I enjoy making playlists in Spotify so I can listen to tunes while driving in the car. I usually make a themed playlist for my favorite holidays but this is the first summer list I have done. I asked friends on Facebook what songs remind them of summer and also asked my siblings so I could get a good mix. I am not a summer person so I needed assistance in the proper summer feeling songs.
I think I came up with a pretty good playlist that was a mix of oldies but goodies, songs I listened to growing up and newer tunes that felt like summer.
I admit I am partial to the old 1940-1950 songs but there is not a summer playlist out there that does not include The Beach Boys.
It never hurts to have a playlist of snappy, happy tunes to make your day great!
I think this should really be called a virtual walk thru the redwood forest. The beauty of YouTube is so many content creators make videos for all of us who want the experience but no longer have the ability to do this type of activity. I have watched videos of town/city tours, Halloween at Salem, walking tours of nature and even videos of watching streams babbling away. Most providing a sense of calm, or the awe of nature. I will have to add a tour of New England fall foliage and covered bridges for my Autumn bucket list (better write that down before I forget).
The video I chose is called Treadmill Virtual Hike-walking-Redwood National Forest Hike – 60 minutes ASMR. I chose this one because I find redwood forests so cool and calming. My soul feels replenished when I walk amongst the trees. I have been in Muir woods many times when visiting San Francisco, California.
Redwood trees can grow very tall, some up to 200-240 feet tall and can be very old. Some of these trees are at least 2,000 years old. The base of the trees can be 14-15 feet in diameter. Some of the biggest trees are up to 350 feet and 20 feet in diameter.
On this walk you can see the height of the trees although the view can make you dizzy. There are massive clusters of trees which create very shady spots on the trail. Although in some cases the sun is peeking thru open spots in the tree tops. There are beautiful green ferns growing in the shade of the trees and the hiker will stop at bridges and babbling brooks so you can enjoy the view. In one section there were several trees that had fallen. Based on their size, the park rangers cut a walk thru so you can continue on the path. So we were able to walk under several fallen trees on the path.
There were several walkers on the trail during the video. Most were respectful, but I am always amazed that a lot of people feel compelled to talk all the time. Stop talking, and feast your eyes on the beauty around you.
The video does not have music but you do hear the footsteps of the videographer which can be distracting. You also hear the water rushing when you get near streams, birds in the trees chirping away and the wind whistling thru the trees. I really wanted to take off my virtual walking shoes and dip my feet in the cool water when he stopped at the streams of water. Some places along the trail have benches to rest and admire the view. There are also some little pockets of interest where some fallen tree has created a fairy circle or a miniature hideout.
I recommend checking out this or other videos that take you on a walk or tour. For the active viewers you can do a stationary bike or walking machine. For the couch potatoes out there like me, you can watch while doing a cross stitch project.
I saw a short on YouTube on a beautiful violet color lemonade tea drink called Lavender Butterfly Pea Lemonade. It looks so beautiful to drink and admire.
I have never heard of Butterfly Pea tea. When I made it, it was such a vivid blue color. It almost felt fake because it was so intense like a beautiful lake high in the mountains.
But what makes this tea so interesting is once you add lemon, it changes from blue to violet. If you add the lemonade slowly you can have a two color look to your drink.
To make it more special I added the lavender syrup and edible glitter. A sprig of lavender and you have a refreshing and colorful drink for the summer. I did add the lemonade too quickly and it mixed it too much, but it was still a pretty drink.
The recipe was easy
Steep a cup of Butterfly Pea tea, let cool
Add ice into a pretty glass
Add the tea into the glass and slowly add in lemonade making sure you do it slowly so there are two colors
Add a teaspoon of Lavender Syrup (you can add the syrup to the tea before adding in lemonade if you really want to separate the colors)
Sprinkle the glitter into the glass and garnish with a lavender sprig
I fondly recall going on a wine trip with my sister and her husband where one of the wineries had a grove of peach trees. They recently harvested the trees and we bought some white peaches. I have never tasted anything so wonderful, juicy and perfect as those peaches. Since then, I have craved those peaches.
I recently bought a box of white peaches from Sam’s Club and have enjoyed eating a bowl of peaches for breakfast during the week. I am not sure why white peaches taste better than yellow. Maybe it is tied to my memory of that wine trip.
I wanted to make a peach dessert using peaches. I ended up eating a lot of those peaches from Sam’s club so I had to use can peaches for the dessert.
I made a Peach Crisp that I found on Instagram.
It was a pretty easy recipe. We decided to have ice cream with yummy warm peach crisp.
Ingredients
45 oz canned peaches, drained (about 4 cups sliced peaches)
Nothing says Summer more than the beach. The beach and more importantly, the classic scenic view with a lighthouse which is paramount to the vision of summer. When I visited my friend in New Hampshire I had the pleasure of seeing a lighthouse. Somewhere in my pile of non digital photos is that picture I took while standing on the beach. However with the magic of the internet I found a similar picture.
Did you know August 7th is National Lighthouse Day.
Here are some facts about lighthouses:
There are 779 standing lighthouses in the United States.
Michigan boasts the most lighthouses of any US State.
Lighthouses have different color patterns to help the mariner identify them during the day.
Lighthouses height range from 50 to 200 feet tall
The light from a lighthouse can typically be seen 20 miles away
The height of a lighthouse takes into account the curvature of the earth, so the higher light above MHW (mean high water), the further away it can be seen at sea. But the light should not be so high up that local sailors will not see it. This is why you will frequently get shorter lighthouses on the top of cliffs and taller lighthouses built nearer the water surface.
These days, lighthouses are run by machines and remote monitoring. The automatic sensors decide if there is extra moisture in the air, and if so turn on the fog signals. Radio signals are used to communicate with the ships. But some lighthouses are still manned by people.
Lighthouses are great tourist attractions. I can vouch for that. When I know there is a lighthouse nearby, I want to see it.
Lake Havasu’s 400 miles of stunning shoreline hosts an impressive collection of 28 scaled-down lighthouse replicas. All are actual functioning navigational aids.
Many books and movies feature lighthouses. The below are a few movies. What an interesting backdrop to a movie. Lighthouses have such history and let’s be honest they can be a bit spooky.
The Lighthouse (1998) Pete’s Dragon The Vanishing The Fog Lighthouse To the Lighthouse
Some of my favorite lighthouses:
A classic striped lighthouse.
A lighthouse at dusk sitting on rocks.
Split Rock Lighthouse, Silver Bay Minnesota
St. Helena Island Lighthouse, St. Helena Island, Michigan
West Quoddy Head Lighthouse, Lubec, Maine
Yaquina Head Lighthouse, Newport, Oregon
Tourlitis Lighthouse, Greece
So many unusual and beautiful lighthouses that have saved countless lives. Thank you for checking out my blog and the mini lesson on lighthouses.
Finding a summer poem I would like was not so easy. Generally I am not about the hot days or summer activities. But when I saw this poem by Emily Brontë I knew this was perfect as it spoke of cooler nights and the magic of the moon.
‘Tis moonlight, summer moonlight, All soft and still and fair; The solemn hour of midnight Breathes sweet thoughts everywhere,
But most where trees are sending Their breezy boughs on high, Or stooping low are lending A shelter from the sky.
And there in those wild bowers A lovely form is laid; Green grass and dew-steeped flowers Wave gently round her head.
The moon and all its magic works hard at night to bring sweetness to the earth come morning dew.
Nothing says summer like sunflowers and lemonade. When I ran to the store to grab a quick item I saw a woman coming out of the store with several bouquets of sunflowers. I beelined to the florist shop and saw the sunflowers were on sale. I grabbed a bundle knowing it would brighten the kitchen.
The flowers are so sunny and friendly.
On a recent Bath and Body works order I received a free candle and I chose a lemon scent. It was called Sugared Lemonade. How yummy sounding is that. The fragrance notes are fresh lemon juice, sugar crystals and crushed ice. The scent is heavenly. Really reminds me of lemonade.
Speaking of lemonade. I bought a bunch of lemons with the intention of making homemade lemonade. I have never made lemonade with fresh squeezed lemons. I tend to just buy the stuff premade.
The recipe was super easy.
1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of water. Heat on the stove to dissolve the sugar. Once desolved, cool down for at least 10 minutes.
Squeeze fresh lemons to get 1 cup of lemon juice. Hint: roll the lemons back and forth before cutting in half. This helps release the juice.
Add lemon juice and sugar water together. Add 5 cups of water. Chill. If you cannot wait, pour over ice and drink up. It was so refreshing.
I love a good jigsaw puzzle. Usually every Christmas I will pull out a holiday themed puzzle to do. This time I thought I would do a mini one since I really don’t have the space to lay out a large puzzle.
I thought I would do this mini California puzzle since I do live in California. It was small enough I could do it on my wool pad where I iron for quilting. With only 100 pieces I figure I could do it in one night
And I was correct.
Amazon sells these puzzles and there are multiple states. Very cute and not so easy with its odd shaped borders.
I might do one of the Puzzle Professor literature puzzle since it is small. I bought two of them for less than $5.00 a piece. Not exactly summer themed but very enjoyable. One side is a page from the book, and the other is an artist rendition of a typical scene.
I got both Pride and Prejudice and Frankenstein. I might wait to do Frankenstein around Halloween.
Looking at this puzzle reminds me I do have that Neil Patrick Harris game Box One that is a puzzle solving game that I started but did not finish. I do so enjoy a good puzzle.
I can usually find seasonal coffees at Aldi’s and this summer had their Summer Blend. A medium coffee with a fruity kick. I was able to get the ground coffee as well as the k-cups. I made some the other day and it was a nice mellow coffee. Not sure I can taste any fruit, but it had a nice smooth taste. It did not disappoint.
I actually tried a cold brew drink from Starbucks which I normally do not branch out and tend to stick to my favorites. I like a tried and true classic. It was worth the try.
Besides my coffee I was able to start a new book. This book was one of my Book of the Month selection by Abby Jimenez called Just for the Summer.
I am only 100 pages in and so far I am enjoying it. I like the characters and the premise.
Justin has a curse, and thanks to a Reddit thread, it’s now all over the internet. Every woman he dates goes on to find their soul mate the second they break up. When a woman slides into his DMs with the same problem, they come up with a plan: They’ll date each other and break up. Their curses will cancel each other’s out, and they’ll both go on to find the love of their lives. It’s a bonkers idea… and it just might work.
Emma hadn’t planned that her next assignment as a traveling nurse would be in Minnesota, but she and her best friend agree that dating Justin is too good of an opportunity to pass up, especially when they get to rent an adorable cottage on a private island on Lake Minnetonka.
It’s supposed to be a quick fling, just for the summer. But when Emma’s toxic mother shows up and Justin has to assume guardianship of his three siblings, they’re suddenly navigating a lot more than they expected–including catching real feelings for each other. What if this time Fate has actually brought the perfect pair together?
I have never been a huge fan of Summer. Maybe if I lived somewhere else where the temperature was not so high and just doing anything results in sweat pouring off my face. But I live in a hot area, and electricity is sooooo expensive in the summer months. So many time I just sit and sweat during the day until after the magic time zone starts again where I can turn on the air without having my bill double.
But summer does have its charms. When I think of Summer in the traditional way, I think of going to the beach, picnics, pool parties and enjoying long days of sunshine. When I was a child, the summer vacation was the best. No school, just fun. But when you are an adult, you work thru summer and there is no block of time to just have fun. I think we ought to implement this type of schedule in the workplace. I would vote for that.
For the first time ever I am doing a summer bucket list. Maybe it will get me to embrace Summer and all its charms. I may not be able to go hiking anymore but I can do virtual hikes and enjoy the scenery. I can also learn about lighthouses which I associate with summer and beaches. Not to mention the pretty flowers and summer drinks.
I have already started a few of these items and plan to finish all of these by the end of August. So basically I have a few weeks to finish out my summer and start on my Autumn bucket list.
Going to go read my summer book and watch a video or two before going to sleep for the night.
