There's a song I've been listening to a lot called "Summer's the Worst" by Michael Leviton. I first heard it on They Might Be Giant's Podcast 5B (and saw him perform it live when I went to see TMBG in concert back in May) It's a very melancholy tune, kinda retro-50's bathing suits in my mind (I don't know why), but he utilizes the xylophone and the ukelele nicely.

To contrast the title, I was sitting out on my deck today because it wasn't 90 plus degrees outside and we have very nice deck chairs, and I was thinking of all the reasons why summer's the best. I can't pick one season over another as a favorite, but summer is special in a bunch of ways to me. It's right in the middle of the year, falling in between the passing school year and the coming one. I don't have to wake up until 3 if I don't want to (unless I have a job or something). Daylight Savings is in effect and the sun is out for most of the day and as hot and unbearable as the sun makes things, it still makes me happy to know it's there. The pools open and I can swim outside and it feels really great to dry without needing to towel off. Trees seem greener, colors brighter, water clearer, objects more defined against the sky. And the wild raspberries start growing in that secret place in the woods past the creek behind the fence at the park. The fireflies come out and if I take my dog walking in the evening, sometimes I see the dark trees at the dead end are lit up with thousands of glittery firebugs like a real Christmas in July.

I can't put the rest of the feeling into words. But there's always something about this time of year that makes me so warm and giggly and excitable and happy. I love summer.

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