It all started with a nasty case of bronchitis...

Like many teachers I know, I depend upon summer to recharge my creative and emotional batteries. Though teaching is quite rewarding, it can be taxing, and summer vacation provides an excellent opportunity to pursue, well, anything. Two years ago, I had my summer all planned out. It'd be the first summer in a few years without moving or extensive traveling, and I wanted to take full advantage of the free time to explore Richmond and investigate hobbies I hadn't had a chance to try. I could finally take the belly dancing classes I'd been talking about for years! Given Richmond's great location, I could go hike at the beach one week and at the mountains the next. The possibles were endless.

The morning after my last day of school, I woke up with a tickle in my throat. Not really out of the norm given my allergies, I proceeded to do my first library run of the summer and to go downtown for the afternoon. Within a few days however, that tickle turned into a nasty case of bronchitis. Bronchitis for the average person is no fun. For an asthmatic like me, it's even less so. Though I'm not a fan of making excuses, this case of bronchitis severely limited me to what I could do, and it lasted all summer long. Needless to say, all my plans for dancing, hiking, and exploring were quickly converted to resting, reading, and taking shorter walks. Though I was happy when I finally recovered, I was disappointed that I couldn't accomplish all that I wanted to over the summer.

I was very fortunate the next year to have a full time teaching job at a local public school and was able to teach night class at a nearby university. As much as I loved being able to teach at both locations, I was most definitely worn out by the end of the school year. Remembering the summer before, I decided that this year would just have to be different. Luckily, I found allergy and asthma medicine that controlled my symptoms. Knock on wood, I had stayed healthy.

So, I sat down and plotted what I wanted from this summer. Did I want to travel? Did I want to take a class? Play in different rec leagues? Learn a new skill? Just what did I want to do with my time?

I decided that outside of my time devoted to my family, friends, and dog, I was going to invest in me. I wanted to read an assortment of nonfiction books that would increase my understanding, improve my amateur photography skills, cook new dishes using the abundant local produce, explore Richmond, travel when possible, and be open to new experiences. Ultimately, my goal was to never sit still.

With a few more weeks to go before school starts back up, I'm pleased to say that I've accomplished most of my goals. My husband and I were able to travel to Puerto Rico. I cooked an innumerable amount of new dishes and learned to bake cakes and pastries with only whole grain flour. Thanks to friends who have lived here for years and zombie tour guides (see picture), I was able to see many new facets to Richmond. Though I didn't read as much as I thought I would, I was able to pick up a few new photography books to help me improve my skills. I even trained and ran my first 5k!

As the summer started to wind down, and I started to look towards the new school year, I realized it would have been helpful to me to keep track of all I did this summer. Therefore, I decided to start this blog. Though I doubt I'll be able to do as much during the school year, I hope I'll be able to keep up with most of it. We shall see...