In a contrast to last week’s articles, expressing my anxieties about the school year, I wanted to reflect on the more positive things that I accomplished this summer. Going into a new school year, as mentioned last week, tends to send me into panic mode, so much so that I tend to forget the accomplishments and memories I made during the summer. Going into the summer, I had one goal in mind: making positive changes in my life, and actually being productive. Many past summers consisted of work and sleep, very little productivity involved. I justified such behaviors by convincing myself that “because I worked so hard during the school year, I earned a whole 3 months of procrastination.” While that certainly isn’t a bad way to spend the summer, I wanted something more this year, and I intended to stick to it.

One of the big goals I had in mind this summer was to get in better shape. If you knew me in real life, you’d know that I am a pretty skinny person, tall and lanky would be the best way to describe myself. However, I had wanted to get into shape, more muscular and adding weight instead of losing it, for a while now, and despite some previous attempts at this over the years I was determined to follow through on this one. I had contacted some friends to see what gyms they belonged to, and had met up with my old R.A. in college, who showed me the ropes at the “Retro Fitness” that he belonged to. I was pretty intimidated at first, even though I had worked out before, it wasn’t at a place so public. Even after he had showed me the ropes, I was still nervous to go by myself, as I constantly feel like people are judging me based on my appearance. Yet, working out every week, no matter what, made me feel like I was accomplishing something. I stuck to my program, made the effort each week, and instilled a routine that I intend to follow through on well into the school year and beyond,

Another big accomplishment for me personally was being accepted to write articles for the Odyssey. I’m an individual who is pretty opinionated on certain subjects, mainly pop culture. Outside of work however, I really have few outlets to channel said opinions. I had also, outside of some articles I wrote for my high school newspaper, never had my work published before. Once I saw the opportunity to write for the Odyssey however, I was a bit hesitant but this meant that I had a chance to share my opinions, gain some more experience writing on a different level then academics, and be a part of something big. Once I began writing for the Odyssey however, my initial fears disappeared, and I was having a blast expressing myself, and sharing my opinions with as many people as I could. Writing new articles every week, discussing the latest trends, or sometimes sharing parts of myself in writing, has been incredible fun It has been an honor to write for the Odyssey, and I plan on writing as many articles as possible during the school year,

My last, and possibly greatest, big event that happened for me during the summer was meeting my writing idol, comic book writer Scott Snyder. Ever since I was in high school, Scott Snyder’s books had always been something to look forward to; from “Detective Comics” to “American Vampire,” Mr. Snyder’s books had always turned a bad day at school into an awesome day. The way he writes is as close to prose writing in comic books, in the best possible way, and his stories are a big reason why I want to become a comic book writer in the first place. His work, and views on writing as a whole, are incredibly inspiring, so when an opportunity to meet him at a local comic book store (where he was signing copies of his new book, “All-Star Batman”) I jumped at the chance. My friend (who told me about the event) and I had waited for a good 3 hours to meet him, but it was worth it. Aside from signing some of my favorite comics that he wrote, he was extremely kind, and a very down to earth person. Some of the more popular comic book creators, and celebrities in general, tend to be very arrogant and “above” their fans. Scott was the exact opposite of that; he was very kind to every fan that he met, signed every book, and even shared stories about some of the books he signed, or just stories about working in comics as a whole. He told me stories about how one of the comics I brought was an important one, as the artist of the book helped Scott get one of his ideas, and idea his editors didn’t like, to appear in the printed issue. Meeting Mr. Snyder was an incredible experience, and it only doubles my efforts to become a published comic book author.

Looking back, compared to most summers, this one was possibly the most eventful. The only regret that I have is that I didn’t spend nearly as much time with friend as I could have. Because of work, the gym, and other commitments, I didn’t have as much down time as I have in the past, and as a result, had less time to be social. However, I did get to spend some time with friends, and given all of the other things that I have done this summer, I can let it slide just this once.