My deepest apologies for being MIA for so long. The end of the school year was extremely hectic, especially considering that I was graduating from high school. But I've finally managed to closed that chapter of my life, and right now I'm kind of just hanging out in Life's Purgatory, waiting to begin the next stage of my life, which features me starting college (whoopie!).
I am beyond happy to be done with school (the unfortunate truth is, I HATE school; the even more unfortunate truth is that I have 8+ more years of it to look forward to, considering I do go on to go to medical school). My favorite part about the summer (besides the heat) is the time that I have. During the school year, I barely get the opportunity to do things that I want to do because I have so much work to do. But in the summer months, I get a significant amount of time to myself. That especially applies to this summer, because I don't have to worry about test scores or getting in to college, and I'm not doing any summer internships like I was last year.
However, there is still something in my life that demands ridiculous amounts of attention and manages to suck a significant amount of my free time.
That's right. I'm talking about SUBWAY.
I won't get too much into it, but I don't think one understands how much goes into running a business until they've experienced it first-hand. Especially a business like Subway, which is a customer service industry that relies on manual labor. To sum it up, my mother often times refers to the franchises as "her babies", which accurately captures how much work and attention they require.
(Also, you know that something has consumed your life when you dream about it on a consistent basis.)
Despite these circumstances, I still do have a lot more free time than I would if I were still in school. So I've been able to use this time to do things that either I have recently taken an interest in, or have been longing to do for some time now.
These things include:
-Yoga/Pilates: I got interested in Yoga and Pilates sometime in 2012. I find myself preferring Pilates over Yoga, since Pilates works on strengthening and toning along with flexibility and elongating. The reason that I have been engaging in yoga more though is because I really want to be able to do the different poses and flows that yogis do that incorporate handstands. So far, I'm working on gaining more range of
-Writing a book: This has been a dream of mine since around the third grade. I had a previous goal to publish a book of some sort before graduating high school. Rather than looking at that as a failed endeavor, I try to see it as a goal that needs a little altering. So I have changed the goal to publish a book before turning the age of 19 (but I'm really working hard to finish a novel before I start college).
-Picking college courses/major: I used to think that because I was so passionate about the environment, Environmental Science would be the major to pursue in college. So currently, I am already enrolled in their Environmental Science and Sustainability major at my school. However, as I started going through the classes required of me for that particular major, I found that ESS was NOT what I thought it would be. So I am currently in the process of trying to change my major, while at the same time pick classes for my first semester. On top of that, I am trying to pick courses geared towards minors I'm interested in AND the cover pre-med required courses. Talk about difficult! It definitely takes a lot of time to do this, but I kind of enjoy it, since it all is going to benefit me in the long run.
-Arts & Crafts: Towards the end of the school year, I found myself trying to find ways to decorate my college dorm room. I stumbled upon numerous very crafty and cool ideas. I have never been a very artistic person in the past, but this summer, I have big plans to change that. I've already bought different paints and paintbrushes and wooden planks and canvases, so that I can recreate the nifty ideas that I found online. I like the idea of making these things myself, because I will not only end up with a great finished product, but also something that I can say 'Yeah, I made that' when asked about it.
-Baking: This has been something that I have been dabbling in and out of for the past two years. This summer, I want to experiment more with different recipes, and perfect some so that I will be able to easily make them while at school for different occasions! (That is, if my mother permits--she says it puts too much temptation to eat the savory sweets right in front of her face!)
The point I'm trying to make is this: use your summer to its fullest extent! These months introduce new obligations for a lot of us, but at the same time they also make more free time available. So use this time to do those thing you've always wanted to try, but never had time to get around to. Maybe for you that includes swing dancing or visiting Las Vegas, and for other that could be visiting a few new museums or spending more quality time with your significant other. Whatever the feat may be, make it your Summer Resolution to take it on!
Stay cool, and have a Happy Fourth!
