Summer Arrives at the 7200

Summer happens twice at the 7200. In early May, roughly a quarter of the town vanishes over the course of graduation weekend. One Friday night you'll be fighting for space in the line at the bar, throwing elbows and hip checks with equal force to cowboys and granolas, and by the following Monday they'll all simply melt away like the Viet Cong. Traffic here is never ever bad by anyone's standards, and it gets even better when the college kids leave. You know it's summer when you can go to Village Inn for breakfast and in lieu of youngsters reeking of stale beer, one sees only the elderly.

The second arrival is trickier. It usually occurs somewhere in early June - although last year we woke up to 8 inches of heavy snow on June 4th - and it usually takes everyone by surprise. You'll be out walking around the 7200, sipping a coffee or maybe just running errands, and suddenly a weird trickle will make its way down your face. Sweat? Shit, man, summer must be here!

So the first arrival happened over the weekend. Because I have a temporary residential job on campus this summer, I'm one of three people left in one of the dorms, and two of 'em are gone. I'm the only one here. Too bad I don't have a Big Wheel to pedal around.