Summer Memories
Bananarama (and Ace of Base in their cover), said it was a cruel summer, but my mother who was a dance teacher always messed the lyrics up and said “cool” summer. You know how moms can be. 😉 Whatever, I happily sang along as a kid.
Summer in Toronto can be anything but cool as the cruel temperatures and sticky humidity take over our city, not that I am complaining after a long winter. The arrival of summer (finally) has me thinking back to my childhood and the freedom of my youth.
As a child, the thought of wearing a sweater in July bewildered me as I was typically running around in the night, thus keeping warm. As an adult I’d rather sit back in a muskoka chair with my drink of choice and watch the stars as the stress of the week fades away. These relaxing nights, often lakeside, are when you need that summer sweater.
There is a difference between a winter sweater and a summer sweater. First things first, fibre. In the winter I demand a wool or cashmere, but come summer I want a light cotton weave. It’s about covering up, not bundling up. Secondly it has to be the right colour. A white, navy, coral or grey will work well this time of year and I fell for this hooded one at Bench recently.
As a kid the moment it was warm enough to wear shorts, I did! Long pants BE GONE! I am still the same way today. I really don’t care what your dress code is… I mean I chose to work in an office where I could wear shorts everyday for a reason! These denim shorts are from Bench as well and have just a touch of stretch which is perfect, as I plan to sit on as many patios chowing down on burgers until I, but not my shorts burst 😉 #NewMeaningToSummerBody.
Can we pause here for just a moment and talk about burgers and BBQing? I mean what is better than kissing your kitchen goodbye and getting friendly with your BBQ for a few months? My dad loved to fire up the BBQ poolside almost nightly in the summer while I was growing up. Family events moved out of the living room and out onto the pool deck with music blasting from the house through an open window.
As a teen I was often left at home for a week or two during the summer and I’d continue the poolside fun, running to the grocery before hand to pick up more buns. That was back when I had easy access to a convertible and would leap at any excuse to drive it… (Yes, I now know I was the luckiest.)
Today, living in the city, I walk everywhere instead of zooming around in convertibles or the fire engine red supercharged racer my father and I shared. (No officer, I don’t know how fast I was going, cough cough.) With that in mind, I need comfortable shoes and for some reason a simple all white sneaker is my must have right now. Don’t ask why. These scandinavian sneaks from Ecco are ALMOST as comfortable as the convertible, but maybe not as fast.
In order to keep the “top down” theme going, no show socks do the trick and this pair from King X Portland arrived in my monthly sock subscription last month. I know what you are going to say, “but those damn things slip off after three steps!” Not these. Thanks to a crafty little inclusion of silicon on the back of the heel. Smart buggers! If only I had had silicon on the tires of the racer. Just think of how much faster I could have taken those corners! This one time there was five of us piled into the racer and… oh, that’s a story for another time and another outfit.
From BBQing to convertibles, that is what I am reminiscing about in the summer heat. What are your summer memories?
