Summertime Questions

Famously (so famously, it seems at times to be apocryphal but apparently it’s true), Ben Franklin’s journal contained, among other things, a question he asked himself every morning, What Good Shall I Do This Day, and a question he asked himself every night, What Good Have I Done This Day. I thought it would be fun to do that, but in a more lazy way, and ask myself a bunch of questions at the end of the summer. We’re about halfway through right now, for those right-minded people who consider summer to mean June, July, and August. And I carefully culled most of these questions from things I’ve done already, which also fits with my laziness theme.

I will add to these, and maybe make them A Thing for anyone to reference. Send me a crossed-off copy and I’ll make you a little felt pennant.

Here I go: What Have I Done This Summer?

• Have you swum in a lake, pond, pool, ocean, or river? Bonus if it’s more than one. Double bonus for all.

• Have you had to buy sunscreen at a convenience store because yours ran out in the middle of a trip?

• Have you gone for a hike of more than 1 mile?

• Have you had to wash a hat because of sweat and/or salt stains?

• Have you had to wash bug spray off your sunglasses?

• Have you taken a more-than-two-hour road trip?

• Have you bought something at a convenience store because you stopped to use their toilet and you didn’t want to be rude?

• Have you gone more than four hours without looking at your phone?

• Have you eaten a meal outside?

• Have you eaten a meal cooked over an open fire?

• Have you slept in a tent, under a tarp, or in a cabin? For more than one night? In a row?

• Have you visited public lands for more than 1 hour?

• Have you paddled a kayak or canoe, or rowed or sailed a boat?

• Have you learned to identify a species of tree or flower you couldn’t before?

• Have you learned to identify a birdsong you couldn’t before?

• Have you eaten wild fruit, vegetables, or plants?