I am more than ready for it to be the weekend . . .

I have a craving to be at the lake – – lying out on the dock, cold drink in my hand, country music blaring in the background, the smell of summer in everything (this is an exact combination of sunscreen, lake water, heat and fresh Georgia air) and the knowledge that for at least an hour or two I can relax without phones ringing, papers waiting to be written, lists to be checked off, forms to be filled out or whatever else might drag my attention away from enjoying summertime. This is a rare thing to be had in the midst of work hours and prepping for a semester abroad, so…..

…..Anyone wanna go to the lake?

Well today is the first of August and for all the school-aged children of Cherokee county, it is also the first day of school. While speaking with my grandmother at dinner last night, she recalled that for her school never started before Labor Day. Also, rather than 8am to 3pm her school day lasted from 9am to 4pm. Times have changed . . . not to mention the public school system. And then there’s the fact that she grew up in Canada. So cheers to all the kiddies starting school today and here’s a countdown update (more specific too, because I now know that my flight leaves at 9:00pm):

It is 26 days, 10 hours, 23 minutes and 31 seconds

 until Sunday, August 27, 2006 at 9:00:00 PM

(Atlanta time)

I’m currently reading a book about home economics.

I drink V8    and like it.

I support the Fair Tax proposal.

I love being from the South, and I definitely wouldn’t mind living in Georgia for the rest of my life.

I read Charles Spurgeon every morning & evening.

I want to be an artist, a writer, a designer, a world-traveler, a photographer, a wife, a mother, a homemaker and anything else that strikes my fancy within the next 60 years or so . . .

Just thought I’d share.

I love my girlies!

Not so random thoughts post-vacation:

A week of vacation with the fam was restful, relaxing and much needed. But now it’s back to work for me with the shocking realization that a short four weeks remain to the summer. Less than a month till I acheive a prestigious two-decade age and a little more than that till I depart for my three-month stint in Italy. Summer has just flown by . . .

Random thoughts on the cusp of departure for a vacation:

Above our kitchen sink, there is a window that opens out to the porch and a view of the backyard. The ledge right outside of this very window hosts an array birdfeeders for the pleasure of my mother’s newly acquired birdwatching/identifying scheme. This morning while I meandered through the kitchen, a couple of birds on the feeder caught my eye: what my mother would call a “Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal”. They were perched pleasantly pecking at the seeds in the feeder, reminding me of the little known fact that cardinals mate for life.

Curious as this may seem in the animal world (they are, indeed, held to a different standard), it made me wonder what other animals remained “loyal” to a single mate. A quick Google search identified other such monogomous animals as: wolves, flamingos, coyotes, barn owls, beavers, bald eagles, vultures, angel fish…. the list goes on. And apparently, in some animal circles, “adultery” creates quite a stir: “Black vultures, though, discourage infidelity. All nearby vultures attack any vulture caught philandering.” Interesting . . . what would the world be like if, in any given social circle, an adulterous mate were attacked by his/her close friends? Well first, if I ever heard of that happening, I would laugh. And then I would applaud.