Summer Lovin'

Ahhhh Summertime in Mcmurray. Suddenly every -40 morning is worth it. This east coast Newfie girl lives for sunshine. I'm from St. John's. The East Coast gets the scattered beautiful day, but the St. John's weather standard is rain, drizzle and fog. The weather was hands down my biggest draw to Mcmurray. I spent one summer here and I was in love. 4am sunrises, 30 degree weather in May and I swear that the sun shines a little brighter in the North.

Mcmurray is filled with great activities and events all year round but the summers are chock full of festivals, gatherings and events. The best part of all this? Fantastic date ideas. Blow off the winter blues of dinner and a movie repeats.

For the outdoorsy/active type there are many activities to take part in. Why not head up to see the wonderful people at the Fort Mcmurray SPCA and volunteer? Gents, Ladies love a dude with a big heart! There are plenty of dogs up there that would love to be taken for a walk! Head down Hwy 69 towards the airport and check out the farm where the rodeo is being held this weekend or take the pups on some of the other trails and backroads in the Gregoire area. If you already have a dog or enjoy a great walk, spend the day getting lost on the Birchwood Trail system. Pack a lunch and have a great day exploring the sprawling forest in and around uptown. Are you the competitive type? Why not challenge a date to a little friendly competition at one of the local outdoor bootcamps like Ultimate Sculpting in Thickwood? If you want to flex your charity muscle, partake in one of the fundraising events such as the Relay for Life or the Terry Fox Run. Make a love connection while making a difference in your community! One of my favourite summertime activities is softball. Plenty of teams in the Labbatt's and Boston Pizza Leagues looking for spare players. A few times in the summer there are weekend long tournaments in Timberlea.

Are you creative? Always had an interest in making a film? Then check out http://ymmfma.com/ for the Fort Mcmurray Filmmakers Association and participate in the 2013 Interplay Film Festival. Make a fun plan to make a movie, short, documentary or music video with your significant other. Speaking of Interplay, the festival is coming up in the first week of August. I'm very excited for this one. A week filled with local talent. Plenty of music, theatre, arts, and my favourite: The Buskers! I love street performers! They have the greatest snacks set up there too. Grab a chipstick or some mini donuts and spend the day wandering around the festival. Grab an blanket and curl up when they play the outdoor movie!

I am constantly blown away by the musical talent in this city. I love live music of any kind and there are plenty of places to find performances this summer! And there are shows to suit all tastes. Westwood High Band is putting off a concert next weekend at the Doug Barnes Cabin on the Birchwood Trail, Corb Lund is playing at Keyano in mid June, The Coldwell Banker Community Bash is July 20th at the Syncrude Athletic Park, and I'm sure there are other great outdoor concerts to be announced this summer! Events Wood Buffalo is putting off the Canada Day Celebrations again this year. For me, the lineup is pretty disappointing. The way I look at it though is its an excuse to get outside! Simple Plan may not be the greatest but I can get behind any outdoor concert. A good group of friends, a beer garden, fireworks, what else do you need? Hopefully with the Mac Island expansion and Shell Place there are exciting acts to come! Event Planners in the city need to focus more on up and coming acts that are more likely to be drawn to playing here as opposed to bands on their way down. There are plenty of talented musicians out there and hopefully our city expansion and redevelopment will draw them in. This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to musical events this summer. And of course there are the weekly open mics! Thursdays at the Tavern and Sundays at Bailey's pub. Speaking of the Tavern, if you are a trivia junkie check out Monday Trivia night hosted by Steph Link! A great way to spend a Monday evening. Also a great date idea!

Another great way to spend the day is on a patio. A great daytime date is a backyard BBQ! Friends, good food and a backyard game such as washer toss. A few cold ones and a beautiful day is all you need. Don't have your own patio? Check out some of the great patios in the town restaurants. My favourites are Paddy's and Moxies. I've never been to the Fox Den but I am really looking forward to checking it out this summer and Wood Buffalo Brew Pub has an outdoor deck that I am very excited about sipping their delicious beer on. I hear there's a new IPA! When the sun goes down (and when there is no fire ban of course!) grab a guitar, some marshmallows and some cozy sweaters! Snuggle up around a backyard firepit and enjoy a beautiful northern summer night. On a clear night you can see the northern lights. They are predicted to be out tonight! http://www.gi.alaska.edu/AuroraForecast/NorthAmerica/2013/06/01 Also, check out some of the many beautiful parks around town. I love the splash park at Howard Pew in Waterways!

I am barely scratching the surface Mcmurray! Check out local community calenders for more events.Read local publishings such as Mcmurray Girl (big fan!), YMM magazine, SNAP Wood Buffalo, Fort Mcmurray Connect or Fort McMurray today. A huge thing to become involved in if you want to keep up on events in the community is twitter! I only started using it a few months ago. I have met tons of new people, been to places I didn't even know were in town and been exposed to some fantastic local music and theatre!

For Theatre and Arts follow:
Russell Thomas @rvthomas67
Misty Oakes @mystonic
Steph Link @TriviaNightTav
YMM Podcast @ymmpodcast
Dawn Booth @DMLB724

For Local News, Events and Music:
Fort Mcmurray Today @FortMacToday
YMM Magazine @ymm_magazine
Rock 97.9 @rock979
Country 93.3 @Country933
KRock @1005KRock
SNAP Wood Buffalo @SNAPWoodBuffalo
Mix 103.7 @Mix1037FMNews
Events Wood Buffalo @Events_YMM
KAOS 91.1 @kaos911radio

And for kicks, follow some of the funniest and greatest people in town!

Toddske @toddske
McMurray Musings @McMurrayMusings
Julia Bennet @juliaebennett
Nolan Haukeness @Nolan_H
Fort McMurray Raven @FortMacRaven (Pretty sure I am his biggest fan!)
Alli Kenning @AlliKenning (My Leafs partner in crime!)
Marshall Madness @MadnessOnAir
Marina Smith @boatdocksmith
ka-pow @January82
Kelsey Lundquist @KelsLunk
Ashley Laurenson @ashcakesquiggle
Shannon @Shann_18
Maryanne Gillam @maryannegillam
Amanda Weisbrod @ADubs84
Stacey @GURGzombies
Jenine @jenmur84 (Hey! Thats me!)
And many, many more!!! following the #ymm is also a great source of info and more great people!

Stop grumbling that there is nothing to do in town. If you bother to look around you could have an action packed summer! Get out there, meet new people, get involved in your community and come to love Mcmurray the way that I do.