We're kicking off our Summer 2013 feature, Stories from Summer Vacation, with Ph.D. student Tynisha Scott's discussion of her very busy summer... Like many students, I've spent the first few weeks following the end of a long semester catching up on television and making up for lost sleep.My roommate’s cats have rewarded my actions with cuddles, preventing me from feeling bad about relaxing on most days.However, I haven’t been a complete bum. I graduated with my masters in Women’s and Gender Studies mid-May.And I have completely reorganized my living space to maximize on my productivity this summer. My mini break is coming to an end, however, because I’ll be brushing up on my Spanish and serving as a teaching assistant for Introduction to American Studies. Though I’m excited about both activities (I’m giving a guest lecture on animated cartoons and race!), I am bummed that I will miss spending time with my niece and nephew here:Or here:Still, my plans for the summer will be invigorating as they will involve:

• knitting scarves for said niece and nephew since they requested them over a month ago
• starting a weekly writing group with some peers
• researching archives in Houston and Austin to discover more information about the former’s red light district at the turn of the twentieth century
• completing my MA thesis reading list (fingers crossed)
• working on a journal submission
• perfecting a few dishes (including roast chicken and pot roast)
• lounging by a pool as often as possible
• catching up Dexter (both the book and television series)
• finishing In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson
• not brooding over the season finale of Game of Thrones and its likely absence until next year
• getting a new tattoo

Out of all these plans, the most exciting is the archive trips. Not only because they’ll be fruitful for my research, but also because my mom will join me on the Houston visits. She’s been working on our family tree and history for the past five years and is very familiar with several of the archives I’ll need to visit upon my return to the Bayou City. It really is a treat to receive guided help from both the archive librarians and my mom. Her enthusiasm for my project just reminds me that we’re never alone on our journey, no matter how isolated we may feel.