Summertime Meme

I shamelessly stole this from Tense Teacher, who said she found it at Kwizgiver’s blog. Since memes are made for sharing, feel free to steal it for yourself…

S U M M E R C H O I C E S . . .

Pool OR Jacuzzi: I’d have to say “pool” here - though all the better if it’s heated. This is not to say that I turn my nose up at spas…

Ocean OR Pool : I much prefer pools to the ocean. Around here, the ocean is COLD - and I don’t mean “ooh, it’s a little chilly today, isn’t it?” cold, either.   I mean “I’m in it up to my ankles and can’t feel my toes anymore” cold. Plus there’s all that seaweed floating around in it. Eeew. Though I DO love to walk on the beach, and I like the smell of salt air, if I’m going to be swimming, I’ll take a pool over the ocean 100% of the time.

Ice cream OR Popsicles : Well, that depends on my mood. I generally perfer ice cream, but sometimes a red popsicle is just the thing.

Lemonade OR Iced tea : Again, it depends on my mood. I tend to have iced tea around more often, but I really do love lemonade (especially the slushy, alcoholic kind found at the Olive Garden….)

Tennis shoes OR Flip flops: Tennis shoes; Ked’s, to be precise. I don’t own flip-flops, per se; I have a pair of Land’s End sandals that I can just slip into, but they’re not flip-flops.

Fans OR Air conditioning : Fans. Air conditioning generally makes me feel uncomfortable; it exacerbates my arthritis. The only time I really love air conditioning is when we’re driving somewhere and are expected to arrive pretty.

We’re going to have an air conditioner in the new bedroom when it’s finished, to run on those few nights during the summer when it’s really too oppressively hot to sleep, but we generally do just fine with a fan on a nightstand.

Sprinklers OR Slip n slide : I’m going to say “sprinkler” on this one, but neither answer works for me. Though we’re just as likely to have a Slip ‘n Slide in our yard for the girls, I don’t generally use either water delivery method to cool down.

Water balloon fight OR Water gun fight : Why can’t I have BOTH? Firearms AND grenades! Love it!

Y O U R F A V O R I T E S U M M E R . . .

Drink : Were you not paying attention a few minutes ago when I told you about the Olive Garden’s slushy Limoncello Lemonaid?

Food : macaroni salad, most anything on the grill, and watermelon. Really, fruit of any kind is wonderful.

Song : I don’t have a summertime song. I do really like Latin guitar music in the background to our outdoor dinners, though…

Hang out : I can’t say it’s a favorite, because we don’t actually have it yet, but I’m REALLY looking forward to our deck. Hopefully, we’ll have it built before the fourth of July. My favorite place to hang out - that actually exists at the moment - is Bowyer’s place. He’s got a porch (two of them, actually) and sets up a big pool we can all cool off in. I’m happy and comfortable at his house - almost as much as I am in my own house - and we all really enjoy being together.

Camp: It seems Tense and I are sisters in this; we don’t camp. Bugs. Lack of running water. Bumpy places to sleep. No thank you.. That being said, WeedWoman up and moved to the frickin’ hinterlands of New England a while back, so visiting her up in the mountains feels like going to camp, but with furniture and flush toilets. Her mother has a house on a lake, too, that we enjoy visiting. It’s all good as long as it doesn’t involve tents and canned beans.

Holiday : I’m with Tense on this one, too. Mr. Chili’s and my anniversary is the 29th of June (eleven this year, if you’re askin’). I’m also really fond of our 4th traditions; we meet up with Bowyer and the nephews, Falcon and his family and, if they’re in town, the elder Chilis to watch a pretty decent fireworks display in the next town over. There’s ice cream and bug spray and a really good time had by all.

Vacation: Our vacations have typically been to Florida - either the Gulf Coast or the Orlando area. This year, you can look forward to reports from Maryland, DC, and the Williamsburg, VA neighborhood. We leave on or around the 21st of this month.

L A S T S U M M E R :

Where did you go: Last summer, we went to Florida and visited The Space Coast, spent some time swimming, golfing and movie watching, then went to Sea World, where Mr. Chili went on the best roller coaster he’s yet been on.

Who did you hang with? The fam, Bowyer and the boys.

Did you do anything illegal: I probably broke the speed limit a few times. Who made THIS question up?!

Did you go to a concert?: No; no concerts last summer. This summer, though, we’re going to see Jeff Dunham. I’m really looking forward to it.

What was your best memory?: I graduated with my Master’s last May. My kitchen was finished last September (which is still pretty “summer” around here), I got a new great room floor and had an all-around good summer. I’m not going to mention that I lost my Puck for a good portion of it - that wasn’t a great memory, though it WAS memorable…

T H I S S U M M E R :

Where are you going?: I think I’ve pretty much covered our plans for this summer already. We’re doing a vacation in the midsection of the Eastern Seaboard in a couple of weeks, we’re going to be enjoying our deck and we’ll hang with Bowyer as much as we can. Mr. Chili wants to push to get the rest of the house finished - we still have to complete work in the master suite and move the girls into our current bedroom - but I’m not sure that will happen as quickly as we’d like; there seem to be snags in the works as far as getting the flooring. We’re looking for contractors to replace the siding on the old part of the house (the addition was sided last summer, and the house has a weird, two-tone quality to it that we hate). If it holds, I’ve been given a pretty sweet schedule for summer classes at TCC, so the girls will be in day camp on Tuesdays and Thursdays. It’s going to be good.

Name five things you’re most looking forward to this summer: I’m looking forward to sleeping in more than one day a week. I’m looking forward to bicycle rides with my family. I have a pile of books I want to read on the aforementioned deck (probably under an umbrella; I believe I’ve mentioned how much we Chilis need to hide from the sun?). I’m really excited about our vacation; I love that part of the country and am particularly fond of historic adventures (living, as I do, in a part of the country that prides itself in its history). Finally, and I know this sounds weird, but I’m looking foward to working. I really love my job and I feel best about how I am as a person when I’m able to do it. So much the better that I can do my job AND all the other things I really love.