Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Back to life, back to reality.



I take comfort—just a miniscule amount, though, I swear—that some of you may now have the song that this post’s title references in your heads now, too.

Anyway, happy Wednesday, friends—how are your weeks going? As of this past Monday, I am back to my usual routine after nine whopping days off—nine days in which I went to St. Augustine, spent time at my parents’ house, ate a whole lot of cookout-friendly food and also an $8 ice cream cone—yes, seriously, $8; I’m making my own from now on! What is the world coming to? (Also, hello, I have apparently turned 90)—and slept past 10 a.m. on several occasions. It was glorious.

But the return to work and the daily grind is always kind of a bummer, no matter how much you love your job, and for the past couple of days I’ve found myself thinking about what else I want to do from now until Labor Day—what weekend adventures I’d like to go on, what experiences I’d like to have, what things I’d like to make (that gold brick DIY from a few weeks ago has me itching to spray paint everything gold. Not the cats, though, don't worry). And I love making lists, so I thought, Hey, why not make a list? And then I thought, Hey, why not share it with the Internet?

So there you have it, Internet: herewith my rest-of-the-summer bucket list.

1. Take a road trip with my mom. Last year we went to Savannah; this year we’re thinking Charleston.
2. Make ice cream. The $8 cone experience reminded me that I do, in fact, own an ice cream maker—I won one from Shelley in a giveaway last year. Homemade mint chocolate chip, here I come. Oh, and key lime and graham cracker gelato, too (be still my citrus-loving heart). Also, how hard is it to make waffle cones, you think?
3. Swim as much as possible. Preferably in the ocean.
4. Cut my hair (more on this to come).
5. Paint one wall in my house with chalkboard paint. (I’ve been thinking about this quite a bit recently; at first I wanted to do a whole wall in my living room, but now I’m thinking the kitchen is my best bet, mostly because I constantly want a place to write weekly menus and scribble to-do lists that’s, well, not a small pad of paper. Also: I am kind of obsessed with chalk.)
6. String up café lights on my “porch.” I use quotation marks because my porch is not so much a porch as it is a tiny strip of wood that’s screened in, but a Very Awesome Person bought me said lights—which I’d been talking about incessantly and, let’s be honest, probably annoyingly, for a year—and I’m excited to get them up.
7. Go to Adventure Island with friends. (I love water and water rides but am terrified of roller coasters and have a tendency to get slightly motion sick, so this should be interesting and may require alcohol.)
8. Do a huge closet clean-out—opening the door and looking inside is starting to make me anxious.
9. Take a cooking class here.
10. Watch a lot of sunsets on the beach.

How about you—what’s on your summer checklist? Please tell me; I would love to know.

Photo: Scout and Catalogue

7 comments:

  1. Excellent list! We are rapidly working our way through our Summer Fun List, but we still have plenty left to look forward to. Love love love Summer! Looking forward to seeing your updates, and a picture of that chalk wall!

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    1. Thanks, Mary! Glad you are enjoying your summer--I love reading your updates. :)

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  2. That song! Now I have to go listen to the whole thing... :)

    Love your list. Making lists for the rest of summer makes me a little sad because it basically reminds me how little of it there is left. Boo! But it's not a bad idea. I need to go on more (read: at least one) bike ride this summer. And some hikes. And just enjoy the sunshine while it's here.

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    1. Ooh, all of that sounds glorious. Is it cool in Portland or warm? Here the temperature is, like, skin-melting in the morning/early afternoon...and then it pours rain in the later afternoon. Good times!

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  3. I love the chalk board idea for the kitchen, definitely a good place for it. And I also like the lights on the porch idea. I have a string of lights of my screened in porch and enjoy sitting out there at night with them on.

    I think I need to write up a list of summer ideas. I'm finding myself still stuck in my normal routine of cleaning, errands, etc. and just haven't done much of anything else yet this summer.

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    1. Thanks, A.! Those lights are so pretty, aren't they? Love your routine of sitting outside with them on.

      Have fun making your list, too--writing up this one was fun. :)

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  4. Oh, my, I'm beginning to think you're my long-lost soul sister. You've got some cool things planned! You absolutely must go to Charleston. I was there with my daughter and mother and it was so lovely and charming. Savannah must have been great; it's on my bucket list.

    I've thought about making my own ice cream and cutting my hair recently, too (love mint choco chip and peppermint stick). Can't wait to see how it all turns out for you!

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