This past week has been a bit restful. On Tuesday, Holly and I went to the Botanical Garden, among other attractions around town. As much as we walked, toured and actively did nothing in particular, it was certainly one of the most relaxing days I’ve had in quite some time. Summer classes are over, the weather over in these parts has been as close to perfection as I could ask for, and I’ve gotten some much-needed time to read books and engage in some personal reflection. Tomorrow, we’ll be heading off to Chattanooga for a few days, so you might (maybe?) see an entry on the profundities and perils of the town gone fish, once I return.

While we were at the Gardens we witnessed the tail-end of a bit of a frightful incident. We saw a man drop whatever he had and make a mad dash into the reflecting pond. There was barely any time to think before we saw him fish a young boy who had apparently thought it would be fun to try to hop onto one of the gigantic lily pads. The boy was rescued successfully — no CPR needed — with great relief to the parents, who had to run from the opposite side of the lawn. A couple of ladies sitting on a nearby bench applauded for the dashing hero, though they seemingly applauded in a way as to indicate they’ve seen such incidents occur before. Perhaps it was something about the signs they held up that said “9.5″ and “10.0.”

On Thursday I began a two-day-long retreat with the Community Development Council, a sort of president’s council at Georgia State. Though there were fewer folks who showed up than I had ever seen, there was a sort of optimism among everyone that just feels different than in previous years. Just from anecdotal evidence, it appears that many student groups had a very difficult year last year. Some of that may have had to do with the rate of turnover among student life administrators. Today, all of the positions in the Student Life and Leadership office are now finally filled, and the folks there are ready to take on the new school year. I’m optimistic about this coming year, though in a much different way than I was this time last year. We’ll see how it goes.

In the meantime, I’ll be taking only a couple of classes this fall. One is a class on negotiation, and the other is a marketing class on buyer behavior. I’ll still be in the University Singers, where we will once again give a performance at Spivey Hall. Mark your calendars for November 6!