That's a movie quote from Paul Newman in the film The Long Hot Summer. However, I think I can also attribute it to Dr. Marshall, my oral surgeon, and Dr. McFarland, my orthodontist. Yes, apparently three years of braces from 1996-1999 plus a 6-hour jaw operation in March of 1999 wasn't enough to make my smile beautiful. That's right, I tried it all: changing schools, residences, hair color, but nothing worked. They pulled me back in. And so begins this month's escapade:

Like many people, I knew what the basic outline of my summer would contain. And I wasn't looking forward to the first month. Back in December, Dr. Marshall determined that there was "latent growth" in my jaw, and bone had returned to its old, crooked ways. My teeth remained straight, but because of post-surgical wirings, I needed to have braces reapplied to my teeth. This wasn't my idea of a good time, but I lived with it. Things started quickly. I returned home on May 10, and immediately upon settling in, Rob calls with Rangers tickets. I tag along with his dad and brother to the game, which included a pre-game Penn State alumni gathering. Hey, when there's free baseball tickets in it, "I am Penn State." The following Thursday was the Attack of the Clones premiere party. I and eleven other pals from Flower Mound and TCU gathered several hours in advance for a fun time in line. For the record, we were 3rd in line, and we brought a card table, chairs, coolers, and dominoes for a rousing time. The movie was good, too.

Next week, on May 22, was the surgery, part 2. At 7am, I arrived at Medical City Dallas Hospital for a 6-hour surgical procedure to correct the "maxillary vertical hyperplasia" that had occurred in my mouth. I spent the night in the hospital, and spent a week with my jaw closed with industrial-strength rubber bands. I was visited by Rob, Anton, Geoff, and Whitney over the weekend in 3 spurts. I was glad to have friends around.

I was finally close to being back to normal in mid June, when I began work at American Airlines Credit Union. By pure coincidence, Rob and I got placed in the same department as provisionals. That made it all the more fun to work, of course, and we made quick pals with our 29 year old boss, Matt "Odalis" Perez. Being the only other young, single men in the department, we found plenty of conversation topics, from baseball to poker. I also joined the company softball team, quickly living up to my reputation as a Dutch-American Ichiro Suzuki, with my broad range in outfield and tendency to beat out infield hits.

The first week of July, I vacationed with the rest of my family in Vienna, Austria. We had covered the other major European capitals (Amsterdam '96, Paris '99, Rome '00, and London '01), so the next stop was logically Vienna. That was good times too, plenty of time to relax and drink in the local flavor. I think the coolest part was, on the street where our condo was, was also a local "florist." By "florist" I of course mean your local marijuana establishment. Sold legitimately right in our neighborhood. Blazin' good times.

Upon returning to Flower Mound, it became crunch time to find a house/apartment. Geoff and Dustin were counting on me, and after some false leads and idiot realtors, we found our Xanadu, located on Cockrell Avenue, just south of the TCU bookstore. It took some time, and I was sweating a little to find a place in time, but as Tim says, "it'll all work itself out in the end." And so it did.

Between house-hunting weekends, I took time to fly to Austin for a weekend. I spent the afternoon with Dan (Mexican food, Stones records, Trivial Pursuit, Andrew...the typical Dan entertainment) and then they drove me to San Marcos, where I caught up with some Scouting buds at the section conclave. Stuart in the process of his bid to be National Chief (pretty much the youth spokesman for Boy Scouts of America). Unfortunately he lost at the state primary, but he was alright about it.

The first weekend in August, I went back to Austin, this time with Joe. We drove, leaving late Friday night, and meeting up with Andrew, Laura, and Erin. It was a rousing good time to see old friends, and meet new ones. Laura and Erin being the old, and the new being Lauren, a schoolmate of Andrew's at UT, who's from Boston, no less. I was immediately entranced by this fascinating fact, and although some of the evening was spent helping her pack, I still had an excellent time. She tipped me off to the Mamma Mia (the ABBA musical) tour dates of March 2003 in Austin. I shall return for the show. Looking back on the summer, there was some high points and low points, but on all-time list, it's not a contender for the Best Summer Ever. The following is a wrap-up of some memorable summers:

The Worst: 1994. This summer sucked. It was our first year in Texas, having moved just three weeks before the summer ended. The days were hot, and our pool was still in the building process. Because of that, Hans couldn't take off for an extended period of time, so there was no blowout vacation, as is Voorn custom. I went back to North Carolina for a week to travel to the Outer Banks with my old Scout troop in June, but that was about it.

10. 1989 Summer in North Carolina, just having a ball being 7 years old.

9. 1995 Summer camp at Sid Richardson Scout Ranch, vacation to Pennsylvania (Philly, Hershey, Lancaster, and a day in NYC).

8. 2002 Jaw surgery, vacation to Vienna, weekend trips to Austin and San Marcos.

7. 1993 Last summer in North Carolina, summer before 6th grade, trip to Appalachian mountains of N.C.

6. 1996 first of the "Condo Vacation" series, where the Voorns rent a multi-room condo to stay in. This summer it was the Netherlands, with stops in Den Haag, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Volendam, Delft, and various relatives' homes. Also, summer camp at Camp Alexander in Colorado, a token relatives visit in L.A., a church mission trip to Oklahoma, the last day of school blowout at Andrew's.

5. 1997 Featured 3 week-long trips back to back to back. First, church mission trip to San Marcos. Upon returning home, turn around and go to summer camp at Worth Ranch in Palo Pinto. Then to the Maine coast for a family vacation. In July, I went to Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico. I'm sure there was a California trip in there somewhere.

4. 2000 Post-high school graduation summer. Last year to work at Worth Ranch (at the pool), family trip to Rome, Scout conference in Knoxville, Tennessee. Orientation and move-in at TCU.

3. 1998 First summer to work at Worth Ranch, as a Lifesaving merit badge instructor. Family trip to Vancouver Island, Canada (featuring Victoria, Seattle, Vancouver, and Duncan, the "totem pole capital of the world").

2. 1999 Second summer to work at Worth Ranch (I was pool director), and a family trip to Paris. Trip to California, I think.

1. 2001 This summer was the best because it was a change. No longer was I in high school, and I retired from Worth Ranch, too. Family trip to London (best Voorn vacation ever), weekend jaunts to California for a cousin's wedding and to Houston to see Geoff & Scott, plus a great 2 weeks at the National Boy Scout Jamboree in Virginia. I worked on staff, and it was probably the best Scouting trip I ever took.