Photo: Maxim Blinkov (Shutterstock)
Though Home Goods, coffee purveyors, and everyone who already has a “Harvest” sign on their doorstep would have you believe otherwise, it’s not fall yet, dammit. We’ve got no beef with fall itself. Apple-picking, pumpkin-carving, red-wine-and-scarf-wearing. We are here for all of it. Starting in October.
Why must we rush fall, so? This week in the Northeast, temperatures are set to hit 88° because, wait for it: It’s not fall yet. Here’s how you can enjoy the last days of summer before autumn officially sets in—on Sept. 22.
Enjoy iced/frozen drinks
Whether it’s iced coffee, prickly pear hibiscus iced tea, milkshakes, or frozen margs, pack these in before the mercury drops. There is plenty of time for mulled cider and hot chocolate; when you’re freezing your tits off in December.
Go sockless
There’s a time of year when we switch from our house flip flops to our house slippers—because it is imperative to our foot survival. Thankfully, this is not that time. Let’s revel in our Birkenstocks, flip flops, bare feet—hell, even our mandals—before the chilly winds of fall threaten to nip our gnarly, long-nailed toes, and polite society demands that the layered crust of our prehistoric, dehydrated heels be hidden with a sock.
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Preserve summer fruits and vegetables
All those amazingly juicy farmer’s market berries, melons, tomatoes, and corn won’t be around much longer. Extend their life into the colder months by canning, dehydrating, salting, pickling, blending, and freezing them now.
Hit up the county fair
Sure, fall fests are amazing. But have you been to the county fair recently? These overstimulating bonanzas of bumper cars, ferris wheels, funnel cakes, and meat-on-a-stick will catapult you right back to the carefree days of childhood. It may have already passed through your area for the year. But if there is still one to be found, go.
Go swimming
If you live in the burbs, chances are, you know that one family who keeps their pool heated and doesn’t close it until late September. May we suggest walking by their house, a six-pack in one hand, Doritos in the other, while they’re entertaining mutual neighborhood friends—preferably while sweating?
With any luck, they’ll feel guilty enough to invite you over for a dip. (If not, hit up a local watering hole, river, or beach while their waters still hold the heat of peak summer sun.)
Go camping
If you didn’t get a chance to sleep out under the stars in late June, July or August, now’s your moment. Take a not-too-sweaty hike during the day, pitch a tent, and sleep out before the time of year when camping requires a sub-zero sleeping bag. Which leads us to...
Make s’mores
Yes, s’mores can be enjoyed any time of year. But we can’t think of a more fitting tribute to the end of summer than roasting some marshmallows over an open flame—especially if you forgot to do this simple but core-memory-making activity with your family before school started (*points to self*). Spark up that fire pit in the backyard. It’s not too late.
Enjoy not being cold
We know, we know, “sweatah weatha” is supposedly elite. And while we certainly can’t hate on being cozy and the thrill of wearing a light jacket, we can lament the fact that by mid-to-late-fall, we will be cold. And not just outside, but in our own homes, where we will need daily thick cardigans and hot tea just to be comfortable. So please, we beg you, enjoy being enveloped in a sheath of free warmth wherever you go. For another week, at least.
