Although the days aren't hazy because the soggy ground just hasn't heated up, we find late-July days still make us lazy. Our maybe it's just us. Our bodies keep telling us to slow down and relish the season, but our brains remind us it's unusually cool and wet. So, what season are we talking about?

Saturday was our first real gift of a summer day. Dave and I spent the morning at Tanglewood, soaking up some rays (so to speak) to the glorious sounds of Brahms' German Requiem. If you're going to sit around in lawn chairs and knit, read and drink coffee, you might as well sit within earshot of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, right?   

After a picnic, we took the scenic drive home, stopping briefly to watch a motorcyclist get yanked from beneath a car on a very winding mountain road. Later, we saw more people in rafts on the Deerfield River than there are people living in the towns that line it. Quite a sight.

On Monday night, Alash, a group of Tuvan throat singers came to town to perform outdoors between rain showers. What are throat singers, you ask? They're people who manage to sing multiple notes at the same time. Sometimes they sing chords; other times they whistle, imitate birds, frogs or insects and sing a melody line, all at the same time. These incredible Mongolian musicians toured with Bela Fleck and the Flecktones last year. In fact, we were mesmerized by the sounds they made at an extraordinary holiday concert in Northampton. 

Go here for a closer look at Alash, information on throat singing, and samples of their wild -- yet strangely familiar -- sounds.