Summer Lovin'

When most people are asked their favourite season, probably the vast majority say Summer. (Especially all my teacher friends out there.) I can't wait for 2 months of freedom and debauchery when I am finally a professional teacher. That is after all why we become teachers right? (Don't worry I'm kidding. I'm not one of those.)
Summer is when us Canadians crawl out from the darkness, blinking into the sunlight and spend 2 glorious months frolicking in the sun, splashing around in the water and shot gunning beers. Ah the simple pleasures in life.

So even though, yes I love summer, this blog is dedicated to everything I hate about this time of year.

1. Too much is happening:

I have not had a weekend to myself since the beginning of June. Every Friday and Saturday night has been booked weeks in advance for various events. So even if something cool pops up unexpectedly, the chances of me being able to attend are slim. That cool festival I wanted to go to? Sorry - I've got a shower that day. That band I've wanted to see for years? Can't - family reunion. Summer is prime time for random road trips and crazy adventures. But I can't go, I have baseball. At least most of the events are in fact fun and I have a good time. It's just slightly stressful to have so much going on. It's tough being popular. 

2.  I can't save money:

Saving that ever important dollar is hard in the summer. There is so much fun stuff happening and so much to do (*see above) and it all costs money. I thought happiness was free? Well not in this case.

3. Bathing suits:

Yes, I'm pretty sure everyone has this fear at this time of year. In the Spring the gym is busier and people are getting their bikini bodies ready for the beach. Well, Summer is also the time of year when beer has never tasted better. Especially my new love of Somersby. Have you heard of it? It's so delicious and full of sugar apparently. YUM!

But beer is not your friend during bathing suit season. You can be like me and drink as much beer as you want and avoid the beach at all costs. It's really the only solution.

4. It's hot out there:

Yep, it's summer. Yep, it's hot. I'm not complaining about the heat (how cliche would that be?). I do hate what the heat does to me though. I am a very sweaty person. Two minutes outside in humid weather and I am dripping in places I didn't even know had sweat glands. Wearing makeup is useless. There's no point in making my hair look all pretty. It's going to be in a ponytail in a few hours. Needless to say, I am very attractive in the summer.

5. The beach:

You are sitting in the hot boiling sun (*see #4). You are forced to wear minimal clothing (*see #3). There is sand everywhere. It gets in everything. Stuck to you, in your pockets, in your bag and somehow in other very strange places. Sand is the devil's handywork.

6.  Work:

The pace slows down at the workplace. I get distracted easily (this blog was in fact written during work hours). I have to work very hard to look busy.

Also, our hours change and we have to start earlier! Sure we get finished earlier too but it is surprisingly hard to get up and going for a 30 min change in time. Plus, I don't holidays yet and work really gets in the way of all the fun things I have planned.


So there it is. My grinch/scrooge take on Summer. Love it or hate it.

Sing a Song of Love

I'm at that particular age where my weekends are consumed with weddings, bachelorette parties, showers, stag and does, etc. Lately my life seems to have been consumed with celebrating the lives and loves of friends and family. Which is so exciting. Yes, my schedule for the summer is already pretty much booked up, but I am so happy to be a part of these special days in any way. Celebrating the good fortune of the loved ones in my lives is something I look forward to. (Except, as stated in a previous post, long-drawn out showers where I am obligated to seem excited about heart shaped dishes). I've never been good at faking it. I'm glad you like it and will use it...but it's not clap-worthy.

I'm not sure when it happened but I've become a little more emotional as the years progress. I find myself getting weepy at sentimental speeches or getting teary eyed at romantic or sad commercials. The tin girl seems to have grown a heart somewhere along the way.

This past weekend I was able to celebrate a great friend's wedding and have to admit, some tears were shed. I know what you're thinking - what happened to you Cheddar? I can't relate to some mushy girl. Yuck. But wait! Before you go, please note that heavy drinking and dancing still happened and I kept the tears to a minimum and hid it as much as possible. Better? Thanks for sticking it out.

The sentimental stuff has to be said. It has to be acknowledged that you are happy your friend has found happiness and love and that they deserve it. In fact I was so overwhelmed with joy I sang a little song. I thought I'd share it with you.

The intro got cut out of the video so I'll say it here:
"For those of you that don't know me, I have a little hidden talent and love of singing. I usually try to keep this to the car or in the shower. But Mego was there the first time I performed at karaoke and have since performed a favourite song of mine over and over. So I thought it appropriate to share a little diddy on her special day..."

Maybe next time I'll choose a shorter song.