Summertime Nostalgia

July's Essay

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Oh, summer - a time for sunburns, melted ice cream, and memories that make you question your fashion choices. As the thermostat hits 95 degrees and I'm stuck inside working, I can't help but daydream about pools seductively whispering my name. My childhood summers were a mix of sleepovers, sandy beach days, and movie nights filled with questionable snack choices. For this month's essay, I'm taking a stroll down memory lane and reminiscing about the days of soda-induced "drunkenness" and velvet pants in the sweltering heat; the nostalgia of childhood summers.

Blockbuster Nights

As a kid, summer nights often led us on a pilgrimage to Blockbuster - a sanctuary for those seeking to rent VHS tapes and DVDs (that bit is for the wee babes who have no idea what I'm talking about). A trip to Blockbuster would always start with a careful inspection of the shelf with new releases, followed by meandering through every single aisle, inspecting every single film on a shelf. I've talked about spending hours at bookstores as a kid, and I think it was pretty much the same thing when it came to renting a movie. I loved knowing little about the movies other than their itty bitty log line. Movie night snacks typically consisted of stovetop popcorn and some sort of chocolate. Something to know about me, back in the day, I had a habit of wearing white pants to the theater, and chocolate always found its way underneath me. I never seemed to catch on. It happened way too many times to keep track. These nights, to me, are a snapshot of the cultural zeitgeist of the 90s and early aughts. Renting movies was not only for family movie night but also for sleepovers and as a backup in case you and your friends ran out of things to do. Without these movie nights, I wouldn't have had the brilliant ideas that led to me coercing my brothers into reenacting our personalized versions of iconic movie scenes. Thank you, Hollywood.

Mixtapes

The mixtape - the OG summer love letter. Before streaming or swiping, creating a summer playlist that encapsulated all of your feelings was an art. If I'm honest, I can't remember how you put together a mixtape, but I do remember waiting with bated breath when I played the tape/CD/playlist that my best friend or crush had given me. In some ways, it was a high-stakes game in which the playlist could inform your level of friendship or if your crush felt the same way. A mixtape wasn't just a bunch of songs; it was a patchwork of unspoken feelings, each track a snapshot of your relationship, late-night escapades, or sun-drenched afternoons. The songs picked, the order they were arranged in - it all spoke volumes. Handing over a carefully curated cassette/CD/playlist to a friend or crush - it was like giving away a piece of your heart. And then there's the handwritten tracklist, a personal touch that Spotify can't provide. Mixtapes taught us, or at least me, the art of anticipation, the thrill of discovery, and the magic of music in bringing people together.

me & my brother