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What would you add? By the wonderful Grace Farris.
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yes to beaches !
yes to loose flowy functional dresses with pockets
yes to loose tank tops!
yes to cooking on the firepit!
yes to the creamiest freshest ice cream!
yes to dining outside and sunbathing for as long as possible!
yes to weather that is perfectly sunny and breezy!
Summer
Part 1
Sunburned lips, blonde tips
Dirty feet from muddy streets
More freckles and treats
Part 2
Fishing trips, bait worms
BBQ at Neversink
They’ll grow up in a blink
Freshly picked berries
Plucked straight from the vine, sun warmed
They stain my mouth red
Love your poem! I just posted a couple and saw yours!
Infant bathing suits!!! Made my heart swell. A friend and I went to the beach recently and couldn’t stop giggling about how silly (in a cute way!) all the babies looked in their colorful hats and huge ruffles.
My previous comment should have said sipping, not zipping!
Pool with my friends and our children! After having our pool closed last year due to Covid 19 and not seeing my friends forever, I am really enjoying spending time at our neighborhood pool. Kids are older now and swimmers (mine is 8), hence we can spend more time enjoying ourselves zipping a drink. We have had a couple of pizza pool parties with the kids.
1. Agua frescas! My favorite with alcohol, below:
Grapefruit juice (you can freeze grapefruit segments and put them in a blender for a slushie effect)
Tequila
Campari
2. Road trip to Wildwood to see Gramps
3. Seeing fireflies in Brooklyn at night
4. Neighborhood block parties. In my area, these consist of a spraying fire hydrant, a few kiddie pools in the road, and all the neighbors playing music and BBQing in their front “yards”.
5. Tomato sandwiches & blueberry pie. Also the juiciest nectarines with burrata.
I mentioned earlier that I miss the summer rain. I truly do and hope that the droughts pass and we are soon enjoying the rain’s freshness again. But! There are still many things I love about summer, and I thought I should include those as well!
Working in the yard and relaxing in the yard, eating supper outside as often as possible. I love all of the summer birds and the joy I feel when I see a bee or a butterfly. I love having time to read a good book. I love sandals and summer dresses. I love warm evenings and soft breezes. I love spending time with family. I love the long days and late nights. I love the flowers. I love fresh fruits and veggies and barbecues. The beach. Trees in full folliage. I love walks in the park and driving with the windows down. There is so much I love about summer and try to enjoy the moments as much as I can, even if I am simply hanging out and relaxing.
Petrichor!!!!!
Oh, how I live for this. So happy to see I’m not the only one who does. This is the scent of my childhood. Racing home in a downpour, and taking shelter under a massive maple tree. So carefree, and those summers lasted forever.
Every time this happens now as an adult, I stop and grab every second of it. Amazing.
Beach days in LA with my friend and her children. We have long, meandering, deep, interrupted conversations and I eat all the stuff she packed for them even though I brought my own snacks.
Sitting on the patio sipping coffee and reading a good book. Listening to the birds and watching the squirrels play.sometimes just sitting and doing nothing.
I love reading everyone’s lists! Echoing some already named summer things but enjoying the process of listing my favourite summer things.
Peaches and watermelon
Lazy beach days
Late sunsets
Beers outside with neighbours
Tennis
Lake swimming
Flowy shorts
Streets lined with trees in full leaf
Sweet corn
Being comfortable outside!!
It’s my favourite season!
Lemonade! Swimming in a cool backyard pool! Tennis! Smell of charcoal on the grill! Cooold white wine! Driving with the windows down! Dairy Queen dipped cones! Freckles! Napping in a hammock! Smell of mulch and fresh cut grass! Hummingbirds! Farmers markets! The library’s summer reading contest!
Sadly, I am now a person that counts down then days until fall. I was the exact opposite when I lived in Chicago. But in the Deep South, home of sky high temps, high humidity, and being just 40 or so miles from the Gulf, the happiest time for me is mid-October when the weather here is perfect, there is football, and hurricane season for my area is pretty much done. August is my most hated month! Katrina, Rita, Laura . . .
cold beer
outside sleeping
fullmoon over the sea
Berries as in freshly picked raspberries still warm from the sun – yes, yes, yes. Also: green beans off the vine.
Pretty toenail polish.
9pm sunset.
Bubble tea picnics.
Fresh homemade caprese. Also: watermelon with feta, mint, honey + olive oil.
Nectarines.
Driving with the windows down, a favorite song playing loud and hair blowing.
The feeling of freedom that comes with being able to walk outside in whatever you’re wearing, no extra layers, shoes optional.
PBR. Rosé.
The smell of badger kid + baby sunscreens: tangerine and vanilla! Chamomile and calendula!
Iced lattes.
Farmers market mornings.
Watching thunderstorms on the porch.
For my fellow Minnesotans, the dread (end of summer sadness) x excitement (Sweet Martha’s cookies?) of the state fair.
And from the previous COJ summer list: Trying a new-to-me ice cream.
Opting to stay inside and snuggle under blankets and with cozy socks and sweats in the air conditioning for a movie night – and not feeling bad about it. ;)
Sweet Martha’s!!! I worked there summers in high school. We would get leftover cookies scraps in a brown bag at the end of each shift. The life.
No summer rain or thunderstorms in the fog belt of the SF Bay Area, sadly. But we have the fog which rolls in from the ocean in tall, fluffy piles of clouds, some white, some gray, and some dark. It moves quickly, bring cool marine air. I love it. I love watching it roll in. I love nights cool enough to sleep with a blanket. I love that it rolls out in the late-ish morning and back in starting at four-ish, giving us warm sunny days, and cool nights.
Currently in day 2 of a new covid lockdown in winter in Newcastle, NSW and this list and these comments are making my heart beat so quickly! I’m currently sitting in the beautiful sunshine having my lunch and fully daydreaming of hopefully much freer (if we’re ever given access to a vaccine) summer days around the corner.
Late night hot tubbing by star and candle light.
Flip flops and sleeping with the window open
Skinnydipping!
An after dinner bike ride, as the sun is setting and the neighborhood softening. And ice cream sandwiches!
Long, uninterrupted stretches of reading…… tomato sandwiches….wearing flip flops, shorts and yoga pants most days….backyard blackberries…..outdoor art shows!
Exploring different state parks via kayak!
All meals outside
Swimming
Sunsets
Summerflowers
Sweaty runs
Fruitsallad
Icecream
Strawberries
Cold sparkling wine
Snoozing in the shade
Gardening
Holidays
Carpentry projects
Relaxing
Floaty summerdresses
Learning what the word “petrichor” means thanks to your list!
I just learned heard this word today for the first time! Funny seeing it here too.
I actually learned this word recently and realized I don’t like it. I feel like just saying “the smell of rain” is so much more evocative and poetic. Like if I write “I walk outside and am hit with the smell of rain” it sounds so much better than “I walk outside and am hit with petrichor”. I dunno… Anybody else have thoughts on this?
@Embed: I am inclined to agree. The smell of rain is such a sweet, beautiful experience, but the word petrichor does not evoke those sensations for me. If I had to guess the meaning from the sound of the word petrichor, I would guess it as describing foot odour. Lol!! Petrichor is a good ‘scientific’ sounding word to get the point across, but poetically speaking, I think there are a many other ways of describing the exquisite experience.
@Embed I agree! I saw petri and odor and saw something funky green and stinky in my head
I found stretchy comfy waist denim shorts this year and I have been LOVING them every day! Free legs! Definitely ranks higher on my list.
I also love a sudden thunderstorm while staying at the beach! There is something about it that just reminds me of my childhood- the smell of rain, the sounds, running inside while grabbing everything we own, watching the dark clouds roll in, the dampness in the air. That feeling is so deeply ingrained in me!
The beauty of Disney Sky sunsets before it gets dark–you know, a few clouds that light up against the ever-darkening blue with a few stars barely appearing, just like you see above Cinderella’s castle EVERY TIME you go to the Magic Kingdom? That’s a Disney Sky.
And going to drive-in movies as a kid in the 1970’s. That was summer.
Disney skies! I knew exactly what you meant before you even described it. My favorite skies too.
al fresco meals, mojitos with extra mint from the garden, playing a lazy game of bocce ball (or kubb), road trips to anywhere, spicy paletas, farmers markets and the best: having my children home from college
skinny dipping….beer gardens….outdoor music…???
I had to google what a “Caftan” was. Haha
but not “petrichor”? ;)
Ope! Missed that. Back to Google I go… haha!
Concerts in the park and canned wine
All the main ratatouille ingredients in peak season. :)
Cicadas! Sweet corn! (These say IOWA SUMMER.)
Cicadas! the melodic sound of summer here in Ontario Canada too:) love that
tubing in a cold river with the cypress trees above (only way to enjoy tx in the summer!)
warm walks at night and seeing fireflies
icecream cones for dinner on vacation
warm fruit crumble and cold icecream
Summer in Colorado used to be my favorite season…now it just means severe drought, hazy skies and incessant wildfire smoke. I believe my home will be rendered uninhabitable in my lifetime. I miss the clear blue sky summers of my childhood.
As a lifelong Californian, I strongly identify with this :(
Feeling similarly unsettled about summers here in British Columbia. :(
Yes to this. I live in CO and it seems the season should be renamed Smoke. It starts earlier in the season every year.
Feeling this from smoky California. It’s heartbreaking :-(
Yes, from a Canadian missing soft summer rains.
Yes, here in Oregon too it’s smoky all summer long now. I miss summer rain SO SO much and temps that never ever reach 100F, as in my childhood. This used to be a cool, wet place and I miss it.
Impromptu swims in a nearby river or lake are at the very top of my list. They’re extra special too if they happen after doing something hot and sweaty like hiking or biking.
Nectarines and vacation would tie for number 1 on my list!
Oh my gosh. Nectarines are possibly my favorite fruit but, man, they break my heart about 75% of the time. I’m in Iowa and we get good summer peaches, especially Missouri peaches, but nectarines are a crap shoot.
Hollyhocks.
Basil.
Bees.
Sundresses.
Twinkly patio lights.
bare legs (especially on bike)! warm nights!
I have FIVE mosquito bites on one foot right now so I cannot agree with mosquitoes as a pleasure.
I would add:
-golden hour light in summer evenings
-a glass of cold sauvignon blanc drank on a patio
-jumping off the back of the boat into cold, clear Lake Michigan
I think it is a list of summer “things”, not pleasures, and mosquitoes are ranked as the worst summer thing. I agree with that assessment.
Lovely list. I’d add sandals (especially the shopping), straw purses, and lemonade with a bit of gin.
Mmmm…I’ve gotta go with bourbon and lemonade!
Rooftop cocktails!
Island picnics. Boats. Having salt on your skin all day after swimming in the ocean. Lazy mornings with no school rush. The “children’s hour” when the sun starts to set and the neighborhood is engulfed in the sound of the sound of children playing (https://poets.org/poem/childrens-hour). Finding beach treasures like sea glass and making a big jar of them each summer. Tie dying everything. Making boats out of driftwood at the beach and testing them out. Lobster salad. Grilling.
Thigh chafe! I’d be tempted to slide this in at the veryy bottom.
Excellent add. I’d put Mega Babe in the top 20 – apply to thighs for no bleeding, no rash, mega comfort.
Corn hole (hellooo Midwest backyard party)
Kayaking
Foraging elderberries
Arnold Palmers
Hammock + book
Open windows
Wildflower bouquets
Mulberry pies
Rainbows
I think there’s something magical about the waterlogged, suspended- in- time period between a summer day and summer night… a cool shower and a nap, after a day of sunbaking, the time of lounging in a towel or robe with a book, before getting made up for a dinner or night by the water
Yes!!!! This is also my favourite part of a vacation.
yes!
Eating dinner at the pool snack bar. WHOA that’s hot shit as a 9 year old and now I see how my mom surely felt the same way to not have to deal with dinner.
hahahaha yes!
Oh man, my 6 year old has discovered this joy of summer. She has our member number memorized. Grilled cheeses and fries alllll day long!
A cold shower on a hot afternoon, followed by a naked evaporation session under the ceiling fan and a nap in clean sheets.
cornhole? and what i miss most as an east coaster living west: warm nights.
yes yes yes yes yes. Plus fire flies.
White flowers at twilight.
Lake swimming
Peaches
The smell of mowed grass
Hours and hours of light
Thunderstorms
Hammock reading
Gardening
peaches
green beans from the garden
pizza farms (google it)
the smell of freshly cut hay
Ooooh popsicles way too low! A controversial list!
PCH. I grew up in southern California, and while I don’t miss the smog, the traffic, or owning a car, hurtling down the highway with the wind in my hair has the sanctity of ritual for me. True story, my neurons fire the “Boys of Summer” guitar riff when I coast over those hills.
Are we the same person?! I too hear “Boys of Summer” nonstop in my head whenever I drive along the PCH in southern California. When I went to college in LA, my friends and I would blast that song every time we drove along the beach, so now every time I hear it I’m transported right back to those road trips.
How did mosquitos even make it on your list!? Hahaha!
Continue to enjoy those summer pleasures, Grace!
You’re a crack-up.
Late sunsets
Bubble tea and iced coffee
Reading outside
Eating outside
Picnics!
Cicadas!
I never thought I’d be so grateful for the sound cicadas make, but I have pregnancy-induced anxiety and the cicadas in my neighborhood—which are truly thunderous right now—have been drowning out other sounds that trigger my anxiety. Yay, cicadas!
Yes! I don’t really know which areas of the US they are found in! In Iowa we have them and I love the sound! I love finding them and their exoskeletons too!
I just came here to say I’d replace mosquitos (a Texan here, and they are fierce in Texas!) with the symphony of the Cicadas. I float in my pool with a book almost every day and I marvel at how beautiful the sounds are that they make.
Katie, congratulations and I’m glad the cicadas are helping. Please stay close to your doctors with your anxiety symptoms during and after pregnancy – they are treatable. Your mental well-being is more valuable to your baby than even breast milk. Medication saved my life with peri-partum depression and anxiety.
the nap that happens after a whole day at the beach, when you’re freshly showered and still in your towel, and your skin still feels warm, and the windows are open with a beautiful breeze – that is PURE bliss
This one!
Couldn’t agree more! There’s something about post beach sleep that cannot be beat
lovely
S’Mores! Specifically watching my children’s unabashed glee in building a fire with my mom and running around with sticky fingers and chocolate faces until the mosquitos (thankfully) force us to wrap it up.
yes!!!!!
Sunsets, a big fat ice cream cone with rainbow sprinkles, and post-beach showers.
Grilled Peaches with Cream
Sand castles
Boardwalk Booth Callers
Sprinklers
CORN!
Number one summer pleasure for me is apricots! especially when they are a little too soft, jammy!
Yes!! Stonefruit tops my list. I’m partial to nectarines but apricots also delicious :)
Omg cherries (and nectarines!)
White nights!
Sweet peas
Temperatures that makes being outdoors actually being pleasant :-)
What are white nights?
I think it means when it stays light way into the night.
Yes, Joanna is right. Where I live, it is still light outside at 11pm in June. Those nights are so beautiful.
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