IT'S JUST ABOUT THE BEGINNING OF AUGUST... when we vow we're only going to consume cooling foods for the foreseeable future. We announce that the oven is off for the next several weeks, and the stove is going to take a staycation. We'll eat salads, thank you very much, and citrus-based desserts, and any sort of edible that arrives on a bed of crushed ice. Call it a coincidence, or call it lucky, but it just so happens that one of the keep-cool foodstuffs most associated with the hottest time of the year has its annual Southern California whoop-di-doo in August, right around the time we've vowed to not heat any meals for the next couple of months. If you're guessing we're talking about the venerable Watermelon Festival that's associated with Sunland-Tujunga, you'd be correct, but the Lions Club/Chamber of Commerce-sponsored party has a new location for its next outing: the Hansen Dam Soccer Park Complex at Lake View Terrace. Will there be...
A SEED-SPITTING CONTEST? The 54-year-old festival wouldn't be the same without one. How about a watermelon relay, or the chance to make art in a watermelon-carving competition? Those are on the dribble-sweet docket, too. Other sweet haps, from carnival rides to games to face painting, are as much a part of the merriment as the famous fruit itself. As for the dates? Be there over the middle weekend in August: Aug. 13 and 14. "(C)haritable projects in the community" will benefit, and everyone who gets a slice, or six, of watermelon, will enjoy the hallowed August pursuit of eating one of the coolest, most refreshing foodstuffs imaginable.
