Looking out of my window at the rain pouring down, it doesn’t seem my summer shorts and flip flops will be coming out just yet. But a certain event at Abbotsbury Swannery tells me all is not lost. Since records began in 1393, legend has it that the arrival of the first cygnet marks the start of summer. So as it hatched a couple of weeks ago, it must be here, mustn’t it?
I also noticed a swallow swooping in and out of the eaves of the house opposite so that’s another sign from the bird world summer is upon us. However, on the basis that one swallow does not make summer, here are twenty other signs that might tell us summer is on the way:
- More people start eating salads.
- There’s a festival every week.
- Last year’s summer clothes don’t fit.
- The sun is always up before you are.
- Everything in the garden seems to grow an inch a day.
- Birds squabble as they settle down for the night.
- A hosepipe ban is imposed.
- Convertibles have their tops down.
- Strawberries start to taste sweet instead of sour.
- The golf driving range is full.
- More people are outside a pub than inside.
- After one really hot day, red faces appear.
- Even more cyclists are out and about.
- The rain starts to get warmer.
- You start eating dinner in the garden.
- You stock up on antihistamines.
- The smell of lightly grilled/burnt meat fills the air.
- A glass of rose is preferred over a glass of red.
- You eat your first ice cream cone of the year.
- The workers at St George site get their tops off.
So, here’s to celebrating that perfect summer day when the sun is shining, the breeze is blowing, the birds are singing, and the lawn mower is broken.