We were out of town for the holiday weekend, which now seems like six years ago—with the get-the-kids-to-school morning scrambles now well underway, I miss summer more than I thought possible.

We took our vacation in Montauk, a most magical place where the beaches are surrounded by high buffs that the wind has carved into fantastical shapes mirroring the rocks of Cappadocia. The surf was high, the company amazing, and the weather great. Traffic was another story, though, and after a long, long trip back to New York City on a parking-lot-like Route 27, I was relieved to find a bag of Bolognese in our freezer.

This is my tip for the day: always be able to replace a last-minute take-out meal with one from your freezer. It requires a bit of planning (to make the sauce ahead of time), but think of the comfort, pleasure, and happiness of knowing that you are moments away from a good meal whenever you might need one. Even if your stuck in traffic.

I know I've written about Bolognese before, so for those readers who know its joys, I want to leave you with something else--a bit of new music. While we were at the rental house, we listened to Beirut, a little indie-rock group with a Balkan-vibe led by a talented young songwriter named Zach Condon. Here's the title track to their latest album, fittingly enough dubbed "The Rip Tide."