The best bit of my summer was my birthday of course, I got to see pretty much all my friends and family which made me very happy. And the other half took me on the London Eye, which was awesome.

My summer has been an exercise in Living Without a Real Job. I’m surviving on commissioned artwork and the infrequent sale of pottery with no real overarching plan or method. Part of me (the impetuous, creative side) prefers the irregularity of this existence. The rational or systematic bits of my personality aren’t becoming less prominent or less used; it’s just that I’m more fully realizing the extent to which my overall happiness is linked to how and on what I work. I’ve never really lived this way before, so I didn’t know any better, I guess.

Overall it’s been an unusually introspective summer. I’m an introvert but I’ve been particularly self-critical lately, to both positive and negative ends. On the positive side, I now have a better understanding of my sorta-schizophrenic method of evaluating everything in my life. I’ve received medical counseling for anxiety and I feel much better all-around. I communicate more effectively, I’m not hung up on nonsensical invented problems, etc. On the negative side, my friendships have been neglected, to the point where some think I’m deliberately avoiding them.

I’m quite jealous of your trip to Cancun, as I almost went, but while checking our bags I was told my passport was expired and I was forced to stay while my family enjoyed the vacation. B’oh.

Your apartment is quite stunning; I’d imagine it’s worth the climb. I’m going to be stumbling blindly around Salem come September as I try to find my way to the Handcrafted CSS conference and to my hotel. My first time in the state.

Hopefully the witches won’t get me.

I bet that joke gets old…

http://www.dingdongnation.com/summer-vacation-2009/

Cancun looks sweet too!