With four months of freedom awarded to me as an Ontario university undergrad, I really shouldn’t mope that my summer break is winding down. Still, I can’t help but lament over all the guilty pleasures I will (mostly) have to abandon in just a few short weeks. Here are my top 5 of many summer guilty pleasures:

Ice Cream

But not just ice cream, all the high-fat, high-calorie, delicious-so-I-don’t-care junk that you feel is okay to eat because it’s summer. Fresh-scooped ice cream and hand-made milkshakes. BBQ’d hamburgers and hotdogs. Corn on the cob smothered in hot melted butter and salt. And don’t forget fresh s’mores and marshmallows around the campfire. There’s something about summer that makes you feel like you can get away with these yummy indulgences without worrying about health or fitness. I could literally do a post on these treats alone, but to save my sanity (and waistline) I won’t submit you to it. But, if you don’t mind, I think I’ll wander down the street for a double-scoop of peanut butter and black cherry when I’m done this post.

Napping

I’m all for making the most of summer and not wasting a single minute, but I am also a huge fan of sleep. In my mind, dozing off, mid-afternoon in a hammock with a good book on your chest and the sunshine peeking between the leaves can in no way be constued as a waste of a day. What other time of the year can you get away with shamelessly snoozing at any and all hours of the day without having to worry about essays, assignments, and class? Don’t worry, I do work during the summer too, but on my days off I am all about the naps.

No Makeup

I feel like I’m pretty confident and laidback. I’m not so high-maintenance that I insist on doing a full face of makeup even if I’m not leaving the house. But during most of the year I generally wear makeup on a daily basis. I’m usually busier and I feel more put-together when going to class or the newspaper office if I’ve got a little mascara and blush on. But in the summer, I can’t be bothered. Between the heat, humidity, swimming, and the distinct possibility of not even leaving my backyard all day, spending even 5 minutes on my face seems laughable. Funnily enough, my skin seems to look better and more glowy during the summer months, making it that much easier to go bare-faced. Just hand me my facial sun screen and I’m good to go.

Unassigned Reading

As a self-proclaimed English nerd, I don’t usually complain too highly about the assigned reading I am required to do during the school year. However, as a slow-reading English major, I have time to read about 40% of the books I’m assigned. Having the unusual luxury of being able to focus on one novel at a time, to choose which novel, and to not have to turn around and write a 3000-word essay as soon as I’ve finished is the most pleasurable of guilty pleasures in the summertime. I even read one of my assigned books from this past year (Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy) this summer because I only had time to skim through it back in January. It was great, for more reasons than one.

Going Barefoot

I go to university in a city of over 300,000 people. My hometown sits at about 400 people, and we don’t even live in town. Therefore, I’ve grown up with a pair of feet that have become completely immune to gravel roads, as well as mud, river rocks, moss, grass, and of course, sand. If you don’t regularly kick off your sandals in the summertime, I highly recommend it. There’s something so freeing about letting your tootsies feel the ground beneath you and even *gasp* get a little dirty. Even if it’s just in the park or your backyard, run around barefoot a time or two this summer. You’ll love it, or your shoes back.

What Do You Think?

Please tell me your summer guilty pleasures! I’d love to hear what you let yourself get away with during the sunny months that you don’t do the rest of the year. Leave a comment or a forum post and let me know!

Just for Fun

1 Comment

  1. avatar DaMan says:

    You cant take an American girl’s point of view or opinion seriously… they have no clue about being sexy, a strong, confident thin, fit woman who will succeed in life… american girls are short, fat, obnoxious, unaware of the world, totally stupid and hideous in the appearance department… not to mention, only 12% of Americans actually go onto college or University… clearly a weak, spineless, lazy, unintelligent culture… no wonder the world laughs at them and they live with such a low standard of living

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