In Summer!!!!

For the first time in seven months it finally feels like a summer day.  The sun is high, people are wearing shorts and going for bike rides and walks.  The grass is turning green and I have seen the leaves starting to bud on the neighbours trees.  It's glorious, it's rejuvenating and for Canadians, especially Albertans, it is what we live for, it's how we make it through winter every year.  We all do appreciate the beauty and wonder of winter, don't get me wrong.  If you have never experienced hoar frost first hand it is stunning in its beauty.  Winter, however, overstays its welcome every.  Single. Year.

For many of us spring summer and fall are the best times of the year, we can finally be outside without our teeth chattering and our blood freezing, at least that's how it is in Canada. If you're Canadian you also know that those three seasons combined are shorter than our winters so we have to get out there and maximize our time! No joke, here in Alberta we had 7 months with snow, it started early October, many farmers were unable to harvest their crops this year, and we were still getting snow in late April! If we're lucky this year the snow will hold off until November and we'll get six months of decent weather, if we're lucky. This means that we shove three seasons into six months and the other season get six luxurious months all to itself to wear us down and get us chilled to the bone.

Now though, now is the time to be outside. Now is the time to let your feet finally be warm, work up a sweat in the garden, pour that cold one and just let the sun work its magic.  I don't want to hear anybody tell me it's too hot.  It might be, but I don't want to hear about it. I have waited seven months for this. In Alberta it's only really hot for 6 weeks and then it's back to exactly perfect, so enjoy the hot! Go the the beach, the outdoor pools, the splash parks, buy a wading pool and soak your feet, set up an umbrella for shade, wear that ridiculous floppy hat that you secretly love. Eat supper at the beach, order pizza, make margarita's. Stop making hay while the sun shines, we made hay all winter because it was too cold to do anything else. Relax. Sit. Breathe. Let your shoulders down.  The sun is here. We live again.  So stop reading this and get outside.  Next week I will come at you with some of our great gear designed to help you get the most out of your summer.