Summer's End

"Pearly lips and cherry wine
Moonshine in your hair
Just keep staring at the sun
Pray for summer's end"

Foo fighters. Find me someone that genuinely dislikes the foo Fighters and I'll show you someone that is angry for no reason. But this isn't about Foo. This is about a line in one of their songs from their most recent CD that used to bother me. I love the song, but the lyrics bothered me for so long. I once followed my brother's friend's band, at one point named Summer's End. I had a Summer's End patch clothes-pinned to my backpack. But I still disliked the idea of the end of summer. Summer's end evokes such a saddened and melancholy feeling that I reject the very notion of it. Summer is bliss. Summer is the little boy or girl in all of us. The season pool passes and bike rides and vacations. And no school. Even us working folk feel like school's out for the summer when June comes around. I can't think of one legitimate negative for the days between the summer and fall solstice. Except black leather cars. But seriously, this is one of the easiest sells. Summer: Buy in. Okay!! Yet after all of that, all the boat rides and long weekends, the short skirts and long nights, I can honestly say that I am ready for summer to end.

Now I don't believe that Dave Grohl's words really correspond to my place in the world. Mainly because I don't know what pearly lips look like. But after my recent trip to New York City, I also am praying for summer's end. This has been one of the more memorable summers in my life. Which doesn't say a whole lot, since none of my previous summers were really too memorable. But over the last 3 months, I feel like I've lived a year. My first summer on my own, in the city, with a rooftop deck. I can't even begin to round out a list of events and happenings that encompassed my summer. But I did achieve my goal: Don't waste it. I don't think I let two days go by without *something* to do. I forced plans when there weren't any. I booked my days weeks in advance. I did what i could to piggy back plans so i could cram more into one night. I met new people and went on new adventures. I didn't sleep enough and went out too often. I put summer into a juicer and squeezed it for every drop it had. And I loved about 98% of it (sans Black Wednesday). And after all of that being said, I can still honestly say that I am ready for summer to end.

Now I get to nestle into a time of cooler weather and relaxed mindsets. I will be in a new apartment in less than three weeks, and will have time to spend in my new place. I will have a new neighborhood to explore and enjoy. I will have writing time to increase. I will have a new bed that I will look forward to getting a chance to lay in. I will have an in-unit washer/dryer, so I might be doing laundry twice a week. Mainly, I get to slow down. It will soon be full blown recovery mode. I'll be taking a lesson from the bears. Not those bears. The ones that hibernate to restore the body and avoid the cold. But speaking of those bears, I get to have lazy Sundays of watching football. I get to give my wallet a break. Give my body a break. My mind a break. (I shouldn't be so self-centered, you all get to do this too, but stay with me). And so after all of this, I believe, even though we're still 10 days away from the summer officially being over, I'm ready to throw in the towel.

But after all THAT being said, I'm about 8 weeks away from wanting Old Navy flip flops and Bud Light Lime......

(Funny story: I listened to 'Summer's End by Foo Fighters the entire time I wrote this.)