Christopher Long: REFLECTIONS: The Summer of 2012

The summer of 2012 was incredible indeed.

Holy cow, where did the summer go? It literally seems like a week ago when I posted a Memorial Day blog tribute — and now, here we are, revved up for Labor Day. So, what did I do this summer? Well...

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The very thing of which wonderful
summer memories are made!

The season got off with a bang as I received my diploma in Theology from East Coast Christian University in Merritt Island, Florida.

My girlfriend Michelle and I also celebrated her birthday in early June with a two-night getaway at Gloria Estefan's Costa d'Este Beach Resort in Vero Beach, Florida. Although we thoroughly enjoyed the luxurious accommodations and such fabulous local restaurants as Joey's Bistro, the highlight of the trip likely was the discovery of a local Kmart store where we dug up countless treasures, including the last known pair of Hannah Montana socks. Yep, we're straight-up gangsta!

In late June I accompanied a group of teens from East Coast Christian Center to the annual BigStuf summer youth conference in Daytona Beach, Florida. In short, the "camp" experience certainly had changed from back in my day during the early '70s. You can get the full BigStuf scoop HERE.

My BigStuf BFFs.

As expected, I also took in several live concert events during these dog days. From the Classic Albums Live re-creation of Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon at the Hard Rock in Orlando to the Kiss and Mötley Crüe amphitheater extravaganza in Tampa to Stryper at Orlando's House of Blues to Lindsey Buckingham at the Plaza Theatre, also in Orlando, the summer rocked, indeed.

Paul Stanley remains THE King of the Nighttime World.

(Photo: Rhonda McMahen)

In July I discovered No Sleep 'til Sudbury – a fantastic new book from Canadian author Brent Jensen. It's a compelling account of Jensen's coming-of-age experiences growing up in a small Canadian town during the 1980s' golden age of heavy metal. I recommend it highly to those who also felt a connection to that era or who simply enjoy a spirited, well-written personal life story – one that totally ROCKS, dude!

I also found some time this summer to play a few

live gigs with my golden oldies band Burnt Toast.

The summer is wrapping up on an equally high note. In late August I hosted the 9th Annual Brevard Live Music Awards ceremony held at the Henegar Center for the Performing Arts in Melbourne, Florida – a huge success to be sure.

Michelle and I backstage at the 2012 Brevard Live Music Awards.

(Photo: Janelle Wilson)

And in the final weekend of the season, I was thrilled to discover a fabulous piece from columnist Heather Ronaldson on my latest book, C'MON! It appeared on the wildly popular Extant Magazine website. Nice job, Heather!

Okay, another summer's worth of memories for the ol' journal. I also want to extend a special note of gratitude to my dedicated blog readers – those who have been with me from the beginning and those who have recently discovered this site. The summer of 2012 saw all-time record-high traffic here. I appreciate the time that people take to read my work and I'm looking forward to creating additional super-groovy content for you this fall as well. STAY TUNED!

-Chris