All the realists know we live in an imperfect world. Some of the comfiest sweaters have loose threads, America's next top models get zits, and even the most mouth-watering batch of brownies can have a few eggshell bits baked in. My summer break was no exception, and I wouldn't have it any other way… Struggles do make us stronger I s'pose. The eggshells of my summer break include but are not limited to:
Spending my first night in Athens cuddling Ziploc baggies of ice until I fell asleep. The apartment building gave me the sweetest housewarming gift of a broken AC unit. It was really great for that hot summer night in a loft that really solidified everything I'd learned in middle school science experiments about heat rising. After complaining to the homemade freezer packs that were my only company, I learned my first lesson as an independent subleaser who don't need no RA: how to put in a work order.
Telling my dad about a little fender bender on Father's Day. Happy Father's Day, Dad! Oh, what did I get you? A dent in your car and temporarily increased blood pressure, probably. At this point in my career as a highly dysfunctional child, it probably wasn't too much of a shock.
Flooding the kitchen of Mellow Mushroom with tea, three times. I almost wish I could say I was going all Boston Harbor on the management for requiring us to tip out the hosts such a big chunk of our sales, but really I just have a knack for struggling with simple tasks.
Coming back to the campsite to find every single one of my belongings underwater, and proceeding to sleep in a puddle from the knees down. Always double check that your tent is fully zipped, and probably avoid sleeping on a steep mountain. The slope of the ground was just enough to slide me into the puddle with everything else in the tent, and I was just exhausted enough to sleep through my toes morphing into pale little raisins.
Not having a stroke. Okay, that was the good part. The bad part was spending 8 hours in the ER having tests done to confirm that it hadn't happened. Having a nurse poke me with a needle 3 times before getting the IV in was cool too. My entire forearm became one big bruise, which actually worked in my favor when someone offered to buy my coffee later because "it looked like I'd had a rough day". Honestly, I'm alive and I got a free latte so I won't complain too much.
