Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Where Did the Summer Go?

I miss summer.   Summer used to be about relaxing by the lake, night after night of barbecues, basking in the sunshine, and feeling like the season would truly never end.   Three months of longer, warmer days rejuvenated me and helped make the other nine months of shorter, colder days a bit more bearable.  It was also one heck of a good time.  Of course, this was all when I was a kid (college years count).  Back then, summers also meant three months of uninterrupted free time.  So the question is:  Can adults, with their careers, commitments, and responsibilities, enjoy a lazy summer too?


Maybe not.  For too many years my summers haven’t included nearly enough of the aforementioned seasonally-appropriate activities.  Nowadays, I might manage to squeeze in a grill session or two between June and August, and if I’m lucky one good day of lounging by a pool or in a park or at the lake.  Mostly what transpires, however, is a race to the end of summer resulting in a Labor Day weekend filled with regrets of summery things not accomplished and repeated statements of “where did the summer go?”

So I stress about summer, when really, it’s supposed to be a time to distress.  Will I be able to enjoy it this year?  Will I find time for the warm weather activities I love so much?  And why am I already stressing about this – summer doesn’t even begin until June 21st!

How do you (or don’t you) make the most of summer?

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I feel the same! Even though I left high school 9 years ago, I still see summer as "yay, two months off" - of course, I'm working now but yeah, in my dreams.

Ottawa gets quiet in the summer because a lot of people take holidays or go to the cottage. I'd rather take far away holidays during the winter to escape...

Melina said...

Its sooo hard to celebrate/enjoy summer in Paris. June 21 is day 1, but its looking like we'll have 50 degree weather and rain. A few weeks ago, even with sun out, I got homesick for the neighborhood pool and tennis courts I had back in Atlanta.. It was so much easier to enjoy then!
Its just not the same here. I wish the weather would get warm, and sunny, at least!

Tanya said...

@Zhu, Winter escape vacations are a must when you live up north. The dark days and cold are exhausting.

@Melina, You make a good point about location. I enjoyed summers the most when I was in MN - where we had lakes and beaches, and wide open spaces. Paris is definitely a tough city for enjoying summer, and DC isn't much better, although it does get hot, which I love! Hopefully NYC does the same.