Last year's Summer Guide cover displayed A. an exclusive photo of Nicky Hilton in a Zurich hotel room performing something called the "Turkish Backpack" B. a picture of dachshund puppies cooling off in a puddle of water C. a drawing of a Godzilla-size George W. Bush rampaging through Midtown.

If you guessed C. , congratulations—you win a free copy of New York Press' Summer Guide O-Five.

Last year's Bush cover wasn't the sunniest of images for a traditionally sunny issue, but it captured the mood of the city as it girded itself for the late-August arrival of the Republican National Convention. Summer O-Five is happily free of any such looming shadows. As we go to press, the weather report is mostly sunny with high mayoral stupidity and only a slight chance of catastrophic terrorism. Not so bad, really. If during the next few months you find yourself cursing New York in summer, just remember those poor Floridians and their expected half-dozen level-5 hurricanes.

In the following pages, we suggest some ways to pass the hot season: rooftop and garden bars, parks, beaches, free concerts, films, galleries, a suggested reading list. But even if you can't be bothered to actually do any of these things, it's okay. As some downtown layabout once said, these are the days when laziness finds respectability. Enjoy them.

Alexander Zaitchik, Editor