Preppy Girl's Guide

I love this time of year and simultaneously hate it at the same time. It is SEASON for me. I think I will acutally take time in this post to try and describe the place where I work. There's no easy way to do this, but here goes.

The place I work is actually town, with a town square, a post office, and several small shops. The entire community is gated, and in the summer, for 9 weeks, we run an intense program of lectures, classes, schools, recreational facilities and performance venues. We have a 5000 seat amphitheater that hosts daily lectures and nightly concerts, as well as an opera hall and small theater. We have a symphony orchestra, opera company, theater company, schools of fine and performing arts, children's summer school program, boys' and girls' clubs, sailing center, fitness center, two 18-hole golf courses, a Victorian hotel, tennis courts - wait, there's no way I can tell you EVERYTHING so I'll stop here. It is an amazing place, both picturesque and charming (and expensive as you can probably imagine).

Summer means the culmination of a year's worth of preparation. We are all happy once things are rolling - but at the same time, we lose our small town feel as the big city visitors descend upon us in droves. It is both wonderful and annoying - an interesting dicotomy. (For those of you thinking Dirty Dancing, it's pretty close.) Most of the kids who work for me are "locals" home for the summer from college (and they are a great bunch of kids by the way). Throw in a gaggle of rich "city" kids and you can bet the whole "I carried a watermelon?" scene has been played out many times over. (I'd know, a youthful preppygirl spent many a summer hanging out here herself.)

Anyhoo, this is my life for the next 9 weeks. If you don't hear form me as often, now you'll know why. I am hoping for some fun and interesting stories to share (though it will be tough to top last summer's cat scratch fever).

I'll be back soon, I hope...

P.S. As you may have picked up on, Saturday was my 35th birthday. Thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes! I actually had phone calls from many far away friends including Sherri who is alive and well and just moved into her new place in Jacksonville. Thought some inquiring minds might want to know...