Summer Solstice is complete

It was a grand Alaskan solstice celebrated locally with sun soup, solar cake, and peach ice. It was hot and deep and long and wonderful. Palmer fished, biked, weeded, danced, hiked, farmed, summited, hayed, hammocked and gardened from sunup to sundown—which pretty much translates into a full 22 hours of daylight and twilight. It was celebrated energetically. However now, pets and people are exhausted. Dogs are drained. Gardeners are gassed. Trail-runners are tuckered. Ballplayers are breathless. Birds are fatigued. Moose are pooped. Tourists are jet-lagged. Cats are consumed. Lilacs are spent. Records are shattered. Children and parents are weary. Even Food Trucks are done in…for a few days. But the bulk of summer remains to be played. We’re gearing up for a nice long summer.

Deceptive & Aggressive Early Fireweed Bloomers—You can see them now…..those few extra-early flamboyant Fireweed blossoms. They are nothing more than attention-seekers mutants. They are steroid-pumped sizzlers flaunting their full magenta blooms…way too early. They are fake overachievers. This is NOT THE TIME for the full Fireweed flower and just because there are a few show-offs, it doesn’t mean anything. If you look carefully you will see a multitude of tiny Fireweed blooms, timid and dainty, taking their normal sweet time to bloom; these are the true Fireweeds. Normally our Fireweed doesn’t take to big blooms until late July. So ignore the floral fuchsia exhibitionists, the blooming boasters and realize fully they are just posturing braggarts.

Palmer Looks Sharp!—The Pioneer Cemetery has a repaired, sanded and freshly painted wooden fence. It’s white and fresh. The Palmer Tennis Court is now “Palmer Blue” and looks great now, with all the improvements. Mark my words, tennis will have a resurgence because of this excellent facelift. Plus Pickle-ball Lines are also being planned for the court. There were lots of donations to make this happen in our community. It looks first-rate!

Flower Baskets, Farm Stands, Palmer Post Office garden and Community Gardens—Everything looks good this year because of the heat. The City waters its’ big full flower baskets frequently. Farm stands are crowded with young tasty greens. Palmer Post Office poppies and vines are welcoming. And the Grow Palmer and Community Gardens are lush with foods. The Museum garden, as always, is just a knock out!

Back to Back—Palmer’s Weekend Summer Festivals will take a pause this coming weekend. We’ve been going strong since the last weekend in April and we have a lot remaining on the summer calendar. So take some time to mow, to relax and to reenergize.

July kicks into gear in the first full week with the Palmer Wine Walk on the 8th, the Midsummer Garden and Art Faire on the 9th. Of course there’s always the weekly Friday Flings, lovely Main-street shopping, ballgames, coffee houses, and live music in Palmer at the Palmer Ale House, Klondike’s, Fishhook Bar, and 203 Kombuchu. If you’re looking for the big events, head to the Girdwood Forest Fair, Big Lake Boat Parade, Glacier View 4th of July Car Launch. Plus both Wasilla & Anchorage have big Independence Day Events this weekend.

Barbara Hunt is both Palmer writer and artist. She works hard to keep the robust pulse of Palmer, Alaska. She shares the good stuff in the weekly Palmer Alaska Buzz Column in the Mat Su Valley Frontiersman and daily on the Palmer Alaska Buzz Facebook Group. Her “Palmer Buzz 2022 Community Calendar” is available at NonEssentials on Main Street. Contact at bhunt@mtaonline.net or text 907.315.3222