What gives the Gleam to Summer ’16?
by Cate Murway
Remember when lazy, hazy summer days were actually fun?
You’re an adult now, and that comes with even more special benefits: You can stay up as late as you like chatting with your neighbors, or rent a camper and set out to tour the states or just jump in the pool and swim in the deep end.
But can you recall the last time you did any of that? When was it that you actually spent a whole afternoon swinging on a hammock or lounging on an inflatable raft, sipping sweetened sun tea and reading the novel you stashed away for just such an occasion?
Hey! It turns out that a certain amount of unbridled enjoyment is essentially incredibly good for you.
Carve out time for fun with your family and friends.
Joy is the name of the game this summer…. oh, and from the responses, apparently food!
So just what is it that makes it SUMMER for you?
“Quality time with my friends and family and being able to create new memories.”
Nicole Marie Paleafico, Bristol
“I love hot summer nights to be able to cruise with the top down. I call them convertible nights.”
5th Annual HBD Car Show co-chair, Mark Gesualdi, Bristol
“Sun, sand and salt water.” Author, Bill Pezza, Bristol
Take time to rediscover your yard. Here comes the food part!
“Cookouts and being outside.” Rosalie Berrocal, Bristol
“Corn on the cob, steaks on the grill, some macaroni salad. Yum!”
Realtor/ photographer Coleen McCrea Katz, Havertown
“Perfect summer dinner is grilling and eating outside!” Carolyn Freitas Irelan, Newtown
“Summer for Jamie and I is sitting on the back porch with a drink listening to the crickets at night and seeing the lightning bugs. Hamburgers and hotdogs on the grill, with deviled eggs and potato salad, around the bonfire. A weekend trip to the seashore only to come home with sunburn!”
Jimmy Bason, proprietor of 'Bird of Paradise Flowers', Bristol
So, perhaps a day at the beach [sunburn ouch!] is NOT such a great idea and a backyard bar-b-que is just not in the cards. Treat your hometown like a new-to-you destination and tour the town’s notable attractions.
Interested in well-preserved early-American architecture? Start your trek on Radcliffe Street.
Visit the Margaret R. Grundy Museum, the Victorian-era home of the late Senator Joseph R. Grundy, located on the banks of the scenic Delaware River. His former home reflects a true craftsman’s attention to detail and unrivaled woodwork, including cherry, oak, walnut, maple and pine.
Have you checked out the Margaret R. Grundy Memorial Library’s activities lately? The Grundy Library is pleased to offer free passes to several area attractions, possible through a generous gift from the Levittown-Bristol Kiwanis Club.
Passes are available for the following attractions:
•The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University: Admits two adults and up to five children.
•Battleship New Jersey: Admits two adults and up to three children.
•The Bucks County Children’s Museum: Admits up to six people.
•Elmwood Park Zoo: Admits two adults and up to six children.
•Grounds for Sculpture: Admits four adults.
•Morris Arboretum: Admits two adults and up to four children.
Museum Passes may be checked out with a library card in good standing at the Patron Services Desk.
Knitting & crocheting your thing? Learn something new on 08/03/2016 from 6:30pm to 7:30pm.
Drop in [No Registration required.] Go to www.grundylibrary.com or call 215-788-7891 ext. 5 or 6 for more information. Drop by and join the fun!
Reader alert… check out the summer book club!
Oh just stop in and bring your CAN. Boy Scout Troop #212 is collecting non-perishables throughout the month of August.
Keep going. Hurry on to friendly Mill Street, don’t tarry!
Coffee enthusiasts unite here. ‘Calm Waters Coffee Roasters’ serves it steamy or chilled.
Grab a book,
or perhaps a coloring book with stress relieving patterns and premier colored pencils at ‘t.s. Cornerstones’ and dash on down to ‘The Bristol Stop’ for a quick lunch.
Peruse the eclectic collections at the ‘Centre for the Arts’. Admission is free. August 1st is the final day for artists to register for the "Under the Sea" exhibit to be held from the 11th to the end of August.
OK… you’re on the right TRACK. ‘Trainpops Attic, LLC’ is going full steam ahead and celebrating Christmas in July with a gift/Santa shop. Pull into their station!
‘Riverside Recreated’ - a new kind of old is just the shoppe for those who find the ‘Present Tense but the Past PERFECT’! Once you stumble upon this adorable shoppe, you will be able to find the perfect, beautiful, solid, top notch and exactly what you were looking for piece of furniture.
Now, did someone mention dessert?
Head down to ‘Let’s Go to the Hop’, the retro themed ice cream parlor and sandwich shop, for some classic frozen treats.
Here’s the SCOOP: soft serve and double dips or frosted malts and root beer floats recreate the magic of many summers. The stars and sky appear even bigger when you savor a cone and leisurely tour this picture perfect, pedestrian friendly town.
Capture the very essence of summer fun and channel your inner child. Hit the nearest water park and go down the biggest slide, at least once. Remember….make a splash!
“Since one of my daughters works at Sesame Place, she got us all season passes to go to any of their parent parks. We are going to Busch Gardens and Water Country, Williamsburg, VA. We will also be seeing my daughter who relocated to Fort Belvoir, VA, my son- in-law and my adorable grandson. Taking Island Beach State Park and Jenkinson's Boardwalk in Point Pleasant off our bucket list [top 10 list of USA boardwalks]. The family celebrated my aunt's 90th birthday with the Walker side of the family and then a wedding in Long Branch, NJ with the Quigley side of the family. Family is what it is all about.... not giant trips but fun quality family time and food: the family pig roast celebrating my sister- in-law's 73rd birthday in Delaware.” Mary Walker, Bristol
“In my paradise land, summer is a year round event. The family is spread coast to coast and our vacation plans are always family events. Our youngest, who lived in Spain for three years, spent a week visiting with her husband and children before moving to her next home. Our West Coast child and family will visit for a week and we’ll share a rented condo on the beach. In August, as the patriarch, I will preside over a family reunion of nephews, nieces and cousins in Surf City, NC where the third daughter will join us. A perfect summer dinner is sloppy barbecue eaten off paper plates. No dress codes, no formal dining, just a picnic table at the water edge surrounded by family and friends.”
Bill Slack, Hudson, FL
“Summer is mild evenings sitting outside with the lightening bugs flickering, listening to the nighttime sounds of crickets, frogs and the trees, looking up at the stars and moon and just relaxing. A perfect summer dinner is grilled shrimp and steak with my husband and daughter, talking and laughing around a campfire. And someone…..anyone else, to clean up!” Donna Vico Love, Harmony, PA
“Summer means time at the Francis Scott Key Hotel in Ocean City, MD where the beach, the seafood at Shark on the Harbor restaurant, and the wild atmosphere at Seacrets with family and friends make for memorable times. This summer is especially poignant because my Marine grandson returns from a long deployment. What a backyard barbecue that will be!” Liz McCarry Fisher, Bristol
Lastly but surely necessary, set aside some quality time to do……. absolutely nothing.
Recommend a “Spotlight”. E-mail vjmrun@yahoo.com
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