The Summer in Review

Like, oh my god. It's been almost a month since I posted, and I think that confirms the musings included in "Maybe This Was a Bad Idea." It probably was - I didn't have that many adventures this summer. At least not in the way most people would think of adventures.

Right now I'm wearing socks that say "Happy Hannukkah" on them. And after this weekend (which I miraculously have off from work), summer will be no more. That's right - classes start on Monday. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't kind of excited.

In any event, let's recap. What have I accomplished this summer? I watched Sex and the City in its entirety (you know, for the fiftieth time or so). I started smoking (again). I bought at least five new pairs of shoes and two handbags. I did a lot of reading - I specifically recommend Tom Robbins' "Still Life with Woodpecker," Erik Larson's "The Devil in the White City," and Lorrie Moore's "Birds of America." I didn't get around to rereading "Love in the Time of Cholera" or "100 Years of Solitude" (both by Gabriel Garcia Marquez), but they're amazing as well.

Something else I did this summer is wear a lot of skirts. In fact, people at work seem bewildered when I show up wearing pants of any kind. I went to a wedding, had a couple drunken nights during which I made some bad decisions, and spent a lot of time at the Lake of the Ozarks, on the patio off my bedroom, and the front stoop of my building. I listened to a lot of Iron & Wine, made a few mix CDs, spent some quality time with the people I love the most. I got some terrible sunburns and some great tans, lost some weight and gained some too. Somehow I also gained a bunch of throw pillows. We started the summer with four and by now we've got at least ten. I don't know how that happened.

All in all, not a bad time. I'm ready for school to start but I can't deny that I've had some great times. Oh, but next summer? Italy, here I come. That's right. I imagine the possibility of a daily adventure will be much higher there, but there's something to be said for ol' Columbia. It's boring but at the end of the day, it's home, after all.