Once again, I’m working over Labor Day weekend and I’m OK with that, because in exchange, I’m going to get three days off next week in which I plan to go tubing, swimming and just languish in the sun as much as possible.

The last day of summer this year is on Sept. 21, but as this is the last weekend local public pools will be open, it sort of is the unofficial end of summer. Even as the days grow shorter and the leaves begin to change, I plan to enjoy every warm day we have left.

I love summer. It is my favorite time of the year. Sure, I like spring and fall. Winter is my least favorite season. It can only be improved with a few good snows like we had last winter.

Yesterday, I picked what probably will be the last summer squash out of my garden. My tomatoes got blight again this summer, so I mostly had to resort to buying homegrown tomatoes at the farmers market. I still have some herbs growing and have eaten the best homemade pesto sauce from the basil right out of my garden this year.

This summer, I made friends with a couple of people who had swimming pools, so while I have not been swimming much, I have been more than normal. I absolutely love water, so if I didn’t have to work for a living, I’d probably be floating in a pool somewhere.

I have spent my summer tubing down the Ararat River. I even braved the Dan River up in Kibler Valley once, which was really dangerous, but also exhilarating and a memory that I will keep forever.

I also got to visit a secret swimming hole up in Kibler Valley for a picnic lunch with an old friend. It is a magical place where when you walk in the water, fool’s gold stirs up in the water that swirled around my legs. This also was a memory I will keep for a lifetime. And if you think for one minute I’m going to tell you where it is, think again. That’s what makes it magical is that not many people know where it is.

This summer, I have revisited how fun it is to ride a bike again. I’ve been out riding on the bike trails here in town and luckily that is something I can continue to do until it becomes too cold to do so comfortably.

I haven’t visited the beach yet this summer, but I do have a trip planned at the end of this month. It’s just a weekend trip, but the water will still be warm and as long as I have my toes in the sand, I will be happy.

Some of my other summer loves are watching bands down at the Blackmon Amphitheatre and going up to watch plays at the Cherry Orchard Theatre at Levering Orchard. Tonight, my all-time favorite band, The Embers, will be playing at the amphitheater, and this weekend there will a special music program at the orchard called Music on the Mount. If I can get off work early enough, I’m planning on being there this weekend as well.

So while summer is winding down, looking back on everything I’ve been able to do, it’s been a fun ride, I just hate to see it come to a close.

Mondee Tilley is a reporter with The Mount Airy News. She can be reached at mtilley@mtairynews.com or at 719-1930.