Whether it's concerts in the mountains or Shakespeare under the stars, our state has it all. Here in Boulder County, we've got RockyGrass and the Colorado Shakespeare Festival, not to mention more than 200 miles of Open Space and Mountain Parks trails for hikers, bikers and equestrians.

"The reason we chose this exhibit is because of how much music there is in Boulder," says Susan Linde, marketing director for the museum. "During the summer months, there's the Colorado Music Festival, the RockyGrass Festival out in Lyons. There's such a wealth of music based in Boulder."

With the possible exception of the Euclid lot, parking on campus can be a pain, so you might try scoring a metered spot on the northwest side, along University between 17th and Broadway. From there, you can see the backside of your first stop, the towering Macky Auditorium.

Why we live here, why we stay, what we love about Boulder County it always comes back to the mountains. The geological accident that makes up Boulder County's backyard is nothing less than breathtaking.

Summer is a special time in Colorado. The word conjures up memories of the hot sun beating down onto your back on the mountain biking trail, the rush of the cold river water spraying your face as you navigate a rapid, and the lush and vibrant carpet of colorful wildflowers in a valley deep in the mountains.

If you put all the guitar strings, piano wire, drum sticks and horns that are strummed, plucked, struck and blown in one summer here in Boulder end to end, it would reach clear to the Moon and back. At least that's how it seems, with all the concerts, festivals, open mics, bluegrass picks and recitals going on from now until the end of August.

Finding something to do in Boulder during the summer is hard, and not because there's nothing going on. Unlike the residents of, say, Maza, N.D., (population: 5), we never have to worry about what to do on a Saturday night.

Pioneered and coordinated by film aficionado Joel Haertling, the Boulder Public Library Summer Cinema Program goes beyond popcorn flicks and offers up films that are themed, eye-opening and just plain fun for the whole family.