Hmm...Crispy?

Well, I'm back from Topsail Island, NC, where I've spent the past week baking in the sun, swimming, reading, and walking on the beach. Overall, great fun, want to specifically mention a couple of events which stand out against the sandy backdrop.

We drove up Saturday and arrived late in the afternoon at "Beach Coma" a rental house halfway down the island. Upon entering we discovered that the house had been completely remodeled since the last time we were there, which was quite cool. In addition, we found that as usual, my mom had come prepared with a plan of how things were going to work. This was not just any plan, however, this was a color-coded excel spreadsheet complete with dates, food to be served at each meal of the day, who was to prepare said meal, and who was in charge of cleaning it up. This would have worked great, had it not been for the fact that my mom was the only person who consistently forgot to read the chart before starting in on a meal. As a result, (quite humorously) the plan was pretty much obsolete by day two. Mom did manage to cook/clean whenever she was supposed to, but the rest of the schedule was thrown into disarray by the maternal instinct to just tell me and my sister to do it. :) She would always apologize for it afterward, but I'd was more amused than anything else. (and we really didn't mind doing in the first place)

The next day my aunt, uncle, and cousins came down for the day and we managed to get some good time in the water as well as head down the beach to look for shark's teeth. (Which are everywhere on Topsail, as I may have mentioned before, due to currents in the Atlantic. Seriously, it's like walking in a giant mouth. 9 times out of 10 if you crouch down and look at the ground, there will be a shiny, black tooth sitting right there in front of you.)

Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday were mixed between rain, overcast weather, and the occasional patches of sunlight. While some of my family was rather cantankerous about it, (my swimming-addicted sister) I actually enjoyed the excuse to just read. Over the course of the week I managed to catch up on all the reading I meant to do over the course of the second semester at Covenant. All told, I started and finished:

"The Kite Runner" By Khaled Hosseini: Tells the story of Amir, an Afghan boy who grows up in Kabul, and then emigrates to America with his father during the Soviet occupation.

"A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini: Tells the story of two women, Leila and Mariam, who both end up married to the violent middle aged shoemaker, Rasheed.

"The Tipping Point" by Malcom Gladwell: A look at why social epidemics (from crime waves to fashion trends) get started and what is necessary to cause a given idea to "tip".

"Blink" by Malcom Gladwell: An examination of the power of unconscious thought, from first impressions to the tiny, involuntary facial expressions we all make which often betray when we lie.

"Outliers" by Malcom Gladwell: A look at how situations, cultural legacies, and blind luck conspire to overthrow our traditional view of successful individuals.

"What the Dog Saw" by Malcom Gladwell (I did read other things than just him, I promise.) A collection of articles from the New Yorker, ranging from why late-night infomercials work to how the dog whisperer handles hopeless canines.

"The Topsail Island Realty Brochure" by unknown office drones: A catalog of houses available for sale or rent on Topsail Island.

"Nutrition facts for Honey Bunches of Oats" by Gen. Mills (presumably retired if he's writing for a living): The nutrients and amounts of said nutrients contained in one serving of Honey Bunches of Oats, both with and without 1/3 cup of skim milk.

Thursday the weather cleared and we were able to head back out to the beach and bake for a while. Although mostly I successfully avoided sunburn, I did manage to scorch my chest a bit, which is an odd feeling. Thursday evening my mom, sister, and I went mini-golfing. Despite the best efforts of a small, flightless, sleeping infant bird to terrify my competitors into taking 5 stroke penalties to skip the hole it was snoozing on, I still lost to my sister and tied my mom. I blame irregularities in the Earth's rotation as I putted.

Friday we soaked up the last bits of sun we could before packing up in the evening to come home. Whether due to the amount of sun which my cabeza absorbed or due to some strange phenomenon, Friday night I had a BIZZARE dream where I was Freddy Kreuger running away from myself (David P.) wielding a "Wet Floor" sign and chasing Freddy-Me through the hallways of a middle school we used to use for church meetings when I was a kid. Needless to say, waking up was a pleasant and welcome change.

This morning we packed the rest of the gear up and hit the road. My sister and mom traded turns at the wheel as we drove back so that Em could get some time logged towards completing the requirements to get a full driver's license. Once home, I moved a TV around so that our neighbors (who've sold their house but can't move till December) will have one to watch while they rent out our basement apartment. Then I finally got back onto my workout schedule and now I'm writing about everything. Phew! That brings us up to now, as I sit in front of my computer and listen to "Back in the U.S.S.R." by the Beatles. I have a job interview as a stocker at Macy's on Tuesday (and yes, I know what it sounds like if you read that sentence aloud.) Hopefully that goes well, and I can finally stop worrying about finding a job.

Till next week: shalom!