As summer is beginning to close (I know, I'm sorry to bring it up), the reality of going back to school and being more responsible again has become more than just a thought in the back of my mind.

With the fact that I'll be leaving my hometown for school yet again in less than a week, I can't help but dread the quick change from doing nothing to being super busy. I will be honest in saying I haven't prepared myself for this change at all this summer, and I now regret it.

Coming into this summer, I had high hopes. I wanted to go on road trips, find a super great new summer job, and catch up with all of my friends in town. In reality, I knew my hopes were going to be difficult to plan and make happen, and unfortunately, a lot of these things didn't end up happening. I ended up spending two-thirds of my summer applying for jobs at places that never got back to me (which is a pet peeve of mine now, by the way), and watching "Grey's Anatomy," "The Walking Dead" and "The Bachelorette" until late hours into the night.

No matter how much I dwell on what I didn't do this summer that I should have, I did a few great things this summer. I don't want to make it seem like the last three months at home were a complete bust. This summer has been a nice time to relax. But perhaps I relaxed too much and put off some important things. Procrastination is already an issue in my life, but this summer it was way more relevant, which has led to more stress as I think about the beginning of my fall semester.

Along with not being as productive as I liked to be, I also had to pick up a lot of hours at my previous job, since I had unintentionally wasted two months looking for other jobs because I was too stubborn to go back to my old job when I should have in May. I am lucky to have gotten a job at all, and I'm thankful to have one.

I am also finally gearing up to get ready to go back to Lincoln. You're probably thinking, "Way to go, only took you the entire summer to be productive," to which I say, yeah. You're right. I'm just slowly getting there. Lately I've been readying myself for the things that I'm expecting to kick my butt (basically, band camp and the entire football season). (And my classes, of course.)

I guess where I'm getting at in this stream of consciousness article is that even though my unproductive summer has left me unprepared for the school year, it isn't going to be a bad semester and it isn't too late to start being productive again. Realistically, there is no reason why I should say that summer should be longer. Looking ahead, I know I have a lot ahead of me this year and I don't want to start getting into that yet. Luckily, I have some goals set that I am determined to accomplish, and I need to start being productive today.

I know I can make do from what I learned this summer, and I will definitely put forth effort into the school year this year, regardless of how "ready" I am for school to start again or not.

As I write this, I have less than a week until I move back to Lincoln. So, until then, I'll be packing and trying to meet up with as many people as I can. I truly can't wait for college to continue, but I know it'll be difficult to leave for many reasons. Unfortunately, that's life, and this is adulthood. Welcome to the real world.