Don’t blink. Right now we are in the best season of the year.
No, I’m not just talking about the four official seasons of the calendar. I’m talking about the 20-ish seasons we have here in Kansas City. These include things like pre-winter, fake fall, oven summer, second summer, etc.
Pre-summer is my favorite time of year. Sometimes it only lasts a few days, but this year we seem to have been graced with several weeks of low humidity, light breezes, and superb walking weather.
The downside is that it will end in a heartbeat at some point soon, so get out and enjoy it while you can.
It’s the best time to clean off that grill from the long winter and re-learn how to make your burgers and brats. It’s the time to open up your pool if you have one. And it’s the time to manage all of those dandelions in your yard.
But one of the most overlooked parts of this season is what it does to people in town. We’re a generally friendly bunch most days around here. But during pre-summer we seem to be extra friendly. Need a beer? We made extra hot dogs, want one? The back decks at the restaurants are the only season worth sitting in so restaurants can seat more people. The food tastes better when your shirt isn’t covered in sweat. And I have yet to find a more amazing tasting beverage than a cold beer after mowing the lawn.
We also seem to be living in the golden age of the Tonganoxie split. For those not familiar, thunderstorms seem to suffer from splitting right around the Kansas City area breaking up right around Tonganoxie. This doesn’t help crops, obviously, but it sure helps if you’re planning a picnic or a baseball game.
My point is that there are more upsides than downsides. That being said, mosquitoes seem to appear overnight and they seem more and more pissed off every spring. Millions of them pop up out of nowhere.
I remember many years where we went straight from temps in the 40’s to temps in the 90’s in the blink of an eye. So my advice to you is get that grill fired up. Go for a long walk in the park. Breathe spring air while you can and before it burns your throat on the way down. Real Summer will be here before you know it.
We’re all going to be sweating soon enough. Enjoy it while you can.
(Chris Kamler works through all the seasons, through all kinds of storms and whatnot on Twitter, where you ‘ll find him as @TheFakened)