Summer, no bummer

I’m not really a summer person.

The heat. The correspondingly frigid air conditioner. The heat, you guys.

Then again, perhaps I’m more of a summer person than I thought.

I have to give Sacramento the credit for that. After a childhood growing up in the humid and sticky states of Texas, Georgia and North Carolina, it’s probably no surprise I viewed the onset of the hot weather season with a sweaty, cynical dread.

But Sacramento? It’s true what they say: Here, it’s a dry heat. A blazingly hot, dry heat for sure—but let’s not forget about that blessedly cool evening Delta breeze.

That must be why, when flipping through the pages for SN&R’s annual Summer Guide issue, I was reminded of all the reasons I love this city in the summer.

Scoops of creamy treats from the ice cream shop. All the people watching (and great music) at myriad outdoor concerts. Late-night golf and rafting down the American River. Early morning walks and evening strolls that stretch as long as the daylight does.

When the heat does get to be too much? So many options: Escaping the mercury-busting temps with a round of roller skating or an afternoon movie matinee. Knocking down some pins and hitting up the bowling alley bar. Record shopping, book buying and iced latte dates for days. Chic wine getaways and a drive down the river road, radio blasting the perfect summer soundtrack.

And let’s not forget the mermaids.

Any town that boasts professional mermaid organizations knows how to do summer right.

OK, fine summer, you’re all right by me.