For the past several weeks, the weather in suburban Philadelphia has been consistently rainy. Sure, there have been days and times where the weather was salvageable, but for the most part, the skies have been gray and rain has fallen.

This past Saturday, despite threatening rain, I decided to get in the car and make the short drive to Playwicki Park. The park is a moderate-sized recreational area complete with pavilions and community equipment for grilling. Playgrounds finish the area off, making the park a complete package for families.

On the 20-minute drive to the park, the rain started to come down. I needed to get outside, though, so I continued on undeterred. When I finally arrived, there were a few droplets coming down, but the trees provided lots of cover. I headed onto the trail and began walking alongside Neshaminy Creek.

I made my way about a quarter of a mile into the trail before the rain became too much. I turned back, but not before running into an awesome-looking spider on its web.

I made my way back to the car and turned on the air conditioning to get the humidity out of the air. I cracked open my copy of Stephen King’s The Shining, which I brought along for just this situation. I passed an hour with the book before heading back home to pass the time inside, as rain threatened all day long.

Aside from this attempt to go for a walk through the forest, the rest of the weekend was quiet. Hopefully, the weather lets up soon and we can all enjoy some time outside before fall and winter hit.

— Erich Martin, assistant editor