This marks my fifteenth summer.  My fifteenth plunge into the depths of blasting heat.  My fifteenth escape from the constraints of the world.  That's a lot, at least it seems so to me, so over the years the memories have kind of blended together in a blur of various excitements.  But, however hazy, I know that none of those times left me quite as pumped up as I am this year.  I blame it on high school- not that I don't like it or anything.   I'd just call it a roller coaster, with ups and downs that give you a major adrenaline rush and make you unsure of whether you want to laugh or cry.
  The minute the last bell rang, screaming could be heard throughout the entire school.  It was like we had all become little kids again.  I didn't  scream, but that was only because I was under the spell of complete and utter shock.   Not a second was wasted for me to hop in the car with Mom, and then we left to pick up my siblings from the elementary school.  The screaming heard there only confirmed my previous statement.  While the kids said goodbye and Eric bragged to all of his friends that his big sister is now a sophomore, I visited some of my old teachers- some of which have taught several Lundgreens- just like I visited my spectacular eighth grade English teacher, Ms. Turilli, last Wednesday.  It was really funny to see these people, to bring back old memories of slightly more relaxing days, to share hugs with those who helped me grow.  They all exclaimed at how much older I looked, though I don't think that included a major height difference. 
  Anybody who has ever been to Arizona knows that you can't stand around too long without melting.  So I quickly met up with my friends at Bryan's house to swim.  You know, I think we are all insane.  I love it!  Though I'm not quite positive that that that's a good quality to combine with a pool; I'm surprised we haven't managed to drown each other with our wonderfully psycho ways.  Wrestling on the top of the waterfall, guys vs. girls steal-the-volleyball competition, watermelon fights...   Bryan's dog would probably have gotten sick from cleaning up the patio if his mom hadn't reminded us that the fruit was for us to eat.     Oh my, and his little brothers were so adorable when they came to us with a crayon-drawn menus, took our orders, and made us lunch!
  Considering the fact that I had taken finals earlier in the day and I forgot to wear sunscreen for several hours worth of summer, I ended up quite worn out.  I planned on spending the rest of the day lounging.  But Rachel and I were invited to hang out with a different group of friends that evening, so what could I do?  And once we got there, there were no regrets.  These girls were similarly wearing swimsuit cover-ups, no shoes, no makeup, and natural hair {apparently everyone hates me now, cause my hair dries stick-straight.  it's not like I can help it!}.  We walked around the neighborhood like this, careless as could be, happy to just be ourselves, before going to Paige's house.  That chick is so cute!  Immediately she began to plan out a "tea party," and soon enough we were trying on all her sisters' prom dresses, then modeling for her family and nibbling chocolate chip cookies dipped in milk with an adorable Hello Kitty tea-set from Japan. I felt so girly!  Once again I wondered if perhaps Colonial or Victorian times would've suited me better.  Despite the late hour, we were still erupting with energy and settled on strolling through the community some more, this time "chalking" some of the boys in their ward.  I wonder what these guys thought when they walked outside in the morning to find their driveways suffocating in notes to them...  At least another hour after that we spent at the other Katie's house, flipping through the yearbook {they spelled my last name with only one e, those losers!} and being not quite sure what was coming out of our own mouths.  
  That was only one day.  One day out of the many in the adventure called summer to come.