1. Living alone

Don't get me wrong, I love my best friends, and I am more than excited to live with them in the fall; however, living alone this summer has given me some serious lessons in discipline. When choosing to live in my college town alone this summer rather than with my parents in Maryland, most of the reasons included wanting to have control over healthy foods in the fridge, control over my schedule and chores, and control over my exercise.

Now living here alone, the only person I have to blame for any lack of that discipline and control is myself. I'm not going to lie to you and say I've already gotten it all under control, because I'm still learning how to practice this new self-discipline; however, I've already come a long way from when I first moved in a month and a half ago (I can't believe June's already over!). At first it was very much frustrating; however, unlike at home I had no one else to place the blame on, and it helped me create discipline in knowing that although I may often not think I do that I do in fact have full control.

Come fall, I am very excited to live with my two roommates who are also very health-conscious and understand the equal burden of responsibility for renting a house together. For now, I can at least throw my dirty clothes wherever I need to when I'm in a hurry.

2. Less people = less drama

Besides this summer, I cannot think of the last time my life was 100% drama free. I've never really had that much drama in my life, to begin with, and I still don't; however, some people just can't help but bring it to the table. I've usually been able to avoid those people, because no one wants to be friends with individuals who create drama; however, in a college town of (I think) 16,000 students, there's always going to be a little drama even if you aren't involved.

Very soon on into living here this summer, I noticed that hanging out and going out with friends was so much less drama-dense. There was no raging tattle-tale and no "you're-talking-to-my-ex" drama queens that it made it so much easier to let loose without watching your surroundings (however, always use safety discretion when it comes to alcohol). I have several friends who live only a backyard away from me, and it's nice to know I'm always welcome to come and hang out and go out with them when I feel like it. There's no drama to talk about, only drinks to be served. Of course, it's no raging house party, but it's nice to kick back for the summer.

3. No class...but just one

I was uncertain as to how exactly I was going to obtain three additional credits this summer to keep my scholarships, whether that be an internship or a class, but as of recently I've begun my online summer class and I'm enjoying it much more than I expected.

Although this class is only half the length of a regular class, which means the material is twice as dense, the stress is minimal because I'm taking no additional classes besides this one this summer. I've always been one of the handful of students who actually enjoys going to class and putting in the work every day, but I'm only human and usually the full workload has me googling answers online by the end of the semester; however, by only taking one class I can place all my attention on the singular class and *hopefully* receive an A.

4. Ample amount of time to earn money

At first, I had no idea how I'd be financing my summer. My family has financed my college career and my parents still will help me out during the school year, but until tuition bills come out next month I'm still on my own. A week after moving in, I was able to receive an internship I applied for and am about to start a second job waitressing. It was stressful at first to not know where my funds were going to come from, but now that the majority of my time is going towards working since I only have a single online class I never have to worry about if I have enough funds to go out. Not only do I have enough, but I should be taking that extra cash I have and time to be having fun because it's the little amount of time I have left over!

5. Last but not least, trying “the new thing”

The best part about all school breaks is the opportunity to try something new and to experiment with ideas and new living concepts. I have additional time in the summer to try new workouts that I may be too overwhelmed with figuring out during the time-constricted schoolyear. I have the surplus income to try new restaurants in town that I've never been to before. I have the time to acclimate to my house and complete my room before the schoolyear begins (article coming soon). And my favorite, I have time to see more of family.