SUMMERTIME, AND THE LIVING IS BUSY. Spending a summer evening at Lake Altoona.

I hate to be the bearer of bad tidings, but I feel obligated to let you all know that summer is half over. Shocking but true. By the time this issues arrives on your favorite magazine rack on July 14, almost exactly half of the magical season of sunshine and snow cones and skinned knees will have evaporated.

And to make it clear for the pedantic people out there: Yes, I know that summer didn’t “officially” start until June 21, at least according to the stars. But for those of us with kids – and I suspect a lot of other people, too – summer begins as soon as the last school bell rings at the beginning of June and ends when we make the obligatory “First Day of School!” Facebook posts at the start of September. This leaves us the three months between to jam as much in as possible, including the traditional summer events we can’t miss: Sounds Like Summer? Check! Chippewa Valley Airshow? Check! Northern Wisconsin State Fair? We’ve got our tickets!

Then there are the traditional summer experiences we can’t seem to avoid: First sunburn? Check! Searching for reasonably priced gas on a cross-country road trip? Check! Sending kids to camp for a few blessed days of quiet at home? Check!

Your summer checklist may differ, of course: One of the best things about summertime in the Chippewa Valley is that there’s always something fun to add to your calendar – even if you’re the kind of person who insists summer doesn’t start until June 21.