From The Chief Editor's Desk

It's summer here in the U.S. midwest, and it has been H-O-T! Summer has barely arrived, in a meteorological and astronomical sense, but we've been getting pelted by hot temperatures for a while now. This week it's supposed to get up to 98° F (36.6° C). Add on to that some atrocious humidity that's typical for this time of year, and you have miserable conditions. The kids are taking advantage of their summer, though, sleeping in until 11:30 nearly every morning.

Of course, with summer comes all the summer chores that need to be done and kept up with. Mowing the lawn, ripping out a rotting fence, and keeping the vegetable garden watered are just a few of the tasks I've managed to accomplish or keep up with, so far. That's all in addition to keeping up with magazine tasks, being Mr. Mom on the days Laura works, and working a full time job. And I wouldn't change one single thing, although it would be nice to have more time off together with Laura so we can do more "family" things. We love bicycle riding, and our work schedules have pretty much all but eliminated that from the things that we are able to do. We can only cram in just so much in the little time we have off together.

This month's magazine cover features hot dogs on the grill. The picture is from the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council. Yes, we know it has absolutely nothing to do with Linux. BUT, it has everything to do with summer. And what self respecting Linux user doesn't enjoy a good hot dog cooked on the grill? Can you think of a more versatile summer food? The ways to prepare and serve hot dogs are virtually endless. You can boil, roast, steam, broil, grill or fry them. You can slice them up and put them on pizzas or in casseroles. Most people put them on a bun, and serve them up with just about anything and everything you can think of to put on them. You can top them with chili, cheese, bacon, jalapeños, coleslaw, sauerkraut, onions, mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard (all types), relish (all types), salsa, lettuce, cabbage, beans, guacamole, tomatoes, and just about anything else you can imagine. If you can think of it, it can probably go on a hot dog. You can top them with any single item, or multiple items in just about any combination. Hot dogs are famous worldwide, from Thailand, to Chile, to the U.S., to Russia, to Germany, to Japan ... and every point in between.

If you'd like more information on the versatile hot dog, check here and here. And these aren't the only place to find more information on hot dogs. Just type "hot dog" into your favorite search engine, and I bet you don't make it through 10 pages of results before you're up making yourself a hot dog to munch on.

Oh ... and by the way ... July 23rd is National Hot Dog Day in the U.S.

Until next month, I bid you peace, happiness, serenity and prosperity.