Well, summer break has come and gone…classes start next week. I’m trying to get myself pumped up for the semester, but it’s a bit tough to do so right now. Can’t say it’s totally unexpected, though. I knew it would be rough going back after having the summer off. But no regrets - it’s been an awesome summer!

I’m doing the same thing this semester as I did with my first - taking one class from the start and picking up a second class half way through. Although each half semester class meeting is long, they at least offer more options and I get to enjoy the rest of the nice weather without being uber-stressed.

First class on tap is Corporate Finance. I’ve heard good things about the class, the teacher I have specifically, so I am looking forward to it. International Business is the other class and starts in October. Having been in a global company for three and a half years, I hope to draw on those experiences to help make it more relevant and interesting.

You may remember a previously post about some of the things I wanted to do with the time off this summer. Here’s an update:

• Volunteer
  Started volunteering for STARS in July
• Get more involved in church
  This is the goal I was most hoping I would be able to do something about and God has really opened the doors of opportunity the past couple weeks. I’ve been a part of a great group for Sunday morning “Adult Bible Fellowship” (a.k.a. Sunday school) since March, and this has led to the other opportunities which I’ll post more later in a separate post… It’s felt really great to be committed to a church again, not just a consumer but a contributor.
• Look for a new “lavoro”
  “Lavoro” is Italian for “job” for those that didn’t quite get my not so subtle attempt to hide my motivations from my current employer at the time. Thankfully, I did get a new job, and it’s been great so far!
• Take road trips to visit family and friends
  Took a trip to NC with friends to visit Lori and Dan as well as a trip to Nashville to visit my brother and sister-in-law. Unfortunately, the white water rafting trip fell through because of the new job, but we went canoeing instead, so that’ll work. We also took a camping trip to Red River Gorge
• Finish up some projects around the house/yard
  The two main projects were cleaning/treating the deck and making a walkway from the garage to the deck. Finished the deck job a month or so ago, and while the walkway isn’t quite done yet, it’s well underway. Hope to get another good chunk done this weekend and should be able to finish before school starts.

Sadly, there were two goals I didn’t quite achieve…

• Get involved in a creative ministries (specifically puppets)
  This is a passion I really need to do something about since I miss it so much. Last I checked, my church doesn’t have an existing group, so I would have to organize one. I have no problem with that, but with classes and other activities starting up soon, I don’t quite feel I have the time to devote to this right now without spreading myself way too thin. It’s a case of determining where God wants my attention right now and I think He’s telling me to look elsewhere for the time being. There is much work that can be done in preparation, though, so that’s where my focus will be for the Fall.
• Search for grants and scholarships for grad school
  I did make a half-hearted attempt on a couple occasions, didn’t have any immediate success finding “cheap and easy” free money (they make you write essays and such for MBA scholarships, too, believe it or not *sarcasm*), and eventually gave up. Good news is that my new company offers much more tuition reimbursement than my previous one, but I have to wait until next year to use it.

It has been a very fulfilling summer and I can look back on it with no regrets and a sense of accomplishment, having worn out instead of rusted out and felt God’s hand in it. I can only pray the fall will be as great.