The pool is still 96 degrees at 11 PM. The air is hotter than that because, believe it or not, the water actually feels cooler to the touch. How is that possible, you ask? Well check this out.

How to describe this time of year? Walking outside tonight to bring the trash barrel out felt like opening the door to a mammoth oven. I can’t believe my petunias are still hanging in there. Good for them.

I watched the MLB Hall of Fame induction ceremonies on the MLB network today. Rickey Henderson’s and Jim Rice’s speeches were both well done, and hearing Joe Gordon’s daughter describing her father and his contributions to the game brought tears to my eyes. There was a lot of class up there on the stage today.

Watching that sure beat watching the Red Sox and John Smoltz puking up the equivalent of another baseball hairball today. Maybe it’s just me – Terry Francona obviously appears to disagree – but watching Smoltz toss one meatball after another doesn’t give me a whole lot of confidence in his future with the Red Sox right now.

And as hard as it is for me to write this, I think Jason Varitek is done. His bat looks awfully old right now.

This is a joke, right? If I’m President Obama, I’d have two words for North Korea: screw you.

It’s a little too late for all this as far as I’m concerned, but count me among those who don’t believe for a minute that Barack Obama is a U.S.-born citizen.

This sounds like a good idea to me.

Rob has to be happy – football season is finally here. Me, I’m picking the Steelers to go all the way again this year.