On 13 July 2026, New Zealand actor Sam Neill passed away, at age 78, from pneumonia. Diagnosed with advanced lymphoma in 2022, Neill had been in remission, but requiring ongoing monthly chemotherapy treatments. A clinical trial with CAR T-cell therapy judged him cancer free in April 2026, but he succumbed to the pneumonia three months later.
For all its heat, humidity, endless days and toasty nights, Floral Summer doesn’t last all that long, nothing like the three-month span we ascribe to the summer season. In June, most plants are still ramping up, not yet in bloom; and by August, things are definitely on the wane. So it’s just July that showcases the floral fireworks we associate with summer, and that’s all too fleeting.
As the United States prepares to celebrate the 250th anniversary of its Declaration of Independence, it’s only fitting we take a closer look at the chart of the Land of the Free, and the Home of the Brave. This founding document was written in large part by Thomas Jefferson, working on several drafts between June 11th and 28th, 1776. In the midst of this process, on June 18th, a wee bit of space debris, an asteroid that would be named “America” nearly 150 years later, came to a critical stage in its orbit about the sun.
On 11 May 2026, Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Blairsville, Alberta, Canada spotted a red fox absconding with a half-dozen hot dogs in its mouth. Although the Mounties always get their man, the clever vulpine eluded them. The out-foxed constable witnessed the animal in a wooded neighborhood, but without a specific complaint, was unable to do more than watch as the fox greedily gulped the evidence against him. Reports do not specify which condiments were preferred for the cookout contraband, stating only that the fox ate them with relish.
When will I learn? I should know by now to check the field before the running of the Kentucky Derby, to determine a winner and place a hefty bet. With both Rich Strike, in 2022 (at 80-1 odds) and Mystik Dan, in 2024 (at 18-1), a preliminary peep at the equine charts and Race Day could have netted me a packet! In 2026, the pattern repeated, but I still hadn’t learned my lesson.
No siree, Spring 2026 will not be one for the books! I suppose, for a gardener, anytime a plant’s performance isn’t quite up to snuff, there’s a bit of a let-down, knowing you’ll have to wait another year in hopes of improvement. But when the plants are spring-bloomers, heralding the return of life after a long, barren winter, the pill is a bitter one to swallow indeed.
