Be sure you are enjoying everything about the season while you still can. Buy fresh watermelon, corn, tomatoes, peas, cherries and artichokes and enjoy eating them. Drink white and rose wines, orange and grape soda, lemonade and limeade. Eat popsicles, sorbet, ice cream and gelato – you may not feel like it this fall when it’s cold. Use the park; picnic; eat outside at a restaurant with a patio; go for a warm evening walk in an artsy shopping neighborhood and window shop; attend an outdoor film or concert.
Make your day extra fun by playing classic summer music – whatever makes you think of summer. For my father it would be the Beach Boys; disco for my stepmom; for me it’s songs like “Cruel Summer,” by Bananarama (and the cute cover of it by Ace of Base), “Summertime Rolls” by Jane’s Addiction, and “Boys of Summer” by Don Henley.
QUICK THINGS TO DO TODAY:
– Vacuum the whole house. For me this means two bedrooms, a hallway, two living rooms, and the foot traffic area in my home office. I’m doing this as a quick project today, so I’m not moving any furniture to vacuum under it.
– Need to go grocery shopping today?
– Finish school shopping if needed
– Finalize plans for Labor Day travel, parties, and activities
– Do you have a spare toothbrush or two for guests or emergencies? Add one to your shopping list if needed.
– Fit in some reading time this weekend, whether by yourself or with other family members. Read any magazines or books you’re behind on or looking forward to enjoying. This may mean being firm with yourself and turning off the TV, going out of the room away from your computer and cell phone.
TODAY’S PROJECT: Summer Yardwork
If you live in a house with any sort of yard or landscaping (whether you own or rent), it’s time to do some yardwork. Even if you are so fabulously lucky as to have a gardening service, you still might benefit from doing some work yourself outdoors.
You’ll get the benefit of exercise, sunshine, mental relaxation, alone time, and focus. I’m sure with even the most diligent gardener, you can still find a few weeds to pull here and there. Spend some time wandering around with a hose giving extra water to parts of your yard that might need it, or to some of your favorite plants. Trim roses or flowers, and pick a few for a vase indoors. Fertilize anything if needed. Peek in your garden shed and see if there’s extra things piling up in there that should get used: Miracle-Gro, weed-and-feed, etc. If so, use it up, and stop buying it so you aren’t cluttering up your shed with poisons you aren’t going to use up any time soon.
Also, it’s not too late for some hardier plantings. I’m going to pick up just a few inexpensive $2 pots of pansies and $3 potted mums today to fill in some bare spots. Almost time to start thinking about which fall bulbs I’ll plant.
For those of you living in condos or apartments without yards, use this time to water and care for houseplants. While some of us are out mowing and weeding, use your time to wash your car instead if needed.
LOVELY TV: Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women
In December, PBS will run a documentary about the life of author Louisa May Alcott. I’m eager to see it – I read a biography of her many years ago but have forgotten many of the details. And as a bonus, I’ll enjoy the costumes and furnishings too.
LOVELY BLOGS: The Hungry Asian
This blog seems to mostly be a nail polish review blog, but I love it! I guess it isn’t a sushi blog after all, laugh. Just about every day, she shares a picture of her nails done up beautifully in one of her new polishes. It reminds me that I’m boring and should stop wearing beige nailpolish on my hands all the time!
Meg
Love that link to the nailpolish blog! I've got a dark vampy on right now courtesy of OPI's A Man in Every Port-ugal. You are right about savoring summer but I'm sooo excited about fall 🙂