Monday, July 6, 2009

Those Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer

Way back in the dark ages, when I was a kid, there was a popular song called “Those Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer.” Anybody remember that one? I do remember having beautiful, hot summer days with blue skies and big puffy white clouds rolling in every afternoon. I remember sitting on an inner tube floating around the lake with girlfriends and just doing nothing except giggle and laugh and taking in the sun.

Then the Fourth of July would arrive and we knew it was downhill from there. Summer was half over and it wouldn’t be long and we’d have to start thinking about going back to school. But by the time September rolled around we’d all be ready for getting back in the routine and back to the friends we hadn’t seen all summer. We’d had our dose of sunshine and vitamin D, hot weather and sleeping in every morning, and drive-in movies until the wee hours on the weekends. Not that summers weren’t exciting, but in a different way.

The Fourth of July has come and gone. In these parts, the major problem is that we really haven’t had any summer yet. The weatherman better hurry up and produce something before the snow starts to fly again or I’m going to fire him.

The Fourth of July is summer’s Christmas, or at the very least, July is summer’s version of December. Substitute gin and tonics for Tom and Jerrys or beer for eggnog, buy fireworks in place of presents, and hang the stars and stripes rather than greens..

Celebrate! Make merry! Party hearty! Let the good times roll! Heaven knows our spot on the planet is dying for some honest to goodness exuberance. After a dastardly dose of below-zero blizzard stuff at the end of winter followed by record flood and mud, plus a miserably cold spring and then lots of rain and more flood and mud, we could use some extra jolly in our July.

Nobody expects “lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer” in these parts anymore – at least not in the plural. (We are not greedy people.) We know we’re lucky to score one hellacious-hot, four-day weekend during the whole summer season and we’re OK with that. The problem is, if not in July – when?



Love Lena

5 comments:

Meggie Marchstives@gmail.com said...

Oh how fun! Loved the video. I remember the days of turning flips like that. Never could get them exactly right, but we practiced them constantly. Oh for the days of feeling so unconscious of anyone watching you. Couldn't turn a flip now if even had the nerve. I'd probably break something major. Well, July isn't over yet and then there is August. Around here August is ALWAYS the hot hot hottest month. -Megan-

harrietv said...

No flips for me -- not even in dance class -- but I liked to dig. Dig in the sand till you come to water. Or dig till you came to a clam. (Which we always threw back.)

It's hazy today -- first such day this summer -- but I am sure it will rain, 'cause I have this little ache...

Anonymous said...

Where is this 'global warming' thing going? I know we have had at least four times during the last 2000 years when the earth warmed to the point that it is now and then it cooled down before the next warming period. I wonder if we are in that cooling down period. During the warming periods great things happened. During the cool period we had a shut-down on every kind of advancement. The 'dark ages' happened during the cooling period. The Renaissance happened during a warming period. The last warming period happened in the 18th century. If this is a cooling period Minnesota and North Dakota will be miserable places to live. I just hope you and other people notify your new socialist senator Franken that you are going to hold him accountable for whatever the government in DC does to destroy our way of life.

Lena . . . said...

Global Warming is nothing more than a way for Al Gore to make some big bucks. And as far as Al Franken goes - the government of Minnesota has become the laughing stock of the entire United States. I'd certainly like to know what qualifies a New York comedian from Saturday Night Live to become a Minnesota senator. I listened to his acceptance speech on the radio the other day and it was peppered with jokes. I really didn't see anything funny about the entire situation. I am truly afraid for this entire country.

Paula said...

It's so funny but as I read this my neighbor has an old Nat King Cole recording going and guess what he's singing??? Yes..tne title of you post...what a coincidence. Hope your 4th was great...we've had it cool here too but we did get in a 4 day stretch of scorching (albeit ultra humid) weather. I miss summer as a kid....a summer with few responsibilities and I never thought of it like Summer Christmas...good one!!!