Trares
For a relaxing three-day break, Labor Day Weekend sure comes with a sense of urgency.
Those who have read this column in the past know my affinity for the Labor Day holiday. First of all, it’s a whole day off to recognize the workers of this country, and the importance of the labor movement.
But my fondness runs deeper than that. The weekend bridges summer, my favorite time of year, and fall, which runs a close second. Area pools are still open, but college football kicks off at the same time. Meal plans may have corn on the cob and fresh garden tomatoes one day, then a big pot of chili the next.
I’ve written in the past about how Labor Day is tied to some of my favorite memories, closing out the season with one last hurrah at the lakehouse my family had growing up. We’d spend the weekend wringing the last ounce of fun from the summer, with boat rides, tubing, bonfires and late-night dance parties.
Many of those years included a neighborhood meal of some sort — taco night, fried fish, or for many of the years, a pig roast. Everyone would come together with side dishes and desserts, toasting the end of the cottage season until we’d all be back together the following spring.
Even now, I try keep that spirit alive in our household. We have friends over for cookouts or pulled pork in the crock pot. Evenings on the patio are augmented with music and sitting around the fire pit.
Make no mistake, this is the best holiday. But every year around this time, I get that anxious feeling that comes with something good coming to an end.
This is the last opportunity to take a swim; all of the pools close up after Labor Day.
Sure, I’ll still break out the grill for a barbecue well into the fall (and I’m a firm believer that there is no end to grilling season.) But those burgers and brats won’t taste the same without farm-fresh sweet corn and sliced onions and peppers from the farmers market to accentuate them.
Already, every day is a little bit shorter; the mornings stay dark later, and the mid-summer sky staying light at 10 p.m. is a distant memory.
So this is the chance to do it all one last time. You better believe we’ll be fitting as much swimming, sprinklers and slip ‘n’ slides into the next three days as we can. The refrigerator is filled to the brim with meat and veggies for cookouts. In between the packed college football slate, I’ll switch on the radio to catch the end of the baseball game. Jimmy Buffett will be the soundtrack of the weekend.
And by Monday evening, hopefully, my summertime appetite will have been sated. At that point, I’ll be ready to concede — bring on the sweater weather and pumpkin spice, I say.
Ryan Trares is a senior reporter and columnist for the Daily Journal. Send comments to [email protected].
