The Good and the Bad | How I Overcome My Summer Boredom.
Summer break comes in many different forms. Some go home to their loved ones while others continue to work. But there is also that group of people that have no clue what to do over the break and before they know it, summer comes to an end, and it’s back to the daily grind. For me, I fit into all three of the options I mentioned. I end up moving out of my college dorm to go back home to live with my mom for the summer. I still continue working for my job also. My biggest problem is that I end up being bored all the time when the summer comes. Some days there is motivation to do something while other days I want nothing but to sit in bed and watch Netflix all day.
So, what did I do this summer to help cure my boredom and stay motivated? Well, for the first time in a long time this summer has been pretty eventful in ways I never expected it to be.
My Job
The one thing that has taken up a lot of my time over the summer is my job. I am currently working for my college’s IT Services department as a part of the Desktop Operations division. My job entails making sure that the servers are running that host the printers and license keys/files for different software available on campus. I also have to create images that will be installed on the computers located throughout the many computer labs on campus. This is the most time-consuming part of my job as some programs take hours to download and install. I will sometimes get that annoying program that installs but when you try to run it, it doesn’t do anything so I have to go through a rabbit hole of online forums and Q&As to try and find a solution. Overall though, this job aligns with my goals on what I plan to do after college if and when I get a full-time job so it’s great to have experience in the field.
Personal Projects
As much as I would love to lay in bed all day and watch Netflix, there are other things that are worth my time instead. This summer I have seen myself grow in many different ways. I would say the biggest form of growth for myself is not giving up on new ideas and plans.
I’ve always wanted to create an app ever since I was a wee little kid but I could never sit down and put the effort into it. Instead of wishing for it to happen, I made the time every day to work on this project. Some days had more time dedicated to it than others but overall it was my willingness to put the work in that made it happen. You can read about the whole process of creating my stickers app by visiting this link and you can also download it on the app store (iPhone and iPad) by clicking here! How cool is it that I can say that I have my own app on the Apple App Store? I don’t know, I think it’s really cool.
Another project that kept me busy over the summer was the tweaking and editing of my website. I created this website back in May of 2020 to promote the book that I published. I originally had this domain on Wix and played around with the design numerous times. At first, it was just going to be used for my book but over the course of the months that followed, I knew I wanted to expand and that is when I switched to Squarespace to host this site. I knew that I was set with features I could use later on such as a store and blog.
So fast forward to June of 2021, almost a year after I had this website, I decided to add a store to it. I wanted to create products that had a meaning not only for me but for those that ended up stumbling upon my page. I started small with stickers of my favorite plants and a couple of NYC Subway Signs that I would see every day going into the city from my college campus. I then added posters, postcards, and t-shirts.
Over the last couple of weeks, I have been working on re-doing all the product images on my store as well as launching a new collection that features matching posters and t-shirts. This has kept me busy as I have to create mockups for everything which has also helped me in my photoshop skills! I also had to edit the metadata of each product for tracking purposes (another blog post coming to go into the details). I have also purchased an embroidery machine so there will soon be an option for custom products such as t-shirts with custom text/graphics. Stay tuned for that!
Personal Life
Now with all of that, you might be saying that I don’t have time to take care of myself and my social meter. Yeah, you might be right but I make time for fun activities. One of the most surprising moments of this summer is when I drove and visited my friends up in Pearl River. You see, I don’t really enjoy driving and if I have to drive, it’s in Staten Island and usually only to go to Target. I had to drive through Jersey to get to Pearl River and it is my first time alone, I was not ready for it. New Yorkers always complain about Jersey traffic rules so I knew I was in for it. However, it was not that bad but just know you're lucky if I decide to visit you and it requires me to drive through Jersey.
So when I was in Pear River, we went to this insane sushi place which was all you can eat. Like the idiots that we are, we ordered way too much food and at one point we were trying to sell each other on how delicious the sushi roll was to get the other to eat it so we would not be charged for it. We ended up not getting charged for the few extra pieces left over but it was a great time. After, we ended up chilling and drinking our favorite drink, Boozy Tea by Owl Brew (Please sponsor me!). As the night got older, my friends decided that it was only right that I go to the local bar as it was my first time in that area. When we were at the bar, I ran into my friend from college and I was so happy to see her because it had been a hot minute since we last hung out. We had a couple of drinks and shots together and it was such a great time. It’s nights like those that really make life unexpected and worth it.
Another cool thing I did was go on a random vacation to Myrtle Beach. I was talking about going with my mom to a friend one day at a local bar/restaurant and all of a sudden I was looking at vacation rentals and it ended up getting booked. Not knowing anyone besides my mom’s friend, I was a little nervous about the vibes but it ended up being one of the best vacations. Every night there was plenty of laughter and overall it was such a great time.
What’s Next?
Now that there are only a couple of weeks left of summer break, I am counting down until the first day of classes again. I have had so much cool stuff happen the last couple of months that I am not worried about what’s to come next. I have future updates for my app to work on, the new product launch to get ready for, and add a custom shirt section to my store. This website will never have me satisfied and I will constantly be improving it to bring the best experience to anyone who visits.
In the comments below, let me know what you did over the summer that helped you fight your boredom.
