Summer Starts Now!

Summer Starts Now! Well summer officially starts today June 21st and ends on Saturday September 21st. So, what does it mean to me, to you? What do we do? Hey I know! How about a music festival? We could start with Electric Forest, coming up June 27th in Rothbury, MI. You could catch; “The String Cheese Incident”, “Pretty Lights”, “Passion Pit”, “Empire of the Sun”, or the Australian duo, “Knife Party”? Sounds like fun right? OK, maybe not for me, I’m over thirty. A lot over thirty! How about Gathering of the Vibes in Bridgeport, CT. on July 25-28? They will have “Phil Lesh Friends”, “The Black Crowes”, “Tedeschi Trucks Band”, “Grace Potter The Nocturnals”, “The Roots, and “Funky Meters”. Some of these bands I even know who they are, so for the younger set this could not be so hot. Finally, Camp Bisco in Mariaville, NY on July 11-13. This one includes “Aeroplane”, “Animal Collective”, “Bassnectar”, “Boys Noize”, “Com Truise”, “Dan Deacon”, “Dillon Francis”, “Disco Biscuits” and “Flosstradamus”. Of course there are many larger and smaller venues throughout the three month span of summer. This is just a small taste of what’s out there. So if live music and lots of people having a good time is your thing there will be plenty for you to do. If you have young children or teens there are day camps and sleep away camps galore. I used those a lot back in the day, because I was a single parent and getting a little break was crucial to my sanity and maybe yours too. Nothing like kids in a healthy fun environment with counselors and activity coaches running them ragged with fun activities, so that when they get back home they are too tired to give you trouble. Summer camps come in all kinds of shapes sizes and price range’s to meet most needs. I recall one summer sending my daughter to a place called Golden Arrow summer camp in northern California. Although I think the name Golden must have been what the camp thought the parents were made out of because it was so expensive. In other words, if you have to ask how much, you probably couldn’t afford it. Thankfully for me, it was a gift from a grateful in-law. Who would have thought? Finally, on the home front, summer at home is not so bad, if you keep the younger ones busy. A good recipe for this is balance. Making sure there is plenty of time for a few fun little trips to playgrounds, parks, and maybe an amusement park. Then, adding in some structured time, preparing for the next school year with some tutoring work. Tutoring in the summer can be less expensive, especially independent tutors, tutors that do not work for a tutoring company, may be more willing to negotiate their rates. Summer is often a slow time for tutors that make their sole living at tutoring students. Which means many would be willing to give a special deal to the right parent/student over the holiday. Whatever grade level or situation, I found that tutors, specifically from TutorZ.com, have helped my family and I through some pretty rough academic times. So, take what you will and file the rest away for future reference. And remember balance. Not all work and not all play. OK?