Happy Fall y’all! Real talk: I hate that phrase and I have no idea why.
Last week, we welcomed in the fall season, as we waved goodbye to good ol’ summertime. When I lived in Michigan, this time of year gave me winter anxiety. As much as I loved fall, I knew what was to come next: 8 months of grey, cold, slush, sleet and sometimes pretty snow. Funny enough, I was actually in Michigan last week as a Florida refugee fleeing Hurricane Irma.
Since the last few weeks have been a blur of packing, prepping, evacuating, waiting, packing again, unprepping and unpacking, I barely noticed summer was over. Here are some Highs and Lows of the Summer of 2017.
Highs
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada
I mean, have I talked about this trip enough here and here? It was easily the highlight of my summer. Looking back, I think a lot of it had to do with the hubster and I just exploring on our own schedule, in sync, step by step, bike ride upon bike ride, together.
Marco Island, Florida
We dipped over to the other side of the state early on in the summer to just get away. Our in-laws have a magnificent place on the beach (that thankfully wasn’t damaged in Irma) and they let us crash in every once and a while. It’s a sleepy little island, but we found ourselves busy with things to do. I’ll write about it soon!
#DayofDinners and Women’s March
In June, I participated in #DayofDinners where people from all walks of life and political affiliations sat around a table, had dinner and discussed the state of the world…respectfully. I met some wonderful people who left me feeling better about the world. On top of that, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the activism and work that the Women’s March of Broward County does. It’s an honor to stand by these ladies and yes, gentlemen. I have learned so much in the 8 months since I’ve joined including, and probably most importantly, to listen; to simply listen to someone’s story.
Lows
Hurricane Irma
Suffice to say, Hurricane Irma did a number on my mental health and I was lucky enough to evacuate. Lucky enough that there was minimal damage to our home. Lucky enough to get through the worst part: not knowing. Currently, there are still trees down everywhere (including one that barely missed our windows) and I can’t go to work without seeing at least one stop light not working. It will be months, but we’ll get Florida back to her good ol’ pretty self. I’m a member of RNGRÂ and we volunteered to clear some trees and debris from Hugh Birch State Park this past weekend. I need to remind myself how much I enjoy being outside, physically working, especially to help others.
Saying goodbye to friends and coworkers
Our close friends packed up and headed up north to Jacksonville to begin a new chapter in internal medicine residency. Additionally, a couple of my favorite coworkers resigned and started new, exciting positions. In all those cases, moving on to new things is a good thing for them, but selfishly it’s hard to say goodbye. The older I get, the more I know dynamics change as the tides change, so the goodbyes get tougher.
What’s next on the docket? Oh I’ve got some things up my sleeves that I’m working on. Right now, I’m focusing on keeping my head down, busting ass, taking names and looking at London for my reward this fall.