Hot town, summer in the city
Back of my neck getting dirty and gritty
Been down, isn’t it a pity
Doesn’t seem to be a shadow in the city

Summertime in Chicago. The lake front. Outdoor concerts. Baseball. Al fresco dining. It’s the reason so many of us still live here. It’s the reason so many of us put up with winter. Three or four great months make up for eight or nine of crap!

But the summer of 2020 has been like the rest of the year…a total shitshow! All the things I mentioned above have been cancelled….like everything else. The coronavirus pandemic doesn’t care that it’s summer. With the weather turning, it’s been hard to keep people inside their homes. Everyone has the itch to get outside. They want to take advantage of the nicer weather. The problem is a lot of them aren’t doing it safely.

Last night I decided to take a walk in my neighborhood. That’s normal behavior for me. I do it two or three times each day. I’m very careful about this. I do everything possible to avoid getting too close to anyone. If I see someone walking towards me, I usually head to the opposite side of the street. Safety first! I’m heading into the home stretch of my walk when I see this line. It goes on for close to two city blocks. It took me only a few seconds to figure out what they were waiting for.

Ice Cream!

There’s an ice cream shop about a half block from my home. It’s not really ice cream, it’s frozen custard…and it’s good….really good! The question is is it good enough to engage in risky behavior during a pandemic?

If you look at closely at the above photo, you’ll notice two things:
The spacing is pretty good. It’s not perfect, but not bad social distancing.
Only half the people are wearing masks.

C’mon!!! If you’re going to take a risk for something like ice cream, at least protect yourself and others by wearing a mask!

I like ice cream as much as the next guy…probably even more. But ice cream will be around next summer and the summers afterwards. If you aren’t careful, you might not be.

And babe, don’t you know it’s a pity
That the days can’t be like the nights
In the summer, in the city
In the summer, in the citycs

* Song lyrics are from “Summer In The City”, by the Lovin’ Spoonful

Related Post: Three months into a coronavirus pandemic and you still aren’t wearing a mask?

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