I spent this weekend lounging about in the loving arms of Cape Cod with a few acquaintances from school. It was the kind of group that forms in the last few weeks prior to leaving for college. None of us really knew the other too well, and I have found that there's more to talk about with a group of kids you really aren't familiar with than ones who have witnessed your every breath.

The trip started on kind of a whim, and I was invited just because. It turned out to be one of the best weekends I have ever experienced.

We spent the first night at a pretty nice restaurant eating seafood. Man, seafood is so good. We were right on the ocean, and there was this beautiful sunset that I managed to capture via picture phone. It was absolutely gorgeous. Even the waiters had never seen anything like it. We returned back to our hotel and drank a few beers, got a little buzzed, and some random hookups took place. I was not part of that. My friend Katie and I spent the entire night making fun of our peers' drunken stupor and laughing till it felt like the equivalent of 500 crunches. I really get along well with Katie. I didn't get to know her until about a month before school ended, and I have found her to be loyal, entertaining, and downright awesome. I'm kinding of kicking myself for not getting to know her earlier, but the kind of relationship we have is one that has not been spoiled by time and emotion and backstabbing. It's this pure, short, simple and sweet binding of two people who are trying to enjoy the other's company before it's too late, and when we laugh, it's not because we feel we need to, it's because we want to.

The second day was the beach day. At first I was disappointed. My idea of a beach is scorching sand, a boardwalk with funnel cake, and waves. This beach was none of the above. Alex called it an inlet, which meant there where no waves and lots of washed up seasweed and shells which smelled rather foul. As the day wore on, the tide began to rise, and finally we started a game of catch in the water. We buried our Asian friend in the sand and spread crackers around him to attract seagulls. A good time was had by all.

Later that night we checked out the town which was filled with guys, bars, fudge, guys, bars, ice cream, guys, and cops. Nonetheless, Katie and I (who were looking for guys the entire time) found nothing. So it was back to the hotel, where a couple of us drank some more beer, and then we got the bright idea to go walk along the beach at 1 in the morning. We piled into Brandon's mini van and made our way there, looked at the stars for a couple seconds, and then Alex proposed that we sleep on the beach and wake up to see the sun rise. Back to the hotel again. Load minivan with blankets and food, return to destination. We set up camp and at last all eight of us were lying on our backs, smooshed together, looking at the stars. And they were amazing.

In Jersey, it's kind of hard to see the stars because of all the pollution and light and whatnot. But here there were legions of them, some forming patterns and some off on their own. I could have watched them for an eternity, because once you start watching stars, you get to thinking about a lot of shit. Especially when you're going to college in a week and you're leaving everything and everyone and going to a school whose mascot is the Gamecocks. Sometimes it felt like I was looking at a ceiling, or heaven, or speckled wallpaper, or God himself. I've always learned that once a star's light reaches your eye, it's already dead. But how do they know that? Space goes on forever. All I knew was that I was real, I was concrete, I was here on this earth and what I did made a difference. There were seven other people surrounding me who were affected by my actions, and we were so physically close to one another yet swallowed up by the sky at the same time. The patterns of the universe were so beautiful, so breathtaking, more stunning than any movie or any song loaded onto my iPod. There were so many shooting stars, and I didn't even think they existed. A ball of light appeared out of nowhere, then dimmed back into oblivion. We convinced ourselves we had seen one explode.

We fell asleep for a little under two hours and set our phone alarms for 5:30. Then we each made our way to the rocks at the edge of the water to watch the sun hoist itself over the horizon. I had never done this before, and it was the perfect way to end a perfect vacation. The crappy time I had in Delaware, the people I didn't like, the fights I had with my mother, they were all negated now. I was so at peace, so ready to leave my small town, but so scared at the same time. It was real, it was going to happen, and no matter what, the sun would rise and the clouds would make way and the colors would be the same.

In a week from now, I will be a college student. I can remember writing on this thing when I was frustrated because I didn't know what to do or if I was good enough or because some guy didn't like me. But everything worked itself out, and I have survived the social circus, the fights, the countless horrid hours at work, the boys, the prom, the SAT's, the college applications, the close calls, the late nights, the Weird NJ expeditions, the mall, and everything else I have done which has led me to today. And I am glad to say I have lived it all.