There are two signature, unofficial-start-of-summer events in my calendar. The first, of course, is the Shad Bake, which was noted yesterday, and the second, which takes place on Memorial Day, is our town's wonderful parade. On display is everything from a civil war contingent, to our military—sometimes with a fly-over—and from our school kids and fire departments to town organizations like the Garden Club, Little League, and the Historical Society and the bedrock agricultural foundations of North Stonington. There are also appearances by our local politicians and a raft of vintage cars. Essentially, you're either in the parade or you're watching it. I've done both, but for the past few years, my job has been to serve as audience—my kids are long grown, and my grandkids are not in one of the marching groups... yet—and documentarian. I was ready this morning, but the weather was not going to cooperate. The rain pelted down, and by 8:30, the notice on the town's website read "cancelled." Darn. Still, the deluge notwithstanding, today is supposed to be the kickoff to summer. We should start the season with a bang. Here 'tis.