the dog days

With summer winding down, it seems like time for a little review of our first few months here at Mercy Street. 

-The most recent, and most fun, event to be reviewed is the little housewarming party we had for some classmates and coworkers last Saturday.  Believe it or not, we fit 30 people into our house, and most of the time most of the people were standing in the kitchen.  I hope that a great time was had by all--we were certainly grateful to be surrounded be friends in our new home.  The picture above is the roasted red pepper/eggplant dish that I made and garnished with basil from our garden.  Alas, it is the only picture I captured from our party because once that doorbell started ringing, it didn't stop.

-Something else we are pleased about as the summer comes to an end is that Greg does have a job lined up for the fall.  After tons of resumes and close to 10 interviews, he will be staying where he already is.  Considering that he really enjoys his job, this is a good thing.

-For my own part, as usual, summer began with many lofty goals and concludes with few of them being met.  I've got to look forward, though, because bright and early Monday morning I begin my orientation for my first semester teaching.  I'll teach one course of a class called Analytical Reading and Writing.  Yes, folks, believe it or not, I will be entrusted with teaching vulnerable freshman how to think.  I'll let that sink in--and the mad rush of parents withdrawing their children from Temple begins.

-Before that though, we do have a few fun things coming up.  Saturday we plan on taking the only trip to the shore we will get this summer.  Greg will be pleased because I will finally stop whining about how desperately I need to be surrounded by water.  Seriously, though, I always grew up with a pool nearby (not in our backyard or anything, but accessible) or at least taking several trips to the beach, so the fact that I have not been swimming in any capacity since last summer is driving me nuts.  We're also going to visit friends in Chicago over Labor Day weekend, which we have been looking forward to for months.

-A recap of my summer would not be complete without mentioning my job as a ghost tour guide.  It has been the most perfect summer job I have ever had--luckily I can keep going til Halloween.  How cool is it that my job involves walking around a beautiful part of town, telling stories, learning history, and meeting people?  I realized that the great thing about being a tour guide is that people are predisposed to have a good time and appreciate you.  It's the exact opposite for waiters--your customers are just looking for you to mess up so they don't have to tip you.  The best part of my job, though, is how whenever I tell someone about it, they think it's the coolest thing ever.

-And finally, the house itself.  Two months in, I am in love with the house, our neighborhood, our city, everything.  When we planned to move into the city, Greg and I thought that we might be sacrificing some of the convenience of the suburbs for the excitement of the city, but this is so far from the truth.  Everything is at our fingertips, I can get anywhere in half an hour or less, and I don't ever have to gas up the car.  I had also assumed, based on our renovation experience, that during the first few months here, pipes would burst, the fridge would break, there would be an electrical fire, and some walls would come crashing down.  None of this has happened.  We do, however, continue to stumble across unexpected treasures, like the cat toys Greg found buried under the stove just a few days ago.