...although, oddly enough, the sky is blue.

It was a cold, cold winter in Chicago. Hardly a stunning statement, I know, but last winter was colder than most and lasted, I swear to God, until June. So, naturally, this summer has been hotter than the fiery pits of deepest, darkest hell (roughly speaking).

We have a tree next to our third-floor balcony (how's that for a transition).

I can't help but feel sorry for our tree. Our poor, poor tree.

I think the reason for my tree-pity is the winter. Last summer was a great summer for the tree (or so I assume, I didn't live by the tree last summer). It rained, it was only moderately warm...annoying for people, nice for trees. And then came the cold. The tree began to shiver with the cold, shaking its leaves right off. Which is great for people (people that like to hear the crunching of leaves underfoot), but bad for trees.

And then came the first blanket of snow. The tree pulled itself further into its little tree shell, begging for the cold to stop. It missed the birds and the sun and everything that is great about the summer. And the winter simply dragged on. And on, and on, and on. And on.

And on.

It was boring, it was cold, and it was just generally unpleasant. But then a bird arrived. A bird arrived and settled right down on one of the tree's cold branches. And it chirped and hopped around and did all the things a good bird will do. And if you are thinking the tree didn't notice, well, think again. The tree perked right up. The tree felt a stirring it hadn't felt in months and that very week the tree pushed out its first bud. The first bud of the spring! Oh, thank freakin' god, it was about time to bloom. The winter was almost over.

The spring flew by in a whirlwind. Birds would visit the tree's flowers, leaves started the grow...the tree could barely contain its excitement. Because, you see, spring was nice, but summer was even better. Summer promised a full, daily dose of sun. Oh, photosynthesis...sweet, sweet photosynthesis.

And the summer came.

And it was nice and warm.

But then it was hot. And then it was hotter. And then, holy crap, it was really, really hot. And hey, wait a minute, where is the rain that was promised me? Seriously, just a drop of rain would be quite alright.

And the tree started to grow dry. It started to wither. The tree's leaves began to brown around the edges. Just a little at first, but then more and more. The sun that had excited the tree so much was now a source of much pain for the tree. Seriously, this sucked.

What was the deal with this summer? The tree had waited all winter (and it was an especially rough winter, mind you) for the dawn of another summer. The season for the trees! I mean, come on, what else does a tree have to look forward to if not the summer. Honestly, the winter can be dealt with for only one reason: the knowledge that soon it will be summer and then all the trees will be happy again. And to get a crappy summer, one almost as bad as the winter? Well, it's just really, really disappointing.

And you know.

You know that you are going to have to wait an entire winter for the next summer and there is no reason to think the next will be any better than the last. This crappy summer has killed much of the optimism for the next which just makes the winter that much colder.

Crap.

Next chance you get, go hug a tree. They know what it is to be a Cub fan.