My nearly daily commute never fails to alert me to the fact that summer is just around the corner. Is it the flowering of the weeds alongside the roadway? Perhaps the blessing of sunlight during my early morning drive? The shimmering of heat waves above the highway in the afternoon?

None of the above. It’s the traffic. Near as I can figure, it’s not so much the vacationers; it seems to be the folks who work out of doors who compound my commute. The start of their day corresponds with the rising of the sun. (Making hay while the sun shines.)

This year it is especially bad. The number of big trucks — most semis towing bottom dump trailers (for hauling or moving dirt) — seems to have exploded this week. I don’t have a clue as to why, but my windshield is sure taking a beating!