The Good Old Summertime

I can't quite decide if certain things remind me of summer, or if summer makes me think of certain things. Or if maybe I'm just not making any sense because it is 100 degrees outside with 93% humidity.

Therefore, today's post is going to be a list.

A list that might not even make any sense, but all the following items have something to do with summer...in my world anyway.

(And I realize I should have posted this last Monday when we were celebrating the official first day of summer, but what can I say? I was probably too hot to even think straight last week.)

1. Afternoon thunderstorms. Unfortunately until yesterday we have had approximately zero thunderstorms and no rain since sometime in May. However, I distinctly remember in Houston when I was growing up there would be an afternoon thunderstorm that popped up out of nowhere and then vanished just as quickly every single day in the summer. Of course, after the thunderstorm disappeared, it would leave behind muggy, humid air that made it hard to breathe. Nevertheless, summer should mean afternoon thunderstorms.

2. Watermelon. It looks, smells, and tastes like summer. I bought a really great watermelon last week in preparation for my parents and grandmother being in town, and then a weekend with everybody at my sister's house. Farmer's markets are the place to get perfect watermelon, and the 50-pounder I picked up was gone within four days. (I might be exaggerating that it was 50 pounds, but it was at least 40!)

3. Swimming. I have to admit that I very rarely go swimming anymore. Without kids, no one is ever dragging me to a pool, and I was spoiled as a child having a swimming pool in my backyard. Now, pools crawling with people do not seem like much fun. But last weekend we went swimming with my nephew at the hotel pool where my parents were staying. We were the only ones there, and it was definitely so hot that NOT being in the water was NOT a choice...unless you have an affinity for developing heat-stroke. Swimming is summertime. (I am a bit cold-natured, so it really has to be very hot outside for me to venture into the water.)

4. Car trips. Growing up we took one vacation a year: a two-week trip to visit our relatives in Oklahoma and Arkansas. And we drove. Getting up at dark-thirty, piling in a hot, humid car surrounded by the smell of the coffee my dad carried in a thermos still makes me a feel a little sick to my stomach. I'm not sure if my nausea was related to a touch of car-sickness or the excitement of going on vacation...or the combination of being tired, feeling hot, and smelling coffee. Anyway, summer means long road trips in the car.

5. Country music. I rarely listen to country music...except in the summer. I'm not sure why this genre is only for the summertime in my world. Something about all the lyrics involving picnics, sitting on the beach, fishing, eating fried chicken, screen doors, and farming relegate the music to summer months.

6. Cicadas. At least I think the insect noises up in the trees are cicadas. When I start hearing the cicadas, I know it's blazing hot outside, and I picture big green trees, fields of corn, creeks, and cloudless blue skies. I guess a lot of those pictures stem from all the driving through rural areas of the country while on summer vacation road trips. And growing up in a small town in Texas.

7. Barbeque. Wouldn't it be more comfortable to use the grill outside in the cool spring or crisp fall weather? But no. We all grill out more in the summer...with the humidity, the heat, and the mosquitoes. The smell of someone grilling burgers or ribs is quintessential summer to me.

What makes you think of summer? Or, what does summer remind you of? It's a great little exercise to take your mind off the unbearably oppressive heat and find things that make you grateful for summer!