by a random chaosboy

Created on: May 25, 2007   Last Updated: July 01, 2007

With summer here, you may already be soaking up days on the beach and balmy evenings - or you may be dreading three more months of hot cars and relentless mosquitoes. Whether you love summer or just wish you could hate it less, here are four simple ways you can remember to take advantage of the sunny season this year:

1. Enjoy your favorite beverage in the evening air. Be especially sure to do so if you're someone who doesn't take a moment's rest all day. A breezy summer night feels like a cool massage after the day's pounding sun and oppressive heat, and the calm darkness and myriad sounds outside are perfect background for the kind of "settin' time" that cultivates happiness and mental health. Drink two waters, or beers, or whatevers, if you have a mind to.

2. Exercise outdoors. Sweating is one of the things in life that is miserable or enjoyable depending on the circumstances. Whether you want to sweat or not, chances are this summer will offer weather to suit your level of activity. So get out for a gentle walk or a strong run, or play on the sand courts or run on the basketball courts, or do some yoga or tai-chi in your backyard or the park.

3. Go to a social event where people are outside, or throw one yourself. There's something magical about a party under the stars and the moon on a summer evening, whether it's a handful of people gathered in a backyard around a fire, or a hundred thousand thronging a concert. You do not need a reason to bring people together. Pick up the phone and call your friends, or walk to the nearest bar or coffee shop with an outdoor venue and meet someone new!

4. Eat summer food. With new vegetable recipes for the grill created every day, the farmer's market has opened the barbecue pit to vegetarians, and universalized the culinary icon of summer. Locally grown produce is unrivaled in freshness, and for meat and vegetables alike the flavors and textures of food cooked over real fire are beyond imitation. Before you start your barbecue or after you're done, cool off from a hot day with ice cream!

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