Summertime Blues

Ever have those mornings where you hit the snooze on the alarm clock too many times, finally lurch out of bed, and don't have the time nor the inclination to care what you wear for the day? And then, when you finally get to work and actually see what outfit you've chosen, you want to slink under your desk and hide all day long?

That was me yesterday. As a consequence of my bad fashion choice, my self-esteem didn't rank very high all day long, and by the time I got home, I just wanted to throw the offending outfit into the deepest, darkest recesses of my closet.

This has been happening too much lately. I can only attribute it to one thing: it's summer.

Not only does summer make me feel frumpy on the outside, but on the inside, as well. My motivation isn't where it should be, I don't sleep well at night (even with the fan constantly blowing in my face), and the season's flesh-baring fashions only shoot my self-esteem further into the water. Give me jeans and a comfy sweater any day! Even my desire to buy lots of cute sundresses has somewhat fallen by the wayside due to budget constraints and, well, the fact that some of us need a bit of support under those sundresses to make them look good. And those supporting items only contribute to making me hotter!

Point blank, summer makes me feel lethargic and grouchy and grumpy.

I don't see an easy solution to this as I cannot flee to some far-off northern country for the next two months, nor can I barricade myself in my apartment and exist on chocolate and Diet Pepsi alone (though I may lose some weight that way...).

So I've determined to find the small bits and pieces of this season that I actually enjoy and focus on them. Evening bike rides. Longer days. Thunderstorms. Picnics. Fresh fruit. Gorgeous flowers. Family get-togethers (4th of July!). Ice cream. Sitting on the deck in the evenings and soaking up the sounds of cicadas.

There. I feel better already.