Seeing Your Own Town

Full spring has arrived! Around here, that means a weather report that stays pretty much the same from now until late September - "Sunny and hot with a chance of a late-afternoon thunderstorm." It's actually a great time of year to enjoy living in a small Southern town. The farmer's market is in full swing, it's warm enough to open the windows, and (with a little effort) I seem to find pockets of time to enjoy things more than in the midst of the whirl that is all too often the semester.

So - a list of things to make sure to experience and savor during this time of the year:

1. Find a baseball game. It can be pro, but I prefer the "lower leagues." Find an American Legion league game - top notch talent and I can guarantee an enthusiastic crowd. If the economic news has been getting to you, bring out the big guns and go find a team of under-sixes playing. I promise you'll feel better after seeing some kid forget where second base is, but still be happy just to be playing. Would that we were all so smart.
2. An old-fashioned merry-go-round, complete with calliope. I'm lucky in that my town has one of these that's been lovingly restored, but you can find them more easily than you could thirty years ago. In a pinch, one of the fiberglass imitations will do, but there's something about those wooden horses carved with their manes and tails so dramatically flared . . . And the nice people who run said carousel won't even look at you funny when you pick out a horse to ride yourself.
3. Shut down a coffeehouse. Round up a couple of good friends, get some strong joe and sit outside laughing and cutting up until the barrista politely tells you to scram so she can stack the tables.
4. Stroll through a farmer's market. I still don't have my tomatoes in, but I got a window box of lettuces for a "living salad" that makes me feel downright optimistic. Also, talk with the people - don't just point at the produce and grunt. I've met some very interesting people at the local market and we all know that everyone has a story to tell. What made the egg lady want to raise chickens that lay blue-green eggs? Why did the marine biologist decide to make small-batch vinegars? Hmmm.
5. Catch up on some visual entertainment when it's too wet to go outside. I still have a few Dollhouse episodes to finish (and there's always this!) plus there's an ever-growing stack of books I plan to read. Just don't spend too much time indoors - outside is lovely!

And she's waiting.