Cabin Fever

It's Friday night, it's hot and there are so many fun things you could do.  So why do so many of you choose cabin fever and spend hours in the car on Friday night driving to BFE Minnesota?

"Holler if you're ready for some summer nights!" HELL YES we're ready for summer. It's 4th of July weekend and summer has finally arrived in the state of Minnesota and with the return friendlier weather we also have the return of cabin fever.

Cabin fever, by my diagnosis, is a Minnesotan sickness that even after my many years of residence I can't quite comprehend. Individuals and families acquire lakefront property anywhere from 1-3 hours drive time from their primary residence. On said land, they build "cabins" which are often nicer or more elaborate than their actual homes. Once said cabin is built, they spend every weekend from April to October "at the cabin." The fever sets in every year about the time Mother Nature decides to stop sending us snow every two days. Seriously, I don't get it. I wouldn't mind sitting with a tasty cocktail lakeside once or twice during the summer but EVERY single weekend?! Let me list the number of things wrong with this scenario...

1) Commuting--1-3 hours plus competing for road space with everyone else headed to the cabin. No thanks--I get enough of that Monday through Friday.

2) Summer is Short--how is it worth it have said cabin when you can't or won't use it for more than half the year.

3) You're Missing Out--I can only speak for my experiences in the Twin Cities but there are so many delightful things to see and do on summer weekends. Outdoor concerts, art fairs, farmer's markets, etc. Why do you want to miss all of this?

4) Vacations--Why would you want to exclusively spend your free time in one location summer after summer when there are so many delightful places in the world to visit?

5) Friends Coming Out of the Woodwork--You have a cabin? Wow, we should come and visit you some weekend. I see this over and over again, your cabin becomes something that everyone feels entitled to share.

6) Scheduling with Non-Cabin Friends--This is probably my biggest annoyance of them all. This Pavlovian desire to visit the cabin every weekend apparently precludes you from having any kind of social life with friends who stay local. When you're immediately out of spending time with me from Thursday night through Sunday night every weekend I get a little annoyed.

Now I realize that not being born Minnesotan that perhaps I can't truly appreciate heading to the cabin the way natives do. Perhaps it also has to do with me not being overly outdoorsy--who knows. Bottom line: I don't have the fever and I really don't understand those of you who do. I urge you to find the courage to cure yourself of this disease. It's 4th of July weekend and instead of heading to the cabin for the weekend, I will be indulging in tasty foods and beverages and wrap up my weekend in Gold Medal Park with friends to watch the fireworks!

SOURCE: Freefoto.com