Sunday, June 29, 2008

Those Lazy Days of Summer by Nannette Croce

In the 60s the late Nat "King" Cole sang about Those Lazy Hazy Crazy Days of Summer. What is it about this season that feels so good? Even when I worked full-time, 50 weeks a year, and summer brought the extra weekend chores of lawn mowing and weeding, something about it was still preferable to working indoors. Followed by a cool shower and a summer meal of grilled hot dogs or hamburgers, fresh corn-on-the-cob, and juicy garden tomatoes, it hardly seemed like work.

I rarely eat indoors in the summer. Only the hottest, most humid or stormy days find me at my kitchen table. I'm usually taking my repasts in my screened-in porch or out on the patio. That includes breakfast, my favorite time to sip coffee and watch the hummingbirds that buzz around our flowers and frequent our feeder.

In summer I can take my daily walk earlier and so often start my day a little earlier too. That leaves extra time in the afternoon for reading–outdoors again, of course. And with the longer days I can catch the news and still have time to sit outside again in the evening, reading or talking, watching the dog chasing birds and squirrels or sometimes just a stray leaf, until the sun goes down.

And now, that miracle of miracles, wireless, so I can sit outside on a summer day catching up with e-mails and doing my writing.

Nat, you got it right.

3 comments:

Kathryn Magendie said...

I do love summer in the mountains! It isn't muggy and sticky like it was in So Louisiana. ahhhhh...yes summer!

Angie Ledbetter said...

Glad you have the opportunity to write in different environments! So nice to be outside when the weather/climate cooperates.

Barbara Quinn said...

Spending time outdoors in summer is a treat for those of us who have harsh winters. It's a great time to slow down and let the sun's energy fill you. And you're right about eating outdoors! Everything tastes better.

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