Officially Summer

I think summer has officially started. Here are some sure signs:

1) The pool is open at my apartment. Or it will be by the end of this week. I'm so excited to be able to lay in the sun this summer; last year I worked all the time so I never got outside, and I was so sadly pale. Not this year!

2) West Lafayette's co-ed softball league is in full swing. Pun! In! Tended!!! Yes, we had our first game last night, and we won! When I initially signed up to play, I had fully expected to keep the bench warm, cheer everyone on, and look as cute as possible to make up for my extreme lack of athleticism. But last night I actually got to play, and I'm glad I did! I caught for a couple innings, and I even got to bat and I hit the ball! Barely. It seriously went about a foot from the plate, but it totally counted! And I didn't have any strikes! So I was super-excited about that.

3) It's Tony Time. The Tony Awards season always sneaks up on me. And I'm pretty sure I'm one of maybe like five people in Indiana who even care about the Tonys. But I love them. And I love trying to predict the winners! Today they are announcing the nominees, so I'll have to do my homework and find out about all the musicals I've never heard of so I know what the heck is going on on awards night. The great part is that CBS carries the Tonys, so I'll have access to video clips of the show and I can force a little Broadway culture into people's mornings!

On a related note, I picked up The Little Mermaid Broadway soundtrack, and it is fantastic. I always worry when they take a beloved Disney movie and turn it into a Broadway show because everyone loves those songs so much that if and when they get changed, it sometimes kind of ruins it. And the Little Mermaid carries a lot of weight--this was the film that pretty much saved Disney and especially its animation department back in the late 80s/early 90s. This was the first of the Alan Menken-Howard Ashman golden nuggets that my generation thinks of when we think "Disney." So I think there is a lot of importance riding on turning the Broadway version into something people would love instead of resent for "ruining" the movie. It's awesome. All the original songs are done with great integrity, and the new songs are so great and fit so well with the original score. And Sierra Boggess, who plays Ariel, is amazing! She definitely embodies the character we've all known, loved, and memorized for almost 20 years.

OK, I'm off that rant.

4) There are so many movies I want to see! What a great year for summer blockbusters! I personally am not into Iron Man or Speed Racer, but I can't wait to see Prince Caspian and Indiana Jones! I will probably also go see Sex in the City with my best girls, as we once spent an entire summer watching every season episode by episode. My co-workers will really give me a hard time about it, but whatever.

OK, gotta go! They are about to announce the Tony nominees on the Early Show! It's summer, and I'm so glad! It's my favorite time of year!