READING: Loaded up my library card with a new stack of books for a final "I'm on Vacation Plan" as school starts back up soon enough and gone are the days of swimming and reading and calling it vacation time. My favorite book in the lineup being a book by Charles C. Mann 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus and am eager to get going on that as Mark has the follow up book by the same author 1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Discovered and I'm in line for it next so I don't want to miss my shot at it.
SWIMMING NEWS: This weekend was the last of the long course season meets for Matt here in Indy at the Nat with USA Senior State. He did well, posted some new best times, and swam a new swim for him with a fairly decent showing, the 400 Freestyle, which puts him the beginning of a mid-distance swimming addition to his lineup. IU swimmers are now training tor the U.S. Open Swimming Championships (in Indianapolis August 7-11) or having a small break before gearing up for college swimming (short course) which starts back up August 11. Matt is on break for this week and next. Will train this week yet, but next week taking a vacation...his first since April 2011. Some photos from the swim meet today. First up, one of the guys hanging out waiting for their swims: Top row: Matt and Ian watching the action; Middle Row: Ryan listening to music to psych up for his 1500 Freestyle and Mike just relaxing; Bottom Row: Murray texting and Daniel concentrating. 
Go Ryan! Lots of team encouragement for Ryan in the 1500 race...and Ryan wins. (Left to right: Stephanie, Sara, Matt, Guinevere, Murray, and Coach L)
100 Freestyle race...Peter (fellow CSC swimmer all those years), Matt, Daniel, and Hunter. Mike is further down the line in Lane 7. Ready to race. 
And they are off and racing...Peter in Red, Matt in White, Daniel in Red, and Hunter in Black 
The Finish...very very close...a 3-way touch out finish with Matt getting caught between strokes and finishing third...Mike finished fourth, the IU guys showing 100 Freestyle Power. (Hunter was IU as well this past year.) A very fun race for them all, and a great way to finish the meet. 
And what they were all looking at in the above photo: the scoreboard. 
COOKING BYTES: Okay, I actually posted some things. Not nearly enough to meet group requirements, but some things. The hot weather probably has something to do with wanting to fire up the grill and not the ovens and stove. Probably.
FAV NEW FIND: Every so often there comes about A Thing that makes me wonder how I ever lived without it. This would be One of Those Things. A new app for my phone called Meet Mobile. I am absolutely giddy even typing it. It has USA swim meets listed, you click on it, has each and every swimmer entered in the meet, has their rank, the psyche sheet, the times they are seeded, the time and event they swim, the times they post for swimming their entry, the rank going into finals, all the finals information, the meet information, even has a map on how to get there. Times/locations/results for all the sessions. You can mark your favorite swimmer and it alerts you as to when that swimmer is swimming and when his/her next swim will occur. And you can get this for every single swimmer in the meet. At a touch of a button. You don't need to bring pen paper pencil, etc. ever again. You don't need to write down your swimmer's time as it is right there seconds after the swim, and it even lists the splits!! And it is FREE! I have gazed upon the face of Agamemnon and this is it! For a swim family, there is no greater gift...pure genius.
FAV THIS PAST WEEK: Matt's swim meet, of course...swimming, it's what we do. We just ended our 13th year...starting on the 14th now.
WEEK IN REVIEW: A lot of swimming here at home because it has been dry and hot here and the pool is the best place to be in times like this. Swim meet started Thursday so Matt came home to stay and motor between here and the meet venues in town and at the Nat. It's great having Matt around as I have really missed him this year while he was at college, even though we got to see him a lot, it still isn't the same as having him live here and it all takes a bit of adjusting. He will be around until August 11th so we are looking forward to having the time to just hang out and do fun summery vacation-like things before it's back to the team and college classes.
LOOKING FORWARD TO: At the IMA, Printmakers in the Cafes in Paris (if you haven't seen it or want to see it again, go now as it leaves August 22), click here for details. At the ISO: 40 Years of American Pie: An Evening with Don McClean, click here for details.