Nuclear

"So this is where the summer ends...
In a flash of pure destruction no one wins."

I always know when summer is over. There are signs. One being the opening day of dove season. As the weather cools, the migration starts. Even the birds know when summer is over and it's time to move on to the warmer plains of Mexico and South America. Another sign is the football hysteria. It's that time between the dog days of August, when you're body is crippled from the summer heat and the northerner's blowing in, giving you a revival in your muscles. You feel like hitting something, or someone...I guess that's why football works so well this time of year. The final sign, for me, is Labor Day weekend. Where I come from, Labor Day ranks, with some, on the same tier with Christmas and Thanksgiving. It's the perfect bookend for a summer, and it always offers an interesting last chapter to your summer's whether they were good or not.

In most cases, Labor Day weekend mirrors the summer's I've had. It surely did this year. I enjoyed my summer...at times. I was able to do some things I'd never been able to do, start new friendships, and ultimately lost a few people who meant so much to me, but all's well that end's well, and this summer did just that. So the prep comes for the fall and it will slide into winter soon enough. I like the fall, and it's reflective nature. It allows you to settle your mind a bit and concentrate on the all the going's on in your life.

I'm expecting things to look up this fall. They have to, really. The summer, although good, may rank as one of the most violently introspective times of my life. There were parts that were not easy by any means, and the hangover from them will probably last awhile, but as the saying goes, "time heals all wounds." I think the seasons start and end right when they should. Just when you're tired of one the other comes around and I love that. As in life, when you're tired and worn down by something, there is always a refresher that gives you a new start...a blank slate. In some ways, I am a blank slate, and although this is scary on so many levels, it's also exciting. Getting to know friends again that I haven't really spent any time with over the last year or so is fucking awesome. But equally awesome is the new people you meet. Different opinons and views that are often intriguing and sometimes not, but different anyways. I'm ready for the fall. I hope it's ready for me.

If anyone gets a chance they should buy the new Black Rebel Motorcycle Club album, HOWL. Even though their name is somewhat lame, the album is great. Spin called it the new "Nebraska" (of course being Springsteen's venture into Americana). I really like it and it's pretty introspective. Anywhooo....

Cory Will