{"id":36854,"date":"2019-06-21T08:27:28","date_gmt":"2019-06-21T15:27:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/?p=36854"},"modified":"2019-06-21T08:27:28","modified_gmt":"2019-06-21T15:27:28","slug":"friday-fun-solstice-means-its-summertime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/2019\/06\/21\/friday-fun-solstice-means-its-summertime\/","title":{"rendered":"Friday Fun: Solstice Means It’s Summertime!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today marks the Summer Solstice<\/em> \u2013 and the beginning of summertime!<\/span><\/p>\n

For a lot of folks, tradition is that the “official” start of summer occurs at Stonehenge \u2013 the 4,500 year-old Neolithic monument in England.\u00a0 At 15:54 UTC (that\u2019s 10:54 a.m. CDT) summer officially begins.\u00a0 But for the thousands who gathered there in the darkness before sunrise today, the actual start is in the early morning hours when the sun peeks above Stonehenge’s Heel Stone (which leads up to the monument’s Stone Circle) and the first rays shine directly into the center of the circle … that’s<\/em><\/span> the start of summer.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Now I’m not going to get all wonky with science about the Solstice \u2013 but I will share one illustration that gives a simple overview.\u00a0 The earth’s 23.5-degree tilt on its axis puts those of us in the northern hemisphere as close to the sun as we’ll be \u2026 hence, SUMMER!<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

But there are two other related areas I want to cover.\u00a0 The first is New York’s answer to Stonehenge: Manhattanhenge<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

But instead of huge stones weighing up to 25-30 tons, they use skyscrapers to plot the exact alignment of the sun precisely dissecting the city’s grid of east-west cross streets.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But since Manhattan\u2019s east-west streets are aligned at about a 29\u00b0 angle clockwise from true east-west, they create Manhattanhenge a couple of weeks before and a couple of weeks after the Summer Solstice.\u00a0 The exact date varies each year, depending on the date of the summer solstice, but they usually fall around May 28th and July 12th.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The colloquial usage of \u201chenge\u201d to refer to any place where the rising or setting sun lines up with the surrounding structures has spread.\u00a0 Manhattanhenge is probably the best known, but other communities built on grid designs have their own \u201chenges.\u201d \u00a0There\u2019s Chicagohenge (it occurs on the equinoxes), Torontohenge, Montrealhenge, and even MIThenge.\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In fact MIT was the first to notice this phenomenon down what has become called “The Infinite Corridor”<\/i><\/a>.\u00a0 It’s a corridor that links buildings numbered 7, 3, 10, 4, and 8 (from west to east), and it measures 825 feet (251 meters, 0.16 miles or 147 <\/span>smoots<\/a><\/span>) long.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

And here’s my Chicagohenge:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

But what I think you’ll really enjoy about today are all the FREEBIES and DISCOUNTS<\/a>!<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What better way to celebrate the beginning of summer than with some ice cream?\u00a0 And <\/span>Dairy Queen<\/a><\/b>\u00a0is offering a treat on the DQ mobile app and with any purchase Friday you’ll get a free small regular or dipped cone. \u00a0Download the app at\u00a0<\/span>www.dairyqueen.com\/app<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

But today is not only Summer Solstice day \u2013 but also National Smoothie Day<\/i><\/b> (as well as <\/span>National Selfie Day<\/a>,\u00a0<\/span>Take Your Dog to Work Day<\/a>, National Seashell Day and\u00a0National Take Back the Lunch Break Day, according to\u00a0<\/span>NationalDayCalendar.com<\/a><\/span>.)\u00a0 So let’s hope there’s a smoothie vendor close to you offering a sweet treat:<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Edible Arrangements<\/a>: <\/span><\/b>Get $1.99 smoothies or fruit cups (if they don’t sell smoothies) through Sunday. \u00a0The deal is available at stores and for in-store orders placed online with promo code SMOOTHIE.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Fruitlove<\/a>: <\/span><\/b>Get the new spoonable smoothie for free after a rebate from the Ibotta cashback app at select stores for National Smoothie Day.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Jamba<\/a>: <\/span><\/b>The chain, which recently changed its name from Jamba Juice, is giving away free small smoothies from 2 to 5 p.m. Friday. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

La Colombe Coffee Roasters<\/a>:<\/span><\/b> Get a free Mocha Draft Latte with any purchase Friday at all caf\u00e9 locations.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Nekter Juice Bar\u200f<\/span><\/a>: <\/span><\/b>Superfood smoothies are $5 Friday for rewards members at participating locations. Download the app at\u00a0<\/span>www.nekterjuicebar.com.<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Planet Smoothie<\/a>:<\/span><\/b>\u00a0From 2 to 4 p.m. Friday, get a free 16-ounce Mediterranean Monster smoothie. No purchase is necessary and limit one free smoothie while supplies last.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Potbelly Sandwich Shop<\/a>: <\/span><\/b>Through Friday, the chain is celebrating “Take Back Your Lunch Day” with a buy-one-get-one free offer on sandwiches, salads\u00a0or Pick-Your-Pair.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Red Mango<\/a>: <\/span><\/b>Get 50% off any smoothie\u00a0Friday.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Robeks Fresh Juices & Smoothies<\/a>:<\/span><\/b> Rewards members get triple rewards on all in-store and online purchases Friday. Sign up for the loyalty program at\u00a0<\/span>www.robeks.com.<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Smoothie Factory<\/a>:<\/span><\/b>\u00a0Smoothies\u00a0are half price Friday.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Smoothie King<\/a>: <\/span><\/b>Use the chain\u2019s <\/span>Healthy Rewards app<\/a>\u00a0with a purchase Friday and get a free 20-ounce smoothie offer loaded on the app to redeem June 22-27. The free smoothie is limited to a $6 value. Get the app at\u00a0<\/span>www.smoothieking.com\/healthy-rewards<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tropical Smoothie Cafe<\/a>:\u00a0<\/span><\/b>As part of its National Flip Flop Day promotion, the chain is collecting donations through June 30. Donate $5 or more and get a discount for 5%\u00a0off your purchases for the rest of the year.\u00a0Learn more at\u00a0<\/span>www.nationalflipflopday.com<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

I had NO<\/i><\/b> idea there were so many smoothie outlets.\u00a0 I guess they’ve earned their Smoothies Day.\u00a0 But other food emporiums also have some good offers celebrating summer today:<\/span><\/p>\n

Boston Market<\/a>: <\/span><\/b>Bring in any sandwich \u2013 whether it\u2019s homemade or from a competitor \u2013 between 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday and get a free Boston Market sandwich.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Carl’s Jr.<\/a>:\u00a0<\/span><\/b>The chain\u2019s 100 Days of Summer promotion features a variety of limited-time offers and contests through August 20th<\/sup>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Dunkin<\/a>\u2019:<\/span><\/b> \u00a0<\/span>At restaurants Friday through Sunday<\/a><\/span>, DD Perks rewards members get one medium or large-sized iced and frozen beverages.<\/span><\/p>\n

Wayback Burgers<\/a>:<\/span><\/b> Friday is the chain’s\u00a0<\/span>Free Shake Day<\/a><\/span>. Get a free 12-ounce Black & White Milkshake, while supplies last at participating locations.<\/span><\/p>\n

Wendy’s<\/a>: <\/span><\/b>Starting Friday and through July 14, get a free half-size <\/span>Berry Burst Salad<\/a> with any purchase using the <\/span>Wendy\u2019s mobile app<\/a><\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

So get out there and start your summer right by joining in on our great American pastime: EATING!<\/strong><\/em><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Today marks the Summer Solstice \u2013 and the beginning of summertime! For a lot of folks, tradition is that the “official” start of summer occurs at Stonehenge \u2013 the 4,500 year-old Neolithic monument in England.\u00a0 At 15:54 UTC (that\u2019s 10:54 a.m. CDT) summer officially begins.\u00a0 But for the thousands who gathered there in the darkness […]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36854","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","category-5-id","post-seq-1","post-parity-odd","meta-position-corners","fix"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36854","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36854"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36854\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36854"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36854"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36854"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}