charming city

i can't believe it is already the sixth of july! this summer is flying by. our fourth of july was rainy but turned out to be a quirky adventure. there were a few fireworks shows going on simultaneously, which was a bit off-putting, but we had a good time. last weekend i went to harrisburg, pa to bid goodbye to my good friend maura before she heads off to south africa for a few months. work is going well-- i really like working in admissions-- and i am always happy to spend time with my friends in the area.

i went out to coffee with some of my roommates this evening and they balked at the thought that they'll be leaving in less than a month. the whole point of the summer was to take advantage of not having work in the evenings and being able to explore, but by the time we all come home from work and manage to cook dinner in the common kitchen shared by about 50 people, we're all pooped.

living on campus over the summer is really quite strange. the campus is eerily quiet in many respects but absolutely abuzz in others-- such as construction. they are gutting and totally revamping a lot of the dorms, getting rid of asbestos-y carpets and putting in networked sprinklers. the bunny population seems to be out of control in the summer, and fireflies are in great abundance. working in the administrative building has opened up many new channels of previously unknown (to me) information-- people, corners, paperwork. there are always faces i've never seen, despite the small size of the school. i've heard it can get lonely over the summer here, but it always seems like there's too much to do and so many people to see. i'm not sure i'll accomplish all that i want to this summer.

i think i'm going to look back on this summer and think about how enjoyable it was to work during the day and hang out with a bunch of close friends every night. i thoroughly enjoy my weekends in hampden, spending time with my friends who have now entered the real world of work and apartments.

other things that make up this summer: going out for coffee on saturday mornings, going to the waverly farmer's market, coloring my giant map of baltimore neighborhoods, impromptu thunderstorms, grilling veggie burgers, waving down the soft city ice cream truck, trading cardigans with my roommates, walking to the grocery store, taking the light rail, marveling at the charm of rowhouses, talking about denmark.