begin the week that breaks the hump of August…

A poignant scent memory: ‘Azure Lime’ by Tom Ford.

This bashful beauty carries the burden of most of the August bloom.

Feeling seen, feeling attacked, feeling all the feelings.

A morning story.

It’s the grammar – and it’s a fucking joke!

A friendly birthday reminder, because I’m a Virgo.

A chip among other things.

Return to Red Sox adventures.

Wet fingers.

Coquette is cleome.

The Paris Olympics: A Tale of Two Penises.

A practically pornographic point of view.

The Olympic Spotlight illuminated Jakob Ingebrigtsen, Josh Kerr, Rebeca Andrade, Cole Hocker, and Jack Laugher.

Dazzlers of the Day included Mondo Duplantis, Gabby Thomas, Grant Holloway, and Bob the Cap Catcher.

With its marijuana-like leaves, the cleome seen here has been reseeding itself for quite some time now. For the last couple of years I’ve been ruthlessly removing 95% of their volunteers because space has become more important than filling it. I leave a few plants to develop, as they bloom just when the garden is in need of a floral jolt. That arrived last week with these flowers, which will continue to open through September, and hurriedly fan out little sticks of seeds to provide for next year’s crop. The color works perfectly with our summer coquette theme, so I’m glad I left these alone. 

Bringing the coquette atmosphere into August feels right – and a theme that is kept light and airy tends to remain fresh longer than one that is heavy and plodding. Coquette flits here and there, hence and thence, darting about elusively like a dragonfly or humming bird – ever out-of-reach, ever out-of-capture. It has resonated powerfully in these parts, as evidenced by the blog stats which have shown a dramatic resurgence in viewers and hits starting in June. Usually summer ticks down in visits, but thanks to the coquette splendor and the summer Olympics, this blog is experience more traffic than it has for a number of years. Not that numbers matter here – I was doing it for ten friends in the beginning, and I will be doing it for those same ten friends when it ends. 

Back to coquette… and pink panache, all in the cloak of a cleome. August whispers amid storms and rain, hinting and foreshadowing the turn of September – the turn of summer into fall. Pretending it’s not coming won’t keep it away any longer. Still, it remains summer, and summer must be embraced and enjoyed. 

“The characteristic of coquettes is affectation governed by whim.” ~ Henry Fielding

Any summer day that ends with fingers like this is a good summer day.

Sometimes you just need to prune your hands. 

And so summer keeps on keeping on…

Wrinkled raisins and all.

Which of these objects doesn’t belong? 

For my Virgo ass, just about all of them, including that wrinkled, dirty tablecloth.

But also the pruning shears, the scissors (how much do we need to cut?), the empty vase, and the plastic fertilizer measuring spoon. 

I’ll allow the bottle of Mrs. White’s Unstung Hero Insect Repellent, as it is mandatory in this humid buggy season (and its tea-like fragrance is actually quite pleasant). 

And then this cute creature. 

The chipmunk named Chip.

(Confession: we name them all Chip to make it easy.)

While we don’t usually allow the wildlife onto the table, we let this one slide. It’s my fault for leaving a few papery scraps of a lumpia wrapper that I had outside the other day. This little guy was so well-behaved I couldn’t open the backdoor to startle him away until he had finished his tiny meal. The winter will do its worst to starve him later on – maybe this small act of kindness will lend one creature some relief. He rewarded us with a bashful pose. 

So many people (at last count… two) have been pestering me about my birthday wish list that I decided to do this little reminder post of the original list, while offering this addendum for any last minute scramblers still looking to gift me with something to ease the pain of the last year. Pictured is the very latest Tom Ford Private Blend, ‘Black Lacquer’ which is actually not quite available yet (keep checking here). If you are so generously inclined, I’ll happily take a rain check for when it gets its official release in a few weeks. Other items that are available now so as to make it in on time shall follow below (and will someone please tell Andy to make sure to bring at least one gift to Boston with us so I’m not typically depressed on the actual day of celebration?) Also, visit my Amazon wish list for more affordable goodies. 

Frederic Malle’s Promise Perfume in the 1.7 oz/50 ml bottle (and on a steal of a sale here)

Le Labo’s Bergamote 22 in the 1.7 oz/50ml bottle

Tom Ford’s Tobacco Vanille Beard Conditioning Oil

Hanro’s Fancy Jersey Boxer Briefs in ‘Pin Patternwork Light’ size medium

Molton Brown Lime & Patchouli Liquid Hand Wash

Tom Ford’s Oud Wood Beard Conditioning Oil

And for those special peeps who want to splurge and win me over for life, try these Tom Ford Silk Boxer Shorts in Washed Rose, size medium. 

As a very wise woman once said, “A lot of people are afraid to say what they want. That’s why they don’t get what they want.”