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It’s great coming home to my Rat Terrier, Roxy. When you have a bad day and you think your whole world is caving in on you, a pet makes you feel so much better. When you come in your pet really loves to see you and misses you through the day.

Many researchers have found that pets help lower your blood pressure, provide less anxiety, help your immunity, and can help you meet new people.

Many studies say that if kids grow up in a home with pets or on a farm where they are around other animals, they will have less risk for allergies and asthma as they grow up.

Studies have also shown that pets help the elderly. Caring for any pet will provide exercise and companionship for them. A cat is typically easier because it requires less care than a dog.

Pet owners are less likely to suffer from depression than those without pets. Similar to any enjoyable activity, playing with a dog can elevate levels of serotonin and dopamine which are nerve transmitters that are known to have pleasurable and calming properties.

Heart attack patients who have pets survive longer than those without pets according to several studies.

When you are out walking your dog you are bound to meet people. You will meet others who have dogs and you might set up a doggy play date for the dogs. Or you might meet people who don’t have dogs but who are interested in yours. This make a great time for you to meet your neighbors and network for jobs, friends, and possible dates. Dogs are a great socialization tool.

While you’re having fun this summer going on vacations and getting the kids ready to go back to school this month, remember that your garden friends will be extra thirsty this month too. Here’s a gardening checklist to help you keep your plants and lawns thriving during this hot summer.

Annuals

• Check all annuals often for dryness; new plantings are especially needy as they establish their roots.
• Dead blossoms - snap or snip them off to reinvigorate flowering plants; you’ll be rewarded by more flower and root growth.
• For a second bloom, cut annuals back to half their height and fertilize.
• Replace dead annuals with hardy annuals.

Perennials

• In mild climates, fertilize roses once a month throughout the summer.
• After the last iris blooms fade, stop giving them water.
• When leaves start turning brown, trim them down to green areas in a two-snip pyramid shape.
• Replant at the same depth in soil that’s been amended with processed manure and compost.

Lawns

• When mowing, recycle nutrients by letting lawn clippings stay in place, or spread them with a rake.
• Water early in the morning before the sun is at its hottest, so that plants benefit before evaporation takes place.
• Water deeply and less often — say, an hour once a week. Aim sprinklers so that their spray benefits the lawn and plants only; water on the sidewalk is water wasted!
• In dry weather, trim lawn edges.

Vegetables

• Plant potatoes early in the month.
• Sow seeds of these vegetables: spinach, chard, broccoli, lettuce, radishes, beets, carrots, peas, onions and scallions.
• Tomatoes and peppers are shameless sun lovers, so you should see lots of growth. Keep them off the ground, and harvest them as soon as they ripen so pests don’t eat them first.
• Keep mulch around tomato plants evenly spread and slightly moist.
• Plant veggies now for fall and winter harvest.

Pest control

• Root rot is a frequent hazard of wet seasons; help prevent it by thinning mulch around vulnerable plants.
• Look for slugs under moist mulch and in ground cover.
• Spray honeysuckles for aphids every 10 to 14 days; spray them with an insecticidal soap or give them a strong blast with a hose.

Container plants

• Container plants get extremely thirsty in summer months and may need water as often as once or twice a day. If you’re a newcomer to container gardening, you’re in for a treat!
• Planters can be tucked into any cranny. Fill in bare garden spots, arrange them on steps and along walkways, frame a garage door, set them on railings, or circle them around the old oak tree.
• Variety is the spice of container gardening. Combine containers of different shapes, sizes, colors and textures.
• Don’t worry about being perfect; just choose plants you like and learn as you go.
• Move pots around, from sun to shade, or just for a change of mood.
• Branch out from terra-cotta pots and window boxes. Containers made of resin and other synthetics are available in a riot of shapes and styles. Just be sure that containers have drainage holes in the bottom.

Container plants are my favorites because I can be so creative with where they sit and what they are sitting in. I have an umbrella tree, money tree, bamboo, and some other greenery plants. They thrive on water and getting a little bit of sun everyday. Even for someone without a green thumb I’m able to keep them alive and growing stronger every day.

With gas prices on the rise we all can use as many tips about improving gas mileage as we can get. Here are some tips from the US Department of Energy.

Driving Tips

Idling gets you 0 miles per gallon. The best way to warm up a vehicle is to drive it. No more than 30 seconds of idling on winter days is needed. Anything more simply wastes fuel and increases emissions.

Aggressive driving (speeding, rapid acceleration, and hard braking) wastes gas. It can lower your highway gas mileage 33% and city mileage 5%.

Avoid high speeds. Above 60 mph, gas mileage drops rapidly. The fuel economy web site shows how driving speed affects gas mileage. As a rule of thumb, you can assume that each 5 mph you drive over 60 mph is like paying an additional $0.20 per gallon for gas.

When you use overdrive gearing, your car’s engine speed goes down. This saves gas and reduces wear.

Reduce drag by placing items inside the car or trunk rather than on roof racks. A roof rack or carrier provides additional cargo space and may allow you to buy a smaller car. However, a loaded roof rack can decrease your fuel economy by 5%.

Car Maintenance Tips

Keep tires properly inflated and aligned to improve your gasoline mileage by around 3.3%.

Get regular engine tune-ups and car maintenance checks to avoid fuel economy problems due to worn spark plugs, dragging brakes, low transmission fluid, or transmission problems.

Replace clogged air filters to improve gas mileage by as much as 10% and protect your engine.

Combine errands into one trip. Several short trips, each one taken from a cold start, can use twice as much fuel as one trip covering the same distance when the engine is warm.