Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days

I find that there is always one day that kind of get summer rolling. It is always at a different time every year, and I have mostly noticed it since I have been done school. With school, it's easy, because the last day of school always equalled the first offical day of summer. But now in adult world, there is not really any indication of when to shift into that "summer" kind of attitude. Sure, there is the day marked on the calender, but that doesn't really mean anything.

Like for example, last year the first official day of summer for me was when my friend and I went to a outdoor festival in Toronto. There were giant bubble fights, outdoor markets, we ate on a patio, we consumed ice cream...then at the end of the day, I was like, "this day just totally started off summer!". It was pretty great. I'm still waiting for the day this year.

Summer is a great time of year, attitudes just seem to shift. Everybody becomes a little more easygoing, and I find people are generally happier. I used to think that when I was done school and would have to work during the summer, it wouldn't be the same. But it is, that same feeling of excitment is still there.

There is so much to look forward to in the summer: visits to the cottage, lounging on the beach, bonfires, fireworks, swimming, festivals, concerts, being outside! I love it.

When I was younger my grandmother had a cottage out in a little "town" (for lack of a better word) called Silver Bay. I adored going there. Her cottage was just down the street from the beach, and we would walk there everyday. There was a small little variety store that sold ice cream and penny candy and all the fixins for smores. Every night we had a bonfire, and we would sit around and talk and laugh. Days were filled with bocci ball and lawn darts, and general being togetherness. Those summers stretched on forever, and they were wonderful. When I go back there now, the cottage (which now belongs to other people) looks so tiny and run down. But when I was little, it was almost magic. I remember one summer I caught a catepillar, and he lived in a little jar where he eventually made his cocoon. The caterpillars named was Herbie. We watched that cocoon every day, and one day out popped the most beautiful Monarch butterfly, who just flew right out of that jar. It was so amazing for my 6 year old self. For years afterwards (and I am talking years, and I actually still do it now, but only in my mind), everytime any of us saw a Monarch butterfly, we would say "Look, it's Herbie! Hi Herbie!!". Summer made that all possible.

I guess like a lot of kids, some of my best childhood memories happened during the summer. We set up countless lemonade stands, we built our own go-karts, we swam for hours on end and we basically created adventure wherever it is we went.

Summer just kind of brings out that feeling in you, a kind of, "we can do anything" type of feeling that you can only get when the sun is beaming down on you and your friends are by your side.

Ahhh, I love it. I can't wait until it starts.