As I have often said, Summer is a wonderful and glorious thing. I love the heat, the sunshine, the pool, the strawberry lemonade, but the absolute best thing about Summer is the ingenious interlude from monotony students know as Summer break (or as students refer to it, simply summer) - a remarkable little phenomenon that occurs for only a small portion of our lives.

In school, we live from break to break: Fall break to Winter break to Spring break to Summer break. (Summer break being the longest most glorious of them all.)

YOU: Now Madi, you must realize that some persons may disagree with you. For example, I much prefer Fall and Winter break to that of any other season.
ME: Well, Fall break is lame. And Winter break is a wannabe Summer break, and therefore, equally lame.
YOU: (lamely speechless)
ME: and don’t use “persons” it pretentious, and pretentious people are lame.

Each year toward the end of May in grade school, high school, and in college, the question “So what are you doing this summer?” arises in the conversations of many students. For those of you in internetland unfamiliar with the student type of Summer, this question translates into the following: “for the next three months, during which you are probably not attending school, what are your plans?”

It is important to note that while they do occur simultaneously, the summer I refer to should never be confused with Summer the season, which, in your adult years, holds much less excitement than it does in grade school.

Have you ever asked an adult, “So what are you doing this summer?”

Please don’t, unless you want a ten minute speech about how “in the real world there are no Summer breaks, and when I was your age….blah blah blah blah blah…” and probably ending with some cliché tangent about walking up hill in five feet of freezing snow.

I’ll tell you straight, it’s a dumb question.

At some point around your junior or senior year in college you learn to rephrase the question to sound less like a naïve sloth.

“What are you doing for fun this Summer?”

or you could go with the harsher, real-world version: “Other than workin’ day and night to feed your family, walkin’ uphill everywhere in snow, and wakin’ up at 4:30 AM to milk the cow before goin’ out to fix the fence the cattle broke when they got into the crops you need to plow on the back 40, what are you doing for fun this Summer?”

i suggest using version two for the older crowd, they’ll love it.

YOU: So Madi, why should this summer business concern you?
ME: Ahhh, good question You. I happen to be extremely concerned with this summer business because….
I have officially embarked on my FINAL Summer break.
YOU: Oh wow! You must be sad.
ME: Not really You, I’m quite excited.
YOU: So what are you doing this summer? Or should I say, Other than workin’ day and night to feed your family, walkin’ –
ME: (interrupting) No, version one is still applicable to my stage in life. Version two is really only good for those over 80 years old.
YOU: Oh, right, sorry.
ME: No problem. But to answer your question You, this summer I am working, learning, and relaxing.

Here’s a quick rundown of my summer activities. And possible blog topics to look forward to with great expectations.

Working:
film projects all over Austin
riding horses at Graymar Farm

Learning:
voiceover workshops
commercial workshop
improvisation class
film acting classes

Relaxing:
horse shows
reading (which falls under the Learning category as well)

Now comes the time to celebrate, through perseverance, stamina, and determination you’ve read your way through this blog. Word after word my command of the English language has bombarded your mental faculty. Congratulations, You survived. You’ve reached your favorite and final section….

Reflections-of-greatness: people i’ve influenced
Stilts – The Newest Addition to Graymar Farm

Okay, so I know this is a stretch (or an outright disregard) of the requirements for a human subject, but it’s my game and I make up the rules, and I hereby abolish the rule for a human subject, so there.

For more information on Graymar Farm, my place of residence this summer, see www.graymarfarm.com.

The grand prize goes to whoever can guess why it’s called Graymar…let the games begin.

that is all.
madly