how you know it's august in washington

it's true that i'm getting pumped for the fall, but august is probably my favorite month of the year (and no, not only because my birthday happens to be in august).

1. the pool.
it's the only place that is bearable in the august heat (well, really it's the humidity that's a killer). but, honestly by august the pool feels like a bathtub. it's so hot it's not even refreshing. ugh.

2. the commute.
it goes from hellish to bearable. the metro clears out a bit and the roads are pretty empty. generally as long as the a/c is working and the train ride doesn't take two hours it's not too bad.

3. restaurant week.
you know the week when everyone who's not lucky enough to have a house at the shore and is stuck in the city tries to snag a reservation at the city's most coveted restaurants so they can have bad service and possibly good food for a lot of money but maybe less money than it usually costs.

4. tourists.
just yesterday there were some tourists in our building's lobby waiting for the elevator to go down to the parking garage. except they didn't know how to use an elevator (i'm not even kidding). we had to tell them where to push the button. honestly - where do these people come from??

5. tv.
there is nothing remotely worth watching on tv (save for the occasional baseball game). although with the fall seasons starting earlier and earlier each year (thank you world series) we have prison break to look forward to at the end of the month. did you know it starts in 19 days? yeah, i might have mentioned that a few times.

6. the farmers market.
there are farmers markets all over the area, but clearly i am partial to the one in vienna. saturday mornings (through the end of october) you can head over to the caboose and get your crepe, donut, kettle corn or fresh fruit fix.

7. football.
for redskins fans august is the month of optimism. it's when we're all excited about the prospects that the danny brought in and it looks like we might actually have a chance this year. let's hope this year we're still optimistic come november!

8. ice cream.
granted i eat ice cream nearly every single day of the year, but in august it's totally acceptable (if not encouraged). now if only all the ice cream shops around my office didn't charge five dollars for a single scoop of ice cream. i think i'll stick with the ice cream sandwiches and oreo milkshakes at potbelly (both are under three dollars).

9. the bees.
you know it's august when the bees start coming out in full force. in fact there were quite a few dead ones floating in the pool last night - i'm surprised (but glad) i didn't accidentally swallow one when i was gasping for air. here's hoping i can go another season without stepping on a bee.

10. the heat.
well it's really the humidity, isn't it? there's nothing quite like walking out of your super air conditioned home/office into that thick/heavy air. it's disgusting.