The end of July for some involves the impending realization that summer is coming to a close much faster than we'd like. College students are getting ready to pack up there lives again and move back to their lives of studying, overpriced textbooks, and easy macaroni and cheese as their gourmet meal of the day. However, for natives of Grand Haven, Michigan -- and those in the surrounding areas -- the end of July equates to the beginning of the biggest festival of the summer. For tourists, Coast Guard Festival means endless fun in a tiny town next to a gorgeous beach on Lake Michigan. Coast Guard Festival for a Grand Haven native, however, is usually a little more complex than this. Here are some facts about the upcoming week that only the locals will truly understand and appreciate. We see it all.

1. The giant sign on Dewey Hill that reads, "COAST GUARD CITY, USA" has made a reappearance.

It's only on that magnificent hill across the river for the duration of the festival, so once it's there, you know what's about to come. Also it makes me feel like we're comparable to Hollywood -- even though we're totally not -- but it just makes me really happy and excited.

2. Once the Parade of Boats comes to town you know that's when the festivities really begin.

The Coast Guard boats docking on the boardwalk for the week is a huge celebration and preamble for the week to come. It's one of the biggest telltale signs that it's that time of the year again. A good kind of Deja vu if you may.

3. Finding a parking spot in less than 10 minutes is unheard of.

Yes, this is an actual picture from Grand Haven during Coast Guard Festival

Grand Haven is already not suited for the tripled increase in population that the summer months bring, but as soon as the festival comes to town it's a nightmare come to life. This is our town and we can't even enjoy this glorious week because an obscene amount of tourists are invading downtown. We should get priority parking. I'm just saying. And, you know this is true for cars and boats.

4. You're never wishy-washy about going downtown; you're either going or you're not.

Coast Guard Festival is not for the faint of heart. If you want to brave the great streets of Washington and Harbor Drive during this timeless week, you have to be incredibly dedicated and determined to convince yourself to drive downtown. It is a process. If you're going, it means you're dealing with the parking fiasco, too many people and extreme humidity. You have to put on your battle faces. This is our town! We can do it!

5. You probably avoid downtown like the plague for most of the week.

Honestly, you've seen Coast Guard. You know what it's about. If you can avoid the craziness--which means avoiding downtown whatever it takes -- you will. It's just not worth the stress when you could just as easily stay home with close friends and family and probably have more fun. For myself, my friends and I choose one day out of the whole week to go down and I avoid downtown at all costs on the other days. I just don't want to deal with it. This is my 20th festival after all. I might not even go this year.

6. Or you're a Coast Guard Festival fanatic and you're downtown any chance you get during the week.

Coast Guard is definitely an experience and I'm not surprised that some locals gravitate to it. Honestly, not a lot happens in Grand Haven during the fall, winter and spring, so Coast Guard is the big hurrah of the year. Have to soak it in while you can.

7. There is a universal look amongst locals when we talk about Coast Guard being just around the corner.

We all know the craziness that comes with Coast Guard Festival. I swear every time I've said something remotely close to, "So, Coast Guard is next week..." myself and the person I'm speaking with both do a slow little nod, our eyes get really big, we raise our eyebrows and half-smile to take pity on ourselves. It's a sign of understanding that we're about to face a week of insanity and inability to predict what will happen. We're there for each other, it's okay. We'll get through this together.

8. You know that downtown will have the most appealing aroma for the duration of the week because of the number of food trucks around.

The city of Grand Haven literally blocks off an entire parking strip for the purpose of putting a whole lot of food there. I am in no way, shape or form complaining about this fact. It's amazing walking along this strip and seeing the diversity of food choices that have arrived in our small West Michigan town.

9. Even if you're not a huge fan of attending every single event that the festival offers, there's probably a couple aspects of it that you just need to see through before the week is out.

Maybe you're a carnival junky and need some adrenaline. Or maybe you're a stinker for the fireworks on the very last night despite the awful traffic that will follow. For me though, it's honestly the food. Not going to lie. Gotta have me some carnival corn dogs, an elephant ear, or something from that strip of food trucks on Harbor Drive. Basically, if it's outrageously bad for me, I'll probably seek it out.

10. Every local knows that the fireworks show is always better on Coast Guard Saturday than it is on the 4th of July.

Call it pride in one's home if you will. We're called "Coast Guard City, USA" for a reason and we have to own up to that title. And again, Coast Guard Festival is the biggest event that happens in Grand Haven all year so naturally we're going to go a little nuts on celebrating the people that have served.

Coast Guard Festival is the most important time of the year for the locals of Grand Haven, Michigan -- whether we participate in the festivities or not. It's what makes Grand Haven, Grand Haven. It's an immense and well deserved "thank you" to the people that have so graciously offered their services in the Coast Guard.

You save lives, and we are grateful to know that you're so close to our side when we need you to be.