This summer, I experienced a “hot girl summer,” literally. I was sweaty, sticky, muggy, sunburnt and got sand in places it doesn’t belong. Whenever spring fades away and the heat is here to stay, I always get excited. For one week I tolerated all of these qualities summer has to offer, and then I was quickly over it.

Yes, the beach is great. Yes, not having school is awesome, but have you ever burnt your legs when you sit down in your car? I can relate.

Whenever summer is here, the bugs are here too. It doesn’t matter what type of bug it is, I hate them all. I don’t have a specific reason, other then that they gross me out.

Don’t even get me started on humidity. For all those girls who love muggy weather, we can’t be friends. I need a chill in the air, always.

No exceptions. To all the people that love humidity, talk to my frizzy hair and try to convince me otherwise.

Amidst all these things, summer is also a time for low self-confidence. There is this connotation that everyone needs to have the most amazing summer, literally every time. For some this is not feasible, me included. What holds people back from having the most amazing summer is either financial or social reasons. I knew this summer I wanted to work and save money because lets face it, Burlington is not cheap.

This past summer I went back to my hometown in Connecticut and worked two separate jobs. I didn’t country-hop around Europe or take a crazy adventure with my friends. Work was my wild story this summer.

At first, this made me feel upset. As soon as I would look at any social media app, I would immediately see that perfect Instagram post in front of the Colosseum, or people on a beach in the Carolinas.

When I was sitting at home waiting to take another shift at the restaurant I worked at, I felt like I was doing something wrong. Yes, I know having a summer job is very average for most college aged students, but all I could think about was the friends I saw on social media having so much fun. I’ve learned that people pay attention to the wrong things, and I definitely did that this past summer.

Now, I know that I had a perfectly normal summer, and don’t get me wrong, it was fun. But I believe that social media puts a certain type of pressure on everyone to have this wild adventure every day of the entire summer. For most, this is just simply not feasible.

Fear of missing out was in full effect this summer. I wish I could go back and tell myself that my summer was totally satisfying, and I am content with the time off I had.

I still hate summer, but not just for the weather. I also despise the expectations and pressure it adds on society to have this crazy wild time. Next year I will try to enjoy summer, but for now my feelings about it will remain the same.