Summertime...

...and the livin' is easy. OK, so not that easy. The bar exam is just over a week away - it's crunch time. Fortunately, I'm at home [home-home, mom and dad's house], where the air conditioner works reliably and there's always food in the kitchen. Speaking of food, we had the most perfect summer meal tonight - grilled bratwurst with sauerkraut, pasta salad, and sweet corn. MMMMM! The sweet corn is a little early yet - it had been picked too long ago so it wasn't very sweet. But the first of the season is always special. And I'm waiting to have dessert in a bit - fresh vanilla ice cream from a local micro-dairy, Hansen's Farm-Fresh Dairy. Wait, is there any such thing as a micro-dairy? Well, like a micro-brewery, but for milk, ice cream, and cheese.

My sister took me to a free movie Thursday night too. She works at the local theater, so she has a pass to take a guest to movies. This was an employee screening of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I loved the book when Mrs. Guenther read it to us in second grade, I loved the Gene Wilder movie when I first saw that, and I'm a big fan of Tim Burton's interpretation. It's just such a good story. A number of reviewers and commentators have said it's too dark for a children's movie, but I disagree. First, it's not that dark or scary. I thought there were parts of the old version that were much worse - like the creepy tinker guy outside the factory and the crazy boat ride. I think a lot of people just think 'oh, Tim Burton, must be dark.' Anyway, it was really good - you should see it.

Ok, back to an Illinois equity outline and practice essay.

UPDATE... (7/18)
We had better sweet corn for dinner tonight. And we ate outside on the deck. Fabulous!