There’s a particular kind of pressure on summer weekends to get up and get out, to do something worthy of the bounty of warmth and light. The options are picturesque and limitless: Will you swim or hike or simply stroll? Perhaps a picnic! Rent bikes? You always say you’re going to read under that tree, what’s stopping you? Oh, the places you said you’d explore, the outdoor tasks you’d finish, the plans you made last February when you felt cold and constrained and said “as soon as it’s warmer” and look, now it is.

It’s enough, some weekends, to make you wish for a rainy day.

Even those of us who wait all year for July to open its golden gate and let us out feel a little bullied by summer’s mandate to exploit the day. The promise of your days off is that you’re free to do whatever you please. Which includes lying here by the air conditioning vent with a glass of lemonade — maybe with a book, maybe even watching something on a screen — undisturbed by ants or mosquitoes or other habitants of the outside world.

But even though we know we’re the captains of our own weekends, the guilt is real. By the time most of us get up, the sun’s rays are already beating on the backside of the curtains like a dog at the door: let me in, let’s go, what are you waiting for?

Even in this, the longest possible unofficial summer, I’m painfully aware there are a mere 16 weekends, and the squandering of even one can feel wasteful. My internal taskmaster prods me off the couch and into the world with bleak prophecies of the first frost and 4 p.m. dusk.

I took a wrong turn on my drive home from out of town last Sunday that resulted in a late-night detour on the minor highways of New Jersey, a dreaded tunnel-bound traffic jam where no matter how many times I switched lanes, I was in the wrong one. I had two friends in the car and felt terrible about subjecting them to this purgatory, this waste of a precious summer weekend. Then I tried to flip the script, to approach the moment with a spirit of abundance. The situation was annoying but not altogether unpleasant. I was with two friends; we were talking and singing along with the radio and spending our time on earth gazing at miles of taillights arrayed against the darkness together. It felt at first like we were being kept from living our lives, but of course the whole time we were still living them.

In the winter, staying inside is a cozy privilege, an act of restorative self-care. In the summer, we cast it as burning daylight, almost a moral failure. I try to remind myself on those days I decide to nap or do laundry or otherwise forgo the obvious pleasures of the season that the days aren’t a project to be managed. That I’m living and breathing and thinking and experiencing within them no matter what I’m doing.

The story I tell of how I spent my summer weekend may sound better if it unfolds at the beach or the barbecue than under a blanket on the couch — or on the New Jersey Turnpike, for that matter. But the setting of the story doesn’t really matter that much. We take turns that may at first seem misguided, but eventually, finally, we arrive back at home.

ICE’S LEGAL RECORD

Federal prosecutors seldom lose cases. More than 90 percent of criminal defendants plead guilty or are convicted at trial.

But over the past year, those prosecutors have lost about half their cases against people charged with assaulting immigration officers. A Times investigation has found that is at least partly because Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have engaged in misconduct as they try to meet President Trump’s aggressive deportation goals. Here’s some of what our reporters uncovered:

• The Trump administration has charged more than 550 people with assaulting federal officers — far more than previously known. About 400 cases have been resolved so far. In 214, the defendants were acquitted or the charges were dropped.

• In dozens of the cases, videos and court records show that federal agents were the first to get physical — shoving, tackling or pepper-spraying defendants. In at least seven, officers’ own conduct caused their injuries. Two judges found that agents intentionally destroyed evidence.

The Times obtained court filings for every case, interviewed witnesses and federal officials and watched videos of dozens of confrontations. Read the investigation, or click below to watch one of the reporters, Danny Hakim, explain what he found.

The Hunt: Three generations of women chipped in what they could to find a three-bedroom house near Philadelphia for less than $400,000. What did they choose? Play our game.

What you get for $425,000: A townhouse in Savannah, Ga., a condo in Providence, R.I., and a desert home in Tucson, Ariz.

Pick your favorite: An eight-bedroom compound, a forest villa and a contemporary indoor-outdoor house are all on the market in Costa Rica for $1.9 million. Which would you choose?

LIVING

Second home first: City dwellers priced out of their local markets are looking to vacation and weekend homes as a path to home ownership.

Consider a townhouse. They can cost less to build and buy, and often are easier to maintain.

Quiet down: A home’s moans and groans can drive you crazy. Here’s how to silence some of the noise.

ADVICE FROM WIRECUTTER

How to clear your home of wildfire smoke

Picking up a dedicated air purifier or getting new filters for your central air-conditioner are the most effective ways you can help protect those in your home. (That includes pets.) But there are also cheaper, simpler steps you can take: It may seem obvious, but close your windows. And fill in any gaps with weather sealing tape. Vacuuming can blow fine smoke particles that have settled back into the air, so try damp-mopping instead. Change clothes after spending time outdoors. Wash your sheets more often than normal. And keep a good mask on hand. — Tim Heffernan

Argentina vs. Spain, World Cup final: The most coveted trophy in sports is up for grabs tomorrow in an intense showdown between two soccer heavyweights. On one side is Argentina, the defending champion. They are fueled by a 39-year-old superstar, Lionel Messi, who is very likely playing in his last World Cup game. On the other side is Spain, a well-rounded squad with its own global sensation, Lamine Yamal, who just turned 19. The Spanish team has allowed only one goal in its seven World Cup games.

The match, in New Jersey, is on track to be the most expensive sporting event ever. It will cap off an unusually long World Cup that brought visitors from around the globe to the U.S. and persuaded many Americans to get into soccer, if only for a summer.

As you wait: Scroll through our favorite photos from this year’s tournament.

NOW TIME TO PLAY