July 4th is quickly becoming one of my favorite holidays. No family drama, no worries about presents and specific menus that keep with tradition, and a feeling of "anything goes" summertime attitude accompanies everything. We buy store-made potato salad, drink copious amounts of margaritas, and join random neighborhood parties. Well, just because.
So, last night...Jack had the brilliant idea to walk the neighborhood after we grilled our ribs and shrimp (if you want a wild shrimp experience, boil some jumbo shrimp in a Miller Lite and some Old Bay seasoning. An unexpected gastronomic experience). We walked down to the cul-de-sac a few houses down, following the sounds of Rihanna and Whitesnake. Instead of feeling like outsiders (these were new neighbors), we immediately felt welcomed and part of the crowd. One of the guy's dads was there and reminded us EXACTLY of Arthur from King of Queens. It was awesome. In that "is this really happening?" type of realization as Jack and I walked home at 1 a.m.
That was after the cops came.
Yeah, the cops.
Someone in the neighborhood called the police on the block party (which was actually the "pre-gaming" of today's block party. Hell yes, we are going back tonight). There was one house not represented at the block party so we knew who called. But the funniest thing was that the cop merely got out of his car and said, "great party...just make sure no one tries to drive home" and left! We thumbed our noses at that one house.
But we really underestimated the party scene of our neighborhood. Everyone is 30-40 with the requisite 2-3 kids ranging from ages 7-15. You know those movies that portray kids' idealistic childhoods, like "Now and Then?" That's where I live. I can barely fathom the stories they will tell when they are 40 or 50, with their own kids. We're part of a developing history here.
So yes, July 4th rocks. And several neighbors spent hundreds of dollars on fireworks so as long as the subdivision doesn't burn down, we'll be having a fabulous night.
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Work is going well and despite a super-early deadline for budgets this year, I'm feeling good about things. Because I'm an ethicist now and report to Corporate, my budgets were due by July 3. I submitted them on July 2 and 4 p.m. and quickly hightailed it to the nearest hamburger and glass of vino. I hated that they were due before vacation but now that they are complete, I'm SO glad that monkey's off my back!
And yes, vacation is coming soon. We leave this coming week for a glorious 8 days in the sands of Lake Michigan with our dearest friends. The texts going back and forth are hysterical. Our friends found us Tommy Bahama beach chairs at a Costco in Chicago and here I am, stocking up on Tide pods and ziploc bags for the beach house. Each year, we have learned something. Like, that we need lots of laundry soap so that we can wash our beach towels every evening. Or that we really never use the mayo we buy at the store. Or that the ladies go through way more Chardonnay than we anticipated. Hypothetically, we start with our first glass of Chardonnay at 11 a.m. some mornings.
I just wanted to clarify whether it's 11 a.m. Central time or Eastern? Haha.
So summer is in full swing here at Chez Dorrie. It's beautiful, relaxing, and full of lots of parties, beaches, and soon-to-be finished comps for my master's degree. The last step is upon me...written comps on Tuesday and oral comps on July 21. Then I get a year off before the PhD. Yay! Bring on the sunscreen, Chardonnay, and awesome neighborhoods full of new friends!
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