Summer Accomplishments...?

As I sit here, on my comfy couch, reading Peter Abelard's Ethical Writings, I can't help but wonder how little stress I would be under if I had done as I wished and read ahead over the summer. At that I certainly failed. In fact, thinking back, I have to wonder what exactly it was that I accomplished this Summer.

Starting with my arrival at home, I promptly went on the wesite of my newly discovered WB online, where all of Season 1 of Pushing Daisies is available for streaming. Since I didn't get into the series until Season 2, and had spent that entire season trying to find a way to watch season 1, I watched the entire first season of Pushing Daisies. In a span of about 2 days. Seriously. I stayed up until about 3 am just to watch it.

Then I went to the Taylor Swift concert (Fearless Tour) at the Staples Center with my friend. Gloriana & Kellie Pickler opened, and it was the funnest, most memorable concert ever. Miss Swift even sang "Hey Stephen" standing right next to us! Fantastic.

The next day, one of my best friends was visiting from Colorado! So I got to meet up with her & two of our other friends (one of whom is her boyfriend) for a fun-filled day driving around Hollywood. We went to the LaBrea Tar pits and saw a Comedy Sportz college match.

And then I went to a Relient K concert! What I'd been waiting and wanting to do since I was like 11 and discovered them. (that was right after their first album came out) My cousin made amazing t-shirts, and we met Jon Schneck & John Warne & Ethan Luck right before the concert! They all autographed our shirts, and the first 3 songs played in the concert, were our the songs we based our shirts on! (mine: Devestation and Reform, my cousin's: High of 75, my sister's: Who to Bury Us or the Hatchet) No idea if it was a coincidence, but it made our night. And they played 2 songs from their soon-to-be-released album that they had never played before. They hadn't even named them yet! fun fun night. Runner Runner & Owl City opened, which was Fantastic.

My family decided to expand our brick patio, so I spent about a week collecting, carrying, loading, moving and unloading red bricks.

Then my friend celebrated her 20th Birthday by taking a bunch of us to Disneyland for dinner at Ariel's Grotto & to spend the night at the hotel. loved it.

I went to the Alumni match for Comedy Sportz at my High School and hung out with my friends and watched August Rush.

I then proceeded to visit Disneyland about 6 more times in the next couple of weeks. Oh and I started a basic PE class at the Community College

And then I got to go spend a long weekened at my friend's cabin in Big Bear, tanning and watching an entire season of America's Next Top Model in one afternoon. Oh, and trying to refrain from screaming out "I'm On a Boat!" whenever we went out on her wakeboarding boat.

I went shopping with my sister and my cousin.

I spent the 3rd of July at my friend's house on Balboa Island, and then on the 4th, walked to our other friend's house on the Newport Boardwalk. We also ended up in some slight sketchy-but-entertaining situations, but that's not a story for here.

Two of my cousins stayed at my house for 2 weeks, while I got my first job, working at a laser ink company. I then spend a large amount of aimless time in Target with my cousin, and (later) got in my first car accident. And then cut my hair.

My grandmother took my sister & I back to school shopping. I went to the Glen Ivy spa to celebrate my friend's 19th birthday, went again to celebrate my cousin's birthday (early), had an end-of-the-year-beach-barbeque-bash, and saw Legally Blonde: the Musical at the Pantages.

That pretty much sums up my entire summer. I did a lot of STUFF. And now, I can't help but feel kind of like I just failed at life. I mean, sure, I got my homework done. I had a job from 9am-1pm, five days a week. But now that I'm back at school, people want to know "What God taught me this Summer" or "what God showed me" and I have no response whatsoever. I mean, I basically just ran around southern California, and had a whole lot of fun. I had the most fun and did the most work I ever have in a summer. But what did I really get out of it in the end? What did I really accomplish? In 20 years, I will have a summer filled with fantastic memories, but I don't think I will be able to say "ahh yes, I remember the summer of 2009. That's the summer God taught me to be compassionate".