Bye Bye Summer 2012

Fireworks Sunday evening closed out Lake in the Hills' three-day Summer Sunset Festival and marked, more or less, the end of Meteorological Summer.  Technically that was Saturday.  However, according to astronomers,  the end of Summer is really Sept. 22  (based on certain technical assumptions).  Either way, Summer 2012 couldn't end soon enough.

With record heat, record drought, persistently high unemployment but a rising stock market, the Summer of 2012 played like 1936 all over again,.  This time, though gasoline wasn't selling for a nickle per gallon.

On the plus side, housing prices looked as if they might be starting to recover, maybe a little, and retail sales rose somewhat late in the season.  Really. What's not to celebrate?