Top Ten Things I Love About Summer

It’s summer time and the livin’ is easy, to paraphrase the song. How do I love summer? Let me count the ways, paraphrasing Elizabeth Barrett Browning.

Sitting in my air-conditioned house while the temps outside hover near 100 has me thinking of all the ways I love summer. Of course, air-conditioning makes summer a tad more enjoyable. Here’s my David Letterman-inspired Top 10 List, in no particular order:

1.  More time to write. My TV shows are in reruns during the summer. I’m a TV junkie and I’m not afraid to admit it. A writer acquaintance once told me that to be successful at writing I’d have to give up all TV. She’s more successful than I so maybe she was right. However, I don’t see why I should give up something that gives me pleasure. TV watching allows me to relax my body and mind, and I get ideas for stories too.

2.  The sun. It shines in the summer. I live on the East Coast so the sun is a rare commodity most of the year. Yay, sun! I love that shining orb. Just seeing the sun in a cloudless sky lifts my mood. Sun makes people want to get out and do things and it improves their attitudes.

3.  The beach. Or Shore if you’re referring to New Jersey. I’ve lived most of my life a 90-minute drive to the Atlantic Ocean. The beach and ocean are a big part of summer here. I don’t get to the beach much nowadays, but I went to the Jersey Shore most summer weekends when I was in my twenties and thirties. Snooki, The Situation, and the rest of the “Jersey Shore” cast have nothing on me and my friends. Good times. Although I spent almost every weekend at the Shore in those days, I didn’t get tan. There are two reasons for that: I don’t tan no matter how hard I try; I was indoors, in the bars, most of the time. Like I said, good times.

4.  Tans. See above. Most people look healthier in the summer with their golden tans. I’m the exception.

5.  Clothes. I wear fewer of them in the summer. It’s so nice to get up in the morning and throw on a tank top and a pair of shorts and some sandals. In the winter I wear thermal tops under my long-sleeved shirts, sweatpants, socks, warm shoes, and a jacket. In the house. Our house is surrounded by mature trees so it’s always cool, actually cold, in the winter. It’s so much easier to dress in the summer.

6.  Sandals. Love them. I once helped launch a revolt where I worked because our company wouldn’t allow us to wear sandals and wanted us women to wear pantyhose and closed shoes all year round. Yuck. Our revolt was successful. The company never again tried to force us to wear pantyhose and closed shoes in the summer.

7.  Pedicures. My favorite toe color du-jour is green. I wear toe rings too. Sometimes I paint my toenails blue. Painting my toes bright colors and wearing toe rings help me feel a little bit edgy. I like the feeling.  

8.  Beer. I’m usually a wine drinker, but there’s nothing like an ice-cold brew on a hot day. Give me some fresh oysters and clams with that beer and I’m in summer heaven.

9.  Less people where I live. Most of my state’s population is in the southern part of the state at the beaches or at the Jersey Shore. I stay up north most of the summer. The roads up here are less crowded and so are the stores and restaurants. You can walk into almost any restaurant and be seated right away. Whereas in the winter, the most popular restaurants have long waits. In the summer, I get to try restaurants I can’t get into during the winter.

10.  Air-conditioning. I love the heat. I love the sun. But I sure do love my air-conditioning when things get too hot.

What don’t I like about summer? My list only has six items:

1.  Sweat. Not a ladylike thing.

2.  My hair. Those of you with curly hair always complain about frizz. I challenge you to have my hair--straight and flat with not an ounce of body. Want to know what happens to my hair in the summer? Within minutes of styling it, it falls flatter than the proverbial pancake. In fact, pancakes are fluffier than my hair. Next time you complain about your frizz or curls, remember this--it could be worse. You could have my hair.

3.  Humidity. We have lots of it here. It’s what makes us sweat and gives us bad hair days.

4.  Mosquitoes. Enough said.

5.  Swollen fingers. I can’t wear most of my rings because of the heat and humidity. I love rings and usually wear at least three on every hand. Now I’m down to one or two on each hand. Bummer.

6.  Food spoils faster. I keep an ice chest in my trunk during the summer. When I food shop, I put the frozen foods and perishables in the ice chest for the ride home. Even though I live fairly close to the supermarket, food spoils quickly in the heat. One of the few good things about winter is that I can go food shopping in the morning, store the food in my truck, stay out all day, and when I get home, the food is still cold and the frozen stuff still frozen.

Even the hottest summer is better than winter, in my opinion.

So, what do you like about summer? What don’t you like?