The Summer of Doing Things I’d Never Done Before

August is almost over! And to think it was only May 1^st the last time it snowed in Logan.

“Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer.” ---William Shakespeare

So here it is, my Summer of New Experiences all together in a neat little list. Maybe not so neat…it gets a little messy at times, but straightens itself up in the end. Kind of like how my summer went!

50 THINGS I HAD NEVER DONE BEFORE BUT I HAVE DONE THIS SUMMER

1. Lived in Logan in the summer
2. Worked in Logan in the summer
3. Worked two jobs
4. Hiked the Wind Caves (to the top, in the rain)
5. Played so much sand volleyball
6. Played so much ultimate frizbee with the ward
7. Invented the game “scrizbee” (soccer + frizbee)
8. Been to Vernal, Utah
9. Seen so many movies on their opening weekend (ahem: Baby Mama, Iron Man, Prince Caspian, Indiana Jones 4, Incredible Hulk, Get Smart, Wall-E, Mamma Mia, Dark Knight, The Mummy 3… Yeah, I know)
10. Listened to so much classic rock (mostly at work)
11. Been at a cemetery on Memorial Day, in the rain, with bagpipes
12. Gotten to know just about everyone in my student ward
13. Gotten a ticket for not wearing my seatbelt…when I was wearing it
14. Learned so much about the judicial system
15. Hiked the Crimson Trail…twice (once in complete darkness)
16. Been a bridesmaid
17. Been to Malad, Idaho
18. Attended a local concert at The White Owl in Logan
19. Canoed at 1^st Dam
20. Seen Saturn’s rings through a telescope (through a telescope)
21. Performed (twice!) in the Summer Symphony
22. Enjoyed 4^th of July fireworks…four days in a row (Hyrum, Logan, Bear Lake, and homemade)
23. Rowed across Porcupine Reservoir
24. Cliff-jumped, even if it was just three or four feet high
25. Stayed overnight in a cabin at Bear Lake
26. Gone country dancing, and actually danced and enjoyed myself
27. Hiked to Temple Fork
28. Taken summer classes or done homework in July
29. Seen a midnight movie premiere in Logan
30. Been to a rodeo
31. Been to a Demolition Derby
32. Rafted down the Oneida Narrows
33. Cleaned “The Kitchen Sink” at Angie’s
34. Jumped off a bridge into the freezing water at 1^st Dam
35. Lain on the grass at midnight watching the stars and listening to Jimmy Eat World
36. Been to L.A., Hollywood and greater San Diego
37. Seen dolphins, seals, and sand crabs on the beach in California
38. Touched bat rays, eels, sea turtles, and seen all sorts of water creatures at Sea World
39. Eaten at In ‘N Out burger - twice in as many days
40. Driven from Los Angeles to Logan in one day
41. Paid $4.39 a gallon for gasoline
42. Three words: Midnight Beto’s run (ok, so it may be Rancherito’s now, but nobody really calls it that. Same building, same food, same grease)
43. Watched a movie on a laptop in Logan Canyon
44. Seen “Into the Woods” live, or any musical by the Utah Festival Opera
45. Rowed an entirely cardboard and duct tape boat across a body of water
46. Stood on a wheat thresher
47. Been to the Cache County Fair
48. Been rock climbing/repelling down a 60-ft. mountain wall
49. Watched “Signs” outside at night
50. Been to the top of the Old Main tower

I just read through this list at least three times and watched my entire summer like a flashback-montage running through my head. I am so spoiled! Well, maybe the proper word would be blessed. I’ve had so many great experiences – and the best part is, I can look forward to so many more!

But the reason it’s so fun to remember all these things is not just thinking about what I did, but who I did it with. I wouldn’t have enjoyed any of it without all the great friendships we built, created, and reinforced these past few months. Wow… thanks, guys.

“Summer afternoon, summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.” ---Henry James

“Summer is the time when one sheds one's tensions with one's clothes, and the right kind of day is jeweled balm for the battered spirit. A few of those days and you can become drunk with the belief that all's right with the world.” ---Ada Louise Huxtable

“People take pictures of the summer, just in case someone thought they had missed it. And to prove that it really existed.” ---Ray Davies

“I do not regret the things I have done, but those I did not do.” ---Empire Records

Refresh, Renew, Restart

Goodbye, Logan.... Hello, ironic twist!

So I'm sitting in the little office at the Creamies factory where I've spent most of my summer. It's really slowed down here since August started - my boss had to let his summer workers go because the orders from Associated Foods and WalMart had declined drastically, and hardly anyone comes in the front anymore. It's a pretty big change from how it was when I started in May and June. I've definitely come to more fully appreciate the frozen treats business - all the behind-the-scenes work that goes on to get ice cream from boxes of butter, sugar, milk, and flavoring into tasty Creamies you buy at the store. And Charlie's will forever be my favorite ice cream place in Logan.

Last week I said goodbye to the gang at the Analysis, Assessments, and Accreditation office at Utah State. They were good friends of mine - after all, I worked there for almost an entire year. Luckily I lived to see the day when my co-secretary Marilyn got on Facebook, so I get to keep in touch that way.

Now my car's packed and I've already moved all my stuff out of the good old Canyon Terrace house. Yesterday we had an ice cream social after church to get rid of a 3-gallon tub of Carmel Cashew that I bought for the sweet, sweet price that we sell them at work. There was no way I could get it home without it melting all over, so I enlisted the wardies in a service project of eating to get rid of it for me. Good times...good eating.

The best goodbye was my farewell to Cache Valley on Saturday night. I went up with my friend Nic to a park on the edge of the mountain after visiting the fair, and we were met with a most amazing sight: The expanse of the valley, all lit up, especially the A to the north and the temple to the south, stars right above our heads, and the most electrifying lightning storm on the west by the mountains. It was breathtaking. (Literally...since Nic had been around animals at the fair and had allergic reactions to them...bwah ha.) I realized how much I'd come to love this place we call Logan. It really is beautiful!

And I've told this story a couple times, but here's once more for the blogosphere: I'd been in the MTC for a couple weeks when we got a new group of sisters in our zone. We welcomed them in, took care of them, showed them around, but three short weeks later they had to leave to go to the Peru MTC to finish up their training. I'll always remember what one of the girls wrote in my journal as they were going: "So, I'm way bummed that I'm leaving. But not bummed enough to stay!"

It may not always have been true these past few days, but it is now. I'm ready for a fresh new start. It's sad to end, and scary to begin something new... but it does a body good.