Celebrations of Labor Do Not Mark the End of Times

Here's a fun idea you may not have thought of:  even though everyone just gathered 'round to celebrate the joys of employment (and unemployment), summer isn't over. When Labor Day was moved to September to keep Americans safe from the evils of Communism,  it wasn't also decided that the three-day long fuckoff would be THE mark that ends summer. So, what exactly does this all mean?Summer is nothing more than drinking outside, eating pig, pretending to listen to jazz while in a garden, and running around half-naked. And oh hey, so long as DC remains unbearably hot—which it will for quite some time—and/or until September 22 when fall actually begins, there are still plenty of summer-y activities that can still be enjoyed. You can still:

• Run around outside and nearly pass out from the heat at an outdoor festival:  Arts on Foot starts Wednesday, September 8, Adams Morgan Day is September 12, the H Street Festival is September 18, and D.C. VegFest , a celebration of all things vegetable, is September 11.

• Stand/sit outside in the miserable heat and drink. Poste and The Gibson have lovely patios for doing just that.

• Eat ridiculous amounts pig, just not necessarily from a pig that's been roasting for days in a parking lot, which is strange phenomenon to begin with. Try the  bacon infused vodka at Vinoteca, or, why stop there when you can eat donuts topped with crispy pieces of bacon at Birch & Barley or bacon covered in chocolate at Co.Co Sala? 

• Get drunk in the Sculpture Garden. September 10 is the last Jazz in the Garden. 

• Rent a kayak or canoe at Jack's Boathouse .

• Put your ass in a tube and glide down the Potomac with beer in hand because doing so is Fun/exhausting.

• Do some outdoorsy, like hike at Great Falls National Park. This is especially fun in the thousand degree weather.

• Buy local produce/ eats samples of local produce at a farmers market. 

• Swim. Yes, some DC public pools are still open and you (may) need a room key to get in to most hotel pools, but who says you can't sneak in when nice fellow accompanying his small children for a swim opens the door to the pool?

• Find refreshment courtesy of you childhood favorite drink that's now loaded with booze.