I know I've been terrible...

Okay it seems like I've abandoned post. I haven't. Just been really really exceptionally and inhumanely busy this summer. But here goes another round of "Let's Open Nina's Head!"

What exactly have I been up to this summer, you ask? Well for starters, I've moved back to the sunshine state, complete with extraordinary weather and pick-able cherry orchards that'll make you sick and wished you'd never clapped eyes upon the red little dots of devil-fruit. But other people may disagree. So, being back in California, I've taken up skateboarding in my spare time. Hah! It's more difficult than you'd imagine, really, that little flat piece of wood is a little trickster who wants to throw you flat on your fanny. But I've always been one for preventative measures, and have purchased the necessary elbow, wrist and knee pads to keep my scrape-free. This way I don't leave any bits of my skin behind on the pavement. I'm no where near learning jumps and tricks and all that, but, with a decent amount of natural balance, I've managed to successfully propel myself forwards without looking like a complete disaster.

Also, I've picked up guitar, to further embrace the California bum in me. It took me a while to decide upon which one to buy (I wanted a solid-top, I know), but I finally settled on a Washburn D10S. It's a lovely-looking thing, very shiny, excellent build quality (from the very little I know about guitars, that is) and the sound is wonderful to my untrained ear. Ultimate Guitar is now a permanent fixture in my "References" bookmark folder. Many Jason Mraz songs are quite simple to play, though I'm still having trouble with that tricky F chord. If asked to switch to it in a hurry, what usually comes out is the muffled and muddy sound of...nothing. But I'm working on it, and I'll perhaps ask my more guitar-savvy friends at Duke to help me out.

On top of that, I've taken up the glorious and very Asian sport of badminton! It's a funny sport, beautiful once you have all the movements down pat but you look awkward and gawky if you're a beginner. So much technique and skill involved! It's a wonder to watch seasoned players in a match. Magnificent! Not exactly the most tiring of sports, but it will build up your leg and arm muscles quite a bit.

And on top of everything else, I'm also interning full-time at a software company, working with the marketing creative team. It's been a wonderful experience, the corporate sense of self is unattainable by study. I'm so much younger than anyone else working around me but they treat me like one of the team. It's been great, I've really really enjoyed this job, and I'll be sorry to leave it comes fall semester.

You know I'd feel better about my summer "vacation" if I didn't have to study math every night after I got home from work. My first actuary exam is in August and I'm really starting to think I'm not going to pass. I'm really starting to wish I'd taken Math 136 before jumping into the test. Ah well, I'd just have to pay another registration fee if I don't pass it this time. $175 per test, so no pressure eh?

So, with the release of Harry Potter behind me and my exam looming bigger and bigger, I feel like my return to Duke can't come quickly enough. I miss everyone, and the campus, and the atmosphere in general. But I suppose the remaining few weeks of summer will rush by as everything else has, not that I'll be sad to see it go.

Until August 23rd, my lovelies!