We drove to Red Lake, Ontario

One of my buddies growing up moved with his family to Red Lake. We couldn't even imagine the desolation/isolation and we were from a pretty small northern Ontario town ourselves.

Favorite summer dessert? Fresh strawberries. And creamsicles from the ice cream man.

Beach or pool? Both! But the pool for the sheer get-cool-in-the-water convenience of it.

Predictions on the overplayed song of summer '05? I'm going with Kat on the Rob Thomas song.

What was your worst family summer vacation? As a kid, it was probably the year we had no money for a vacation and instead accompanied my dad on some sales calls in Delaware and Pennsylvania, on the way to the family reunion in West Virginia. Which meant lots of time in the car, and lots of evenings in hotel rooms watching bad TV while my mom and dad took clients out to dinner. Bo-ring. And then the non-anticipation of seeing my cousins, who drove me insane.

Your best? Last year, Outer Banks, with the kids and my parents. Great weather, lots of very mellow family time, good seafood.

favorite summer beverage:

Summer is practically the only time I want white wine. Well chilled, to be sipped in the afternoon outside on the porch/deck/verandah/fire escape.

I also love English Raspberries - Irish Cream (not Bailey's, I think St. Brendan's might be what I use) and Chambord shaken with ice. So good, yet so deadly for productivity. Once I have one, I can't do anything the rest of the day but sit around drinking them and chatting with whoever else is having them with me.

And in the heat of August, those sugary tourist drinks like Hand Grenades are surprisingly tasty. I really need to work up a good sweat and have no access to a/c in teh near fuuture to want one, though.

What is this Jack radio format? Does that just mean no DJ's?

It's a much bigger playlist than most commercial stations have, with no real clearly defined format -- pretty much anything from the late sixties until the late nineties could be in there. No DJs, just music, and no real order to the songs.

What is this Jack radio format? Does that just mean no DJ's?

No DJs, and I think they're going with "anything rock-ish since the 70s is fair game". Their tag line is "Playing what we want". It's obviously automated, and they have a few too many ID blurbs between songs, but they manage to personalize those for the locale enough to make it less obviously a franchise.

I like it because they play the 80s rock that so many stations think they're too good to play. I loves my big-hair bands. I hadn't heard Ratt in ages.

Oh, I remember that '84 Olympic Games summer. My grandmother took us to the Coliseum to see some of the early rounds of the diving competition. Good times.

We had recently gotten a tiny black and white tv that plugged into the cigarette lighter, and we brought that with us so we could see the competitions while we were camping. Somehow, it always seems like I must have been in LA for those Games, but I wasn't at all.

they manage to personalize those for the locale enough to make it less obviously a franchise

But it is the same robo-playlist at all/many of the Jack stations. It is funny (and painful) to be doing a long distance drive, pick up a new station, and hear exactly the same set over again. Still, I really dislike the dumb call-in, audience participation games/advertising/pimpage that most stations overdo, and the Jack stations are clear of that stuff, for the most part.

Favorite summer dessert? Key Lime pie. Though there's a lot to be said for Jello (black cherry preferred, though it's hard to go wrong) with whipped cream.

Beach or pool? Nice sandy beach. Warm sunny day. If it isn't heaven, it'll do 'til the real thing comes along.

Predictions on the overplayed song of summer '05? I also don't listen to much U.S. radio. Though I've started hearing a new Mariah Carey song that is going to get very old very fast.

What was your worst family summer vacation? North woods. Cabin/tent/camper by a lake. And a week's worth of rain. Happened several times, though the worst was probably the year that the first sunny day was the day we drove home.

Your best? Probably St. Louis. Six Flags amusement park. A car museum. Great stuff for a 14YO.

No DJs, and I think they're going with "anything rock-ish since the 70s is fair game". Their tag line is "Playing what we want". It's obviously automated, and they have a few too many ID blurbs between songs, but they manage to personalize those for the locale enough to make it less obviously a franchise.

Dear God, we're trapped in that episode of WKRP in Cincinnati.

Ooh, Jello with whipped cream. That is good. Though I always get it at cafeterias and never make it at home.