The best of summer

Ahhh, summer is almost here. Most of you will be busy with jobs, school, and lovin’ a la Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta. You probably won’t have time to – gasp – keep up with all the best things in pop culture. But never fear, Stefania is here! As a gift to anyone that has read my column this past year, or just anyone that is reading now, I will enlighten you with the top five best things of summer.\n1. Music festivals. July 13 through 15, Chicago will be hosting Pitchfork Music Festival with the likes of Sonic Youth, Girl Talk, Stephen Malkmus and De La Soul. Three-day passes are only $50!\nAugust 3 through 5, the much larger Lollapalooza will also be in Chi-town. Ticket prices are $195, while artists such as Pearl Jam, Daft Punk, M.I.A. and LCD Soundsystem will be performing. \nJune 14 through 17, Bonnaroo will he held in Manchester, Tenn. Tickets range from $184 to $215, and some of the best acts include The Flaming Lips, Girl Talk (again!) Lilly Allen and Ween. \nIf you’re broke, you might have a good laugh at a totally free Ozzfest near you.\n2. Movie sequels. What do Harry Potter, Spider-man and Shrek all have in common? They will be invading movie screens and kids’ meals all season long. Other add-on movies coming out are “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End,” “Rush Hour 3,” “Hostel: Part II” and “Ocean’s Thirteen.” I can’t really guarantee the quality of any of these films, but be sure to check out Spider-man’s soundtrack. Contributing artists include The Flaming Lips, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Coconut Records a.k.a. Jason Schwartzman. Looks like Spidey got bit by a bug that made him get better music taste. \n3. The iPhone. It’s a cell phone! It’s an iPod! It’s a computer! Yes, it’s all three, and it’s Apple’s latest gadget that will burn your pocket. Coming out in June, it will probably be the coolest thing you can blow all your summer job money on. I could try and pretend like I know about technology by paraphrasing some sources, but I won’t. It just looks so damn cool and you know it. \n4. “30 Rock” reruns. So many new TV shows came out this past year, and to be honest it was a bit overwhelming. Most people were hooked on the “American Idol” monopoly and all things Sanjaya. Others were just trying to not get too confused while watching “Lost.” I mainly mourned the loss of “The OC.” But out of all the many fresh shows I tried out this year, “30 Rock” is by far the best. Set in a “Saturday Night Live”-like setting, the show portrays the relationship between head writer Tina Fey, starring actor Tracy Morgan and business exec Alec Baldwin. It was created and written by Tina Fey, who is always nothing short of hilarious. With her awkwardness, Morgan’s sheer ridiculousness, and Baldwin’s sharp comments, “30 Rock” will hopefully have a long-lasting future. \n5. Shaved ice. Enough said. \nHave a good summer, y’all!