The Slice: The two sides of summer

Summer can be rough on those who wonder if they are getting old.

The season is a sensory tsunami. It repeatedly jolts those of a certain age with nostalgia triggers.

Some are extra-strength, such as an evocative whiff of just-mowed grass or a snort of chlorine. Others are subtle. A gentle laugh that reminds you of a moment long ago, for instance.

A few are obvious. Say, hearing lines from a Beach Boys song.

T-shirts, cut-offs and a pair of thongs

We’ve been having fun all summer long

All of these things can take you back like a cartoon get-off-the-stage hook.

That’s fine, of course. But there comes a point in life where you find yourself asking: Am I looking back or am I looking ahead?

Age is not the only thing that determines how you answer. It’s partly a matter of perspective.

Still, if you even have to ask, well, that alone can be a wistful realization. You’re never going to be 19 again. The thing is, though, you never forget the scent of that suntan lotion.

To be sure, getting older and perhaps wiser can be seen as a blessing. But when the sights, sounds and smells of the season gang up and cram your head with old home-movies of boats and bikinis, your past can look pretty sweet. Even if, the truth is, you spent a lot of your time back then waiting for tomorrow.

OK, summer isn’t the only season with this time-travel power. But perhaps because it so totally dazzles us with its sun-baked magic when we’re young, summer never really relinquishes its hold on our imaginations.

Yeah, those were some memorable times. But who knows? Maybe next summer will be the best ever.

Slice answers: Robert McGinty said, yes, there are fewer people who know how to do handyman stuff these days. “And some of them are contractors.”

Theresa Vance said there might be fewer handymen, but no shortage of handywomen – at least in her family. She and her three adult sisters are the “fix-it” people in their households.

Today’s Slice question: So what do you think of EWU’s red football field?