It’s the one month a year when my bride, a school teacher for 35 years, did not have school on her mind. That was particularly true when classes began after Labor Day or in the last week of August. The current schedule, the second week in August, was bringing students to mind in late July so we’re both grateful she retired in 2016. Wow, that’s been five years.
As a sports fan, I also love July because this time of year I tend to wake up with the morning sun and that’s early…way early by my December/January standards. It’s great to be able to relax and catch sports coming from Europe. For the last month, that’s been a soccer feast with Euro2020(1) featuring matches daily during the group phase and then most days during the knockout phase. I’ve been planning my days around catching these national team matches.
And, then there’s three weeks of golf—Irish, Scottish and (British) Opens, AKA The Open with broadcasts from sunrise to mid-day. It has been an adjustment to watch the Irish Open on a “parkland” course designed by Jack Nicklaus instead of the links style. Although the British PGA Championship also takes place on a parkland course, Wentworth Golf Club.
Throw in the two weeks Wimbledon with ESPN showing six or more hours daily. In an earlier day, my bride and I would get up early for the women’s championship and enjoy some bubbly with strawberries. It’s also fun to watch the Tour de France, particularly the mountain stages and be reminded of the trips when we drove similar roads.
And that’s just stuff that I can do from home—to say nothing about the concerts and firework shows from Boston, Washington D.C. and New York City.
This year I am missing the chance to gather in an organized manner to wish Happy Birthday to the best country on this planet. It’s understandable, given the governor’s June 15 release from lockdown that organizers were reluctant to try and put events together.
That’s not the case elsewhere in the country when governors imposed more focused shutdowns and kept economic activity happening. Disneyland in California reopened in April 2021 after a shutdown of more than a year. By contrast, Disneyworld in Orlando, FL, started a phased re-opening on July 10, 2020. It is notable that San Francisco staged its annual fireworks on the waterfront on Sunday.
These are lessons to keep in mind when elections come around.
For now, I am going to enjoy July.
