I’ve lived in east Ventura County longer than I’ve lived anywhere else in my life, so clearly I have an affinity for this area. But there was a time during early college when I lived and worked two blocks from the beach. I spent every free moment on that sand. For those two years, summer, with its morning fog and cool breezes, was my favorite time of year.

Now that I am too far from the beach to walk, I’ll admit that summer has lost much of its appeal. The days are hot, the nights are short and the kids are constantly checking to see if we have plans for the school-free time.

But there are these little things that keep popping up, like many of the stories in this issue, reminding me that summer is still something special: The scent of lavender in the air (page 15); the first tomatoes and basil in the garden (page 44); the colorful butterflies that flit through our neighborhood (page 28); icy drinks on those warm afternoons (page 23); the lazy evenings after the kitchen has been put away and the sun is still shining; and the bats that show up at dusk to eat their fill of those annoying mosquitos.

Speaking of mosquitos, I’ll admit that this issue has been slightly overrun by bugs. Prolific in the summer season, insects are often misconstrued as pesky creatures that might be better off dead. But in recent years I have come to recognize the sheer magnitude of their importance, not just for our food production but for their role in the huge cycle of life. So, in spite of their relative lack of popularity, I am stepping back (over here with my citronella candles) and letting them take center stage here in these pages. I hope that learning about them will give us all a greater appreciation for these essential—if creepy—critters, and perhaps even a bit of desire to help their proliferation.

Here’s to the bugs!