I took a mini-hiatus because I was in D.C. and New York for a work trip for a little over a week. That was the longest I'd been away from home (not counting studying abroad 10 years ago) and while it was fun, I realized that I am not for this traveling life. Nonetheless, it was an inspiring trip and I got to learn so much about the students that I work with (for those that don't know, I work in cultural exchange). What I loved about the D.C. trip was that I was able to bond with some co-workers that I didn't see that often or have a lot of interaction with. For the most part, this trip was coordinated and run by women and we did a bomb-ass job I must say! It's fun because we're all going through withdrawals, I guess you really get attached to people you spend every waking moment with for a week.
It was weird being in Washington, D.C. given this political climate and it was obvious that people in D.C. were over bullshit as well. There were so many subtle digs and everything just felt more "real". I didn't even care to the touristy White House shots, because fuck that. All the tour guides made comments about how this country is "ridiculous" and that we're living in strange times. Amen to that. Don't' forget to call your reps and senators tomorrow to defend DACA!
After the conference in D.C., I went to New York for the first time. As a native Chicagoan, I am biased into thinking that my city is superior in every way. And you know what, I still stand by that. New York City was okay. It could have been that I was by myself and on a work trip, but it was all just 'meh' and I couldn't wait to go home. The one thing that I really loved was how diverse the city was. I loved that I could five different languages all within a mile of walking. I told my husband I'd drag him on a weekend trip, but it's just not my scene.
I read 11 books when my goal was to read 10 books. Yaay! My favorite read of the month was Once and For All (4.5 stars) and my least favorite read was Wicked Like a Wildfire (1 star).
I didn't really have high expectations for August given all of my travelings. Bout of Books really helped me step my reading game up, and I even managed to schedule some reviews. I don't know what black magic allowed me to do that, but I finally feel like I'm getting my blogging game back on track! I'm still utter crap at commenting, but I'm working on that one too. Promise!
September, the most wonderful time of the year. Summer is nice and all, but fall is my everything. The weather is perfect, we get fun specialty drinks, there are PUMPKIN PATCHES, and all of the Halloween decorations come out. What's not to love? I don't have much planned for September, really I just want to catch up from my summer of insanity. Oh, and tackle all of my September/October releases. Pray for me y'all, I apparently got too grabby at ALA. I hope to read 12 books this month, so if anyone can give me tips for reading at night - that would be great (seriously, I fall asleep as soon as I open the book).
How was your August?
