Summertime

Samantha Strub
Class of 2013

(August, 2012) Summertime is the time of year when it is acceptable to waste the day away doing absolutely nothing. It is accepted and even encouraged to lie around and be lazy.

You spend the day sitting at your 8-4 job, working but wishing that you could be somewhere else. Your job suddenly becomes unimportant as you stare out the window wishing it were quitting time. I always tend to sit at my desk and daydream the hours away, almost begging the day to hurry up and be over so I can leave my responsibilities aside and enjoy the summer. Sadly, my responsibilities and the desperate need for money take a toll on my summertime enjoyment. I always end up working extra hours or working on the weekends in order to make the money needed for tuition and bills. As I’m working, my mind wishes that it could go back in time to when my summers were carefree enjoyment. They always say that you don’t know how good you have it until it’s gone. That statement couldn’t be any truer; I had no idea how good I had it back then. Now, as responsibilities call, I plan my summertime enjoyment around working, but that doesn’t make those lazy days of summer any less enjoyable. In fact, I appreciate them even more and the memories are just as timeless.

My favorite pastime during the summer is lying out by the pool. Those hot and sunny summer days are the perfect times to lie outside by my pool and tan. You plug in your headphones, lie back and relax while the sun’s rays shine down on you. It is the perfect way to spend a truly lazy day—basking in the summer rays while listening to some tunes. When you lay out with a friend or siblings, the laughs go right along with the great enjoyment of relaxing and tanning by the pool, though someone always ends up getting thrown into the pool. Some of my fondest memories are of my siblings, friends and I. As an added bonus—you’re getting tan!

I’m famous for bringing another friend with me when I lay outside—a book! As they say, books are friends that are always ready to talk to us, and I always have a book in my hand. I even have a purse big enough to allow me to carry a book in it. It is a favorite pastime of mine to always have a book in hand. I will lie outside for hours with a book in my hands. During the summer, I have the time to read pleasure books. During the school year, I still read but I read the novels that are assigned during class. I wish I could read more but between classes, working two jobs, and homework I simply do not have time. One of the reasons I always look forward to the summer is so that I can read all of the books that I have wanted to read since last summer. Over the summer I usually end up reading probably about fifty books or more because during any free time I have, I read. That is one of the reasons that I have a purse big enough to carry a book in it because I bring a book with me wherever I go. You never know when you’re going to need something to do. On days when I have nothing else to do, I read while lying outside and occasionally jumping in the pool when the heat becomes unbearable.

On the days when we are not relaxing by the pool, my family and I are out on the boat, catching some waves. My dad bought our boat when he was deployed in Washington State. It was a surprise to all of us, even Mom. It was sitting in the garage of the house we rented when we moved out there while Dad was deployed and we were admiring it, wishing we could use it when Dad calmly said, "Well, we can use it because it’s ours." The boat became our new toy. Any day that Dad had off, we went exploring in the boat. It also became bonding time on summer days for our family because no matter what age you are, everyone enjoys the boat. Every summer since then, my family and friends go out on the boat when we have off and spend the day tubing, skiing and swimming. We usually bring drinks and food and have a picnic either on the boat or at a beach. The days we spend on the boat are always relaxing and much needed. We relax on the water without a care in the world, watching the clouds go by.

When the heat isn’t too hot to bear I go riding. This is more difficult now that I no longer own a horse, but that is what friends are for right? When it is not too hot I make a point to go riding. There is no greater feeling in the world than sitting on the back of a horse on a warm summer day. The wind is blowing your hair and you are sitting in the saddle without a care in the world except for the pasture and the trail before you. Usually you think about the different techniques that will help you attain the skills that you want your horse to learn or perfect but that does not take any effort; that is a natural tendency for any horseback rider. You would think about that no matter what, but during the summer it comes more naturally. For a horseback rider, the summertime is when you really focus on working while also making sure that you take the time to go on trail rides, camping, and swimming with the horses with the company of good friends. Some of the best summertime memories I have are from when my riding buddies and I went off on a riding adventure.

No matter where you are from, every hometown has its own summertime celebrations. The traditions that I have grown up with or just recently started to create are memories that will stay in my heart forever. Who doesn’t like good food, music and rides? If you answered no one, that is what I was thinking. That is what Summerfest and the Wisconsin State Fair bring to my hometown every summer. There are always good bands that come for pretty cheap or even for free. It is a guaranteed good time with your friends that we wouldn’t miss for the world. The fair food makes the trip down to Milwaukee well worth it. The cheese curds, funnel cakes and Hawaiian Shaved Ices always call my name. Some people come for all of the varieties of fried food such as fried butter, Oreos, cheesecake, corn dogs, peanut butter, pickles, and even fried chocolate-covered bacon. Personally, I do not think most of these things that are considered fried deliciousness sound all that appetizing, but people all over rave about them. Without fail, my friends always dare me to go on the rides that they know I hate. Why I continue to go on them year after year is beyond me, but somehow that is always how it works! I think it is because when I want to go on the Ferris wheel, they have to go on with me even if they are afraid of heights. So it becomes a tradeoff. The best part is walking on the grounds laughing and goofing off with your friends, trying to find ways to stay cool during these lazy summer nights, and eventually hopping on the back of a motorcycle to go home.

It is guaranteed that the best summertime memories come from the laughs and the friends with whom you share the experiences. Don’t forget to use the rest of the summer to have lazy and unforgettable summer days and nights.

Read past editions of Samantha Strub's Four Years at the Mount