The Summer Friday Five
Summer, so beloved it’s a verb.
Once upon a time, I wanted to trademark that exact phrase, “Summer: It’s a Verb,” and emblazon it across every thinkable surface to be bought and sold in vacation gift shops the world over.
For the majority of my life, summer has meant work. More work seems to find me in the months between Memorial Day and Labor Day than at any other time of year. I’m hopeful this year proves no different. To borrow from ol’ summer car tunes favorite Mr. JT: Dad Loves His Work.
Proverb
“I love growin’ grass.”
— My dad, this week
There are worse operating philosophies.
Tool
I’m currently obsessed with improving my power washer setup.
A few years ago, after seeing the myth-busting Adam Savage sing the praises of the little Ryobi 1600 PSI pressure washer, I ran out and bought one myself. I loved the idea of a compact, manageable, no-nonsense machine that could still do real work around the house.
When I first shared this enthusiasm with my father-in-law, he balked a bit at the lower pressure. Fair enough. That is usually where the bigger-is-better crowd comes in swinging.
But recently, I noticed he had one, too.
Converted.
Sometimes the right tool is not the biggest one. It is the one you actually reach for.
Word of warning: Don’t expect to be able to run over the cheap plastic gun handle with your Bronco, as I did.
Text
Lawn Care for Dummies by Lance Walheim
For what it’s worth, I’m a first-time homeowner, squarely in the middle of what is commonly referred to as midlife, and my prowess in the field, whether baseball’s outfield or my own backyard, is nowhere near as notable as my father’s.
He was too gentlemanly to mention this during our conversation about “growin’ grass” this week, but I recall, with an appropriate level of devilish fondness, that I broke at least two basement windows during my first attempt to mow the family yard.
In fairness, my preteen hands could barely handle the intense jostle of the creaking aluminum handle on our antique Snapper.
Some men are born with a green thumb. Others learn by walking on broken glass and shrapnel. Head to your local library or the Internet Archive and read Walheim’s book alongside me.
Signal
I’m stoked outta my gourd about the nearly 200 NEW tunes added since last Labor Day to my ever-growing playlist, Summer Fridays (now with more Fridays). Get them while you still can.
Weather Advisory
The best high school graduation gift I received:
With graduation season upon us, giving a useful, memorable and unique gift is hard, made even more so by the endless number of officially licensed products to carry the marks of all the colleges and universities in the U.S. The greatest thing I received en route to the wilds of Greencastle, Indiana, and a thing I still use today, came from my Great Uncle Johnny, my mom’s uncle. He loaded up a leather Dopp kit with Kiwi shoe polish, cleaner, and a well-made German shoe brush.
I later learned this was a family tradition John was carrying on, and our family was happy to pass it along to my nephew last year.
If loading a Dopp kit with shoe-shining supplies sounds too daunting, keep it simple: a nice pair of nail clippers made in Germany or Japan, a Wahl clipper made in America, a waterproof zip bag for liquids, and a mesh drawstring bag for wet things.
A good graduation gift should say, “You’re on your way, now take care of yourself.”
On the Bench This Week
Image c/o Mystic Knotwork
At 25, while working in design at J.Crew HQ, I noticed a certain Nantucket bracelet on a gaggle of photo stylists and menswear designers upon their return from the island over Memorial Day weekend, 2006.
That little bracelet had my brain in knots ever since.
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Originally published in The All Plaidout Almanac on Substack, May 29, 2026.