As the leaves turn from green to yellow, Nike shorts turn to gray kilts, Chacos turn to Sperry’s. And the sleeves on chambray shirts are slowly rolled back down. It is officially time to kiss Summer 2012 goodbye.
To quote Keith Urban, it was “a long hot summer” in Kansas City with temperatures often going over 100 degrees. The heat was a lot for many people such as senior Kate Bello who compared it to 40 days in the desert.
However, others like senior Marina Dennis saw it as a problem from a more environmental perspective.
“We need to start planting native plants,” Dennis said.
Dennis’ concern is the fact that much of the landscaping in the Kansas City area is not native and can’t handle the extreme heat which is why lots of trees, grass, and other plants are dying and turning brown.
While it was a bigger concern to some people such as Bello and Dennis, others didn’t really see it as being so bad. Senior Bailey Crawford pointed out that it is better than it’s alternative.
“I’d rather have a hot summer than a cold one,” Crawford said.
Whether they didn’t mind the heat or couldn’t stand it, people found that Kansas City had a lot to offer this summer. The All Star game put the city in the spotlight. Red Rock KC helped raise money for a new ambulance. And superhero movies, The Amazing Spider-man, The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises, filled the screens.
Not too far from Kansas City in Aurora, Colo., there was a shooting during The Dark Knight Rises midnight premiere which struck the nation. Many movie theatres put up higher security measures such as the local AMC Town Center where senior Ellie Fritts works.
“Our summer attendance went way down after the shooting. A couple weeks after the shooting you could tell there was a little more security,” Fritts said. “Everybody who works at AMC had to watch a video about active shooters and read a book about how to handle it.”
Very far from Kansas City but close on the television screen, American athletes competed in London at the 2012 Olympics. The United States won a total of 104 medals of which 46 were gold, landing us in first for the medal count. Some of the more memorable Gold medals included the Team All-Around for women’s gymnastics, gymnast Gabby Douglas’s win in the Individual All-Around, and men’s 4×100 medley relay team of Michael Phelps, Brendan Hansen, Matt Grevers and Nathan Adrian.
Inside and outside of Kansas City, Summer 2012 was filled with heat, tragedy, superheroes, concerts, athletics, and memories. Who can forget when Michael Phelps officially set the record for most medals of any Olympic athlete? Who can forget the feeling of 108 degrees on the back of their neck? Who can forget the way people come together in the face of adversity? Who can forget Summer 2012?
The answer is simple. No one can.