Friday, August 14: West Tisbury Agricultural Society field is damp from overnight rain. Rising sun casts long shadows on the vacant fairgrounds. Temperature reaches the 80s in the sun.

Saturday, August 15: Dog days of July in August. The morning is sunny. Light southwest breeze pushes sailboats out of Edgartown harbor. Herreshoff sailors congregate in the water off the Edgartown Lighthouse for a day of racing.

Sunday, August 16: A sunny morning. Inside Cape Pogue Pond is calm. Young swimmers play on the beach at the Gut. Current rushes into the pond. Clear skies overhead. Cool on the water, hot inland. Cow Bay beach and Bend in the Road Beach are loaded with swimmers and sunbathers. The afternoon is hot inland, cooler on the water. Clouds hug the horizon. Star-filled evening.

Monday, August 17: Warm southwest wind. A day for the beach. Colorful umbrellas decorate the Joseph Sylvia State Beach. Children bob on rafts in the breaking waves. Hot on a tennis court in Oak Bluffs. Built on Stilts takes place in a steamy Union Chapel, with little or no breeze downtown.

Tuesday, August 18: Heavy dew in the morning covers the lawn at dawn. Clear and sunny. Yards are burned in Oak Bluffs by days without significant rain. High school parking lot pavement is hot to the touch. Farm Neck golfers enjoy the late afternoon scene. Not as hot late in the day.

Wednesday, August 19: Bright morning. Rowers move slowly across Vineyard Haven harbor toward the Owen Park beach dinghy dock. Beach grass is tall and lush and lines the inner harbor beach. Sailboats take off in the outer Vineyard Haven harbor. One of the top 10 hottest days yet this summer. Light cooling breeze delivers some relief at the Tabernacle community sing. Illumination Night lanterns dance on the wire. Stars overhead. Warm night.

Thursday, August 20: Hot and muggy. Temperature reaches 80 degrees by 9 a.m. Agricultural Society fair opens under high flying cirrus clouds. Mostly sunny. The community turns attention to a hurricane brewing in the Caribbean.

M.A.L.