Summer in the city is all about hot, sunny weather and getting outdoors to attend festivals and watch parades. Unfortunately, with the increased hot, humid weather comes the risk of thunderstorms and extreme weather. We have had our share of crazy weather… hail and a couple of tornado touchdowns, but nothing too serious. Way to spoil our fun, Mother Nature.
Traffic snarls
This is not an explosive rant, by no means. Pretty hard to control the weather. Floats and people participating in a local festival parade get a little soggy, tempers can flare, but we persevere and make the best of it, right? We are inconvenienced due to the congestion and snarl of traffic due to the roads being blocked off or re-routed. Get over it! Once a year our city puts on a huge parade at the beginning of K-Days, a 10-day Exhibition & Rodeo, so families can take in some of the fun. Beeping the horn and yelling out the window doesn’t help the situation. The city does a decent job of providing security and reducing the impact of traffic snarls, but they are not perfect.
Promotions and giveaways
If people have no business going downtown, then don’t go there. It’s as simple as that! Some businesses close down for the day (at least with our neighbour city to the south) and let their employees join in on the fun. Sometimes, it can be a win-win for some businesses to give away merchandise as a form of marketing and word of mouth. Giving out buttons, and balloons or hosting a community BBQ along the route is one way to get your name out. However, what peeves me are the people who “cash in” and take advantage of the thousands of potential customers lined up along the route. Shame on you. Bad enough we are bombarded with advertising all around us.
Once the parade winds down and the raindrops subside, we are left with emptiness in the pit of our stomachs. No worries. The void can be filled with lots of things during the heat of the summer whether it is a corn-dog or funnel cake at the midway or “jamming” at a free music concert in the park. Don’t let impatient, inconsiderate people or some overzealous business ruin your fun!
