Summertime

"Why, this is very midsummer madness."
Twelfth Night; or, What You Will III.i.v.45

Hi All,
Okay. All of the chatter about the Summertime has inspired me to come up with a list of My Favorite Things About the Summer. In general, I can't stand to be cold, so I'm not terribly fond of Winter. Sure, I like snow, but we rarely get any here. Fall is awesome because of the nicely moderate weather, the brilliant leaves, and because it reminds me of going back to school. I loved going back to school. There's always a danger of SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) in the Fall with me. But I loved the Summer from the start, mainly because I was very, very blessed: I have two older brothers and we lived in the country. I mean The Country. No, we weren't all named 'Jed' and we didn't have inbred children. Get those stereotypes out of your heads! But we did have things that the city can't offer.

My Favorite Things About the Summer

1) Playing Outside. Running outside until I was out of breath with excitement, in some game me and my brothers invented. We didn't have neighbors, really, and we weren't in a neighborhood, but we had each other. And we had incredible imaginations. I loved to play 'adventures' out in the fields, pretending I was some kind of Indiana Jones type. Rob was Indiana Jones, Billy was a sidekick, and later was Peter Venkman from 'Ghostbusters' (I'm not sure why we combined these, but I think it was because we were all Indiana Jones fanatics and Billy was a 'Ghostbusters' fan). I was always 'the bad guy.' Well? Somebody had to be. It was a lot of fun.

2) Running Through the Woods, on Similar Adventures. Running seems to be a theme! haha It's a shame I don't run now. The Woods are a divine place for so many reasons, but for the purpose of this entry, The Woods were a land of places to hide and things to discover. My dad even built me a 'fort' in the woods out of an old refrigerator box. Dad was awesome!

3) Fresh Vegetables and Fruits. Memories are great, but FOOD is better! haha I love most vegetables and fruit, and they thrive in the Summer months. And we get a lot of homegrown stuff from locals, which blows the supermarket stuff out of the water. I've never eaten so good in my life. Tomatoes, corn, watermelon, cantaloupe, squash...Wow, I'm hungry!

4) On Rainy Days, We'd Play Star Wars. I can't hear a thunderstorm/rainstorm without remembering the three of us setting up elaborate sets and playing Star Wars. We had most of the action figures, but not the ships and such. My brothers created those out of cardboard, with exact drawings of the ships on each. They can both draw anything they see, which blows my mind. I can't even draw a stick figure! But I can write, somewhat. (smiles)

5) Heat. Okay, not 90-100 degree heat, but I love to get all sweaty working out, and then go have a shower. Nothing like being clean and fresh after a good workout! I guess any workout, any time of year, gets a person sweaty, somewhat, but I tend to get moreso in the heat of summer. There's something about the heat that I just love.

6) Sunshine. The sun seems to show itself the most to me in the Summer, and I love its brilliant light and warmth. It's a fact that sunshine lightens moods and gives us Vitamin D. Being a Fair person, though, I can't sit out in it, like on a beach. I have to have shade 'cause, well, I'm not fond of pain or sunburns. But when I am out in it, for bits at a time, I love it.

7) Cat Tails. I guess these grasses have a proper name, but I don't know what that is. We always called them Cat Tails, because they're long and thin, and feel furry to the touch. Are they also called Willows? You sometimes see them by the water, I think. I see them all over in the country. Anyway, it's another Summer Memory to feel them. Not sure why, but I always loved them.

8) Country Time Lemonade. A tall glass, with plenty of sugar and ice, please. Thank You, God.

9) Cookouts. I used to love burgers and such, but in later years I've gotten off of red meat. But still, there's nothing like a nice meal for a cookout, with the family, under the Maple trees in the shade. Damn. I'm hungry again. Can you tell I haven't eaten lunch yet? haha

10) Concerts. I've seen about, what, 30 plus concerts in my life, most of them being in the Summer. It's great to be there, hearing great music, feeling warm and free, and knowing that life is a little bit more relaxed.

And I didn't even include 'Summer Movies,' which used to be my reason for existence! haha JK. Summer Movies have become boring and predictable, and overly reliant on CGI and explosions. If I see one more car chase....I may die of boredom.
I also did not include my favorite thing in the wide world, READING. But, I read all year long, not just in the Summer. I think the idea is, people have more time to read in the Summer. I make time year-round. Cause reading rocks!

We had a great 'jam session' over the weekend. Rob plays guitar, Billy bass, Dad guitar, and me drums. We have a lot of fun with it. We do a mean version of 'Rockin' in the Free World' by Neil Young. Rockin', indeed!

Things I dislike about Summer
1) Sunburns. Damn you, Sun! I thought you were my friend!
2) Torrential downpours. I've been caught in hurricane runoff before, and let me tell you! Water is sometimes not our friend.
3) Movies that deafen and are nonstop action. Some of these have been good, in the past. But these days, you come out of the theater thinking, "Dear Lord! I am deaf, and I have ADD. Or, someone does."
4) Bugs. I hate bugs. All of them. Especially June Bugs (Beetles). They scare the BeJesus out of me. I like to yell, "Die, bugs, die!" as I kill them.
5) Air Conditioning. I dislike it because, I stay cold and shivering. I'd rather be hot than cold. I should not feel like I am in the Arctic as I try to sleep.


That reminds me, I saw 'March of the Penguins' over the weekend-loved it! What a great documentary. I had no idea penguins went through so much. If you're an animal lover, this is one to check out.

Have a great day, All.