My intention never was to kill this blog. I just somehow drifted into that summer state of mind, where going outdoors or lounging at the Tavern with friends seemed a more viable alternative to, well, sitting indoors and typing on a keyboard. The truth is, I have missed writing. So many times over these past three months, I have wanted to jot things down here, at least to jog my memory for later, but haven't quite put two and two together well enough to make anything legible.
A lot has happened this summer. And, a lot hasn't, but I think that's okay. I think I've managed to (almost) conquer my third summer as a true Minnesotan. Humidity, mosquitoes, warm nights in the city and down here in this little town -- it all seems like part of my soul now, almost to the degree I feel when I'm home. I went on more excursions to lake cabins (as seen above) than in years past, which led me to discover something I never knew I missed so much as a child: LAKES. Up at the Wagner cabin, I spent the 4th of July in a blissful heatstroke, laying on a wooden dock and reading until it was too hot to bear, then walking into the lake when it felt too hot. Nights were spent laughing until I couldn't sit up at their father's hilarity and mom's even-keeled humor. During a different weekend, my friend Kelsey's cabin brought my first pontoon experience, complete with me emerging as hero after a particularly intense tube rescue. Later, we sat around the fire with our Summer Shandies, played charades, and from what I remember, entertained ideas about our bigger life plans.
Speaking of life plans, whew. This summer brought my first wave of friends' wedding invites, mainly for the fall. As I write this, I'm fresh off attending my first friend wedding, which was like nothing I've ever experienced. A complete celebration, lavishly tasteful, and full of so much love it sort of renewed my outlook on a few things. However, on the other side of the spectrum, I've witnessed some dear friends go through the kinds of breakups so gut-wrenching it's hard to believe you'll come out alive.
I said goodbye to one long-term roommate; hello to a lovely short-term squatter; and finally welcomed my third roommate to our little apartment for the coming year. It will be full of so many laughs, I can tell already. You know when you have a friend whose laugh alone makes you chuckle? This is how it will be with this one. Just tonight, we had Ryan Reynolds Night, unintentionally -- our viewing of "The Proposal" was punctuated by her frequent comments of "...I MEAN CAN YOU BELIEVE HIS BODY RIGHT NOW?!!!! SICK!!" and my agreeing.
Finally, I took two trips to see the people I love dearly: my best friend in LA, and my family in Wyoming (the Wyoming trip for 2 weeks, amazingly). It was difficult to leave home this time, for reasons I can't seem to completely grasp. I realized (especially during this particularly horrendous bout of humidity and heat this past week), that I genuinely miss home. Wyoming has a way of exposing even the strongest to a point where it feels like there's no return. You feel a sort of self-reliance in Wyoming, which I miss. I miss its raw quality. And, I miss my parents. Two people so incredibly full of love, and dedicated to each other and to our family, I constantly wonder how I'll ever be able to find that kind of best friend.
I will try to post more frequently, especially as I begin to unwrap these summer months and get deeper into my upcoming travel season for work. In the meantime, I'll enjoy what weeks are left of summer and try to grasp the start of what is my "junior" year of real life.
