By Allison Owen Whenever I hear "Spring Break" my mind drifts off to brilliant images of the sunny beaches and palm trees of Florida or California. Of course that is the exact opposite of my spring break, but it's still fun to daydream.

The new prom dresses
I decided to spend a week around town with a few friends, just hanging out. Now when I say "I decided," I mean "My parents said that if I wanted to march this summer I couldn't afford to take a trip during spring break." Contrary to popular belief, I found it quite entertaining just hanging out around town. The only thing I didn't enjoy about being at home was not getting tan like everyone who went to the beach; but hey, that's what days of long hours of rehearsal in the sun this summer is for. Monday, Tuesday, and part of Wednesday I spent time with a few friends, helping them in their search for a perfect prom dress. As most high school girls know, this is no easy task. Somewhere in between all the fittings and searching they asked me questions about my summer. This surprised me, but I guess it has become blatantly obvious that my passion is drum corps. Some aspects of corps they found interesting -- like touring the United States -- and others shocked them -- like the "showering with other girls" thing. After this long discussion they decided to come visit me at least once this summer, just to see what is so worth it to me that I would do all those crazy things. They can tell that I love drum corps, so it means a lot to me when they actually seem to take an interest in what has become my life. Last week I also had an orthodontist appointment (gotta love braces, not!) and I received very exciting news: My braces will be taken off a mere two weeks before move in. OK, so maybe I'm the only one excited about that; but it's great news for me. Anyone who has been involved in drum corps knows that it's fun to show others the activity, but it's also great to hang out with other members who obviously already understand corps. Needless to say, when I found out that another member of Memphis Sound, Jonathan, was passing through my town on Friday and stopping for a bite to eat, I was more than happy to meet up with him. We had a good time just hanging out, and it was nice to get to talk to someone who knows what drum corps is about without me having to explain something. Of course, once I talk to or see someone from corps it makes me want to be with the drum corps. Therefore, it goes without saying -- even though I am going to say it -- that I am really looking forward to camp this weekend. I'm excited about being able to actually do something besides sit around watching everyone rehearse, as well as seeing everyone without feeling extremely pathetic because I can't even stand up. Overall it wasn't a very productive break for me, but as any student knows it was great to be away from school. I have just five more days until I get another short break from the "real world," although I may not be singing the same joyous song come Monday morning. All I know is that I love drum corps and it's my break from "the real world," and that's good enough for me.