David - Journal 6

March 15 , 2005

"Poison Ivy and Swim Meets"

This is the beach my dad lives on.

Well, spring break is over, and it felt like the shortest week ever. I had a great time in Florida with my family. The weather wasn't the greatest, northeast Florida where my dad lives still gets some cold weather this time of year but it was definitely warmer than here in Harrisonburg. Of course the nicest day of the week, Sunday, was the day I left. Iit was 80 degrees outside. It was so beautiful, definitely one of the nicest days I have seen in a while. The first weekend I didn't do much but lounge around the house, watch some movies, took some walks on the beach and did some reading for school (I know, that's ridiculous, but hey, it never hurts to try and get ahead). Then Monday I met up with my boss and worked some landscaping until Wednesday. That was great, I love my co-workers and boss, love the hours and pay, and the job is great. It was not too hot outside either so the work did not get too tiring. During the summer though, the heat is sometimes unbearable.

Me, my stepmother (Heidi), my little sister (Summer) and my dad.

Anyway, work was great, but I got a horrible case of poison ivy/oak. I told my boss the only task I have for her is to make sure I can identify these stupid little plants, so hopefully this summer this won't be a problem again. However, the ivy and oak got so bad from my scratching it got on my face a little and my legs, arms, and stomach pretty badly. In addition, there was one spot on my arm that was punctured while I was working and was infected. The whole inside of my left arm was red and swollen pretty bad. It hurt to touch so I went to the doctor and was put on antibiotics and steroids. The poison is fading though so the medication is working and getting better but it was not the best experience.

The best part of my break was watching my little sister, Summer, compete in the Junior Olympics for swimming. It is a huge state meet for the state of Florida and she did great considering it was her first big state competition at the age of 10. She came in 13th place for the 100m IM stroke out of 27, 12th out of 25 in the 50m freestyle stroke, and 17th out of 27 for the 50m backstroke. I was so proud of her; she did such a great job. The whole trip was awesome. We brought one of her friends and the whole family. We all had many laughs in the hotel room and the 4-hour drive to Clearwater, Fla. where the meet was held. It was a great trip.

But now school is back in session. I got my midterm grades, which are great, and I have an opportunity to get close to a 4.0 this semester, hopefully I can pull that off. I will let you know how things go down the road. It is nice to be back in the community and with my friends. EMU is starting to feel more like home everyday.