Reflections

I am incredibly thankful that I grew up surrounded by water. I don't remember learning how to swim, the first time I saw the ocean or my first time on a boat, these things have always just been part of my life. It's probably why I find so much peace and comfort being on and near the water. When I have some time at camp to spend alone I usually spend it on the dock or walking along the water. There is something magical when the water is still and calm, it forces me to also be still and calm and reflective.

September and October are always times of reflection for me; things that I would do differently, things that I will do differently, moments I want to engrave on my memory and moments I would rather forget. The past few week I've moved on from reflecting on this summer to making plans for the next year. And I've noticed that it's more about creating better habits and making positive changes than it is about stopping and although it wasn't a conscious decision to frame things that way it's making a difference in how successful I am when it comes to accomplishing things on my 'Fall To-Do List'.

I deleted Facebook from my phone and the only time I miss it is at night when I'm scrolling through social media on my phone right before I go to sleep. Other than that I live without it just fine.

I started journalling again, pen to paper, write whatever the heck you want, no pressure to gain followers or engage readers or fear that someone from 'the real world' will stumble across your blog (am I the only one that has this fear?). Its ridiculously therapeutic and something I was incredibly consistent with for the majority of my life until I stopped.

I am the worst at reading during the summer. Unless it's a camper file, an incident report or a warm fuzzy I can never seem to find time to read, which means I've fallen way behind in my goal to read 50 books this year. I want to read at least 5 books before Christmas.

Even though I'm trying to eliminate time wasters from my life I am still counting down the days to the season premieres of my favourite shows. Tonight Survivor and The Middle are back. Grey's Anatomy returns tomorrow. Criminal Minds in a couple of weeks…I don't have any plans to watch any of the new shows making their debut so at least I'm not adding more shows to the mix.

Autumn is only one day old and I'm already over the influx of pumpkin spice and declarations of how fall is the best season to ever exist. I appreciate pretty leaves and leggings & boots but mostly I love flip flops, norts and iced coffee. Also, it is too early to decorate for Halloween, let's get through Thanksgiving first. (Unless you're American, in which case hold off until the second week in October.) I do want some pumpkin pie in my life though.

All that being said about autumn I will drink at least one pumpkin spice latte and treat myself to some of my favourite Halloween candy.

I am doing a lot of praying that I hear about a job this week. I've made it through the first two rounds and now I'm just waiting for one more phone call. I hate the waiting game and knowing that I've done everything I can do on my end and it's up to someone else to do what they have to do on their end.

I never hide my love of Taylor Swift and I'm looking forward to listening to her new album the day it comes out. I'm also eagerly awaiting the release of Andrew McMahon's new album.

This just re-read this post and realized it's all over the place but that's what happens when you try to combine weekly confessions and a fall bucket list.

Open & Close

Summer is my favourite season. I look forward to the first day when the sun feels warm and the grass is noticeably green. I love the first week or so at camp when the days start off foggy and cool but then gradually become warm. The span of time when daylight starts at 5:00 a.m. and lasts until almost 10:00 p.m.. August is my favourite month because it has the perfect balance of hot days and evenings that are warm enough to be outside but cool enough to fall asleep. 

When I look back on this summer I'll think about the enormous potential and possibility I felt in May. Laughing and hypothosising with H. & R. about what was ahead. Which new counsellors would be amazing, which would quickly figure out that they weren't "camp people" after all. Who would develop camp-mances and who would start off uncertain but grow into an amazing counsellor.

And then I got thrown a curve ball. Followed by another and in a matter of days it felt like everything was flipped upside down. This was the first summer that I really doubted myself as a 'camp person' and as person. It's the first time that camp has ended and I haven't been certain that I'll find myself back in the same place next May. I know that there's a time for everything; for things to end and begin and it may be time for me to step away. 

I have no  idea what will unfold over the next few months. What doors will open and what ones will close. So as summer ends I'm looking forward to processing this summer, figuring out where I need to be and the things I need to step away from. Of course I will do it all while enjoying the scent of Crackling Woods candles, sipping on hot coffee and eagerly awaiting the premiere of my favourite shows. 

Fall potential and summer potential feel very different to me. Fall is about moving forward, taking time to figure out what went right, what was wrong, what I can change and identifying the things I need to hold on to and the things I need to let go. 

Liking up with Bailey Jean

Sunday Social {119} & Blogtember

Favourite Scent: Boy, mixed with a hint of campfire and rain. For those of you who need a better visual the Crackling Woods soy candle from Target. 

Favourite Food: I love donairs. If you're not from the east cost of Canada then it's probably safe to assume you have no idea what that is, but trust me when I say you're missing out. I've been told it's similar to a gyro, but I've never had one of those so I can't verify that. If you ever find yourself on the East Coast getting a donair definitely needs to be a priority!

Honourable Mentions:  Ketchup Chips, Pizza, Chicken Nuggets, Chicken Caesar Salad, 

Favourite Sound: Rain! Especially in the summer and it's extra wonderful if there's thunder & lightning happening as well. 

Favourite Picture Currently on your Phone: I am really digging this photo I took of my Salted Caramel Mocha the other day. Truth be told I almost never delete photos off my phone so I have plenty to choose from but I narrowed it down to my favourite this week.

Best Memory of the Year: I was not prepared for this question! In the quest to choose a favourite picture on my phone I did come across this photo, which made me pretty happy because it captured a pretty awesome memory.

When it rains our camp parking lot turns into a small lake of sorts. I was having a bit of rough day and determined that the best way to relieve some stress was puddle jumping. And I may have went a little overboard and at one point found myself sitting in the puddle. I was hoping someone would join me but instead the director and a former staff member who happened to be volunteering that day stood in the doorway casually sipping their coffee and laughing at the ridiculous-ness. All while snapping pictures of course, which found their way onto the camp instagram with a bunch of silly/fun hashtags. And I'm happy to report that I did feel a lot less stressed after the puddle jumping!

Bonus Question for Blog-Tember…When did you start blogging and why?
I started blogging eons ago. Back in junior high I had an xanga, then in high school I moved on to Livejournal, during university I dabbled with Tumblr and about two years ago I dove into the "real world" of blogging with Grace & Galoshes. I've always blogged because I like writing and in the beginning it was a great way to stay in touch with friends, which is ironic now since I'm pretty firmly set in the blogging closet.

  

Summer Jams & All-Time Faves

For months it's been on my list to join Kelli at Just Beachy for her Picture Practice link up, but I always forget until it's too late. I remembered this week though and it just so happens that the topic for today's Picture Practice is "The Sky". I love sunsets, which means I have a lot of sunset/sky photos in my archives. I don't get a lot of down time during the summer but one of my favourite things to do is take a few minutes at the end of the day to watch the sunset. 

I don't like to do anything while watching a sunset except be in the moment and watch the sky, but the rest of the day I'm pretty much always listening to music. 

I can spend hours crafting the perfect playlist to fit my mood and I love discovering new music to add to my list. I always feel a little anxious when I recommend music to others though, I'm worried they'll judge my taste or think I'm a crazy person. And what I listen to totally depends on my mood I spent a lot of time this summer bopping around to Timber  although mostly in the car or when I was alone because let's face it, it's a terrible song and totally not camp appropriate. I also listened to My Lighthouse by Rend Collective a whole lot this summer. Everyday by Buddy Holly was also a popular song this summer, in large part because one of our male staff played it on his guitar daily (if not hourly). And way back in April or May H., R. & I decided that Be Okay would be our song of the summer so we listened to that non-stop as well. 

In addition to all those songs that will go down as "Summer 2014" songs I also have a few all-time favourites that I've loved for a very long time and will continue to love for a very long time. 

All-Time Favourites

Konstantine - Something Corporate

The Crane Wife 3 - The Decemberists

Slide - Goo Goo Dolls

The Luckiest - Ben Folds

Left & Leaving - The Weakerthans

What songs will forever remind you of summer 2014? Do you have any all-time favourite songs that you'll love for as long as you live? Go ahead and link up with Bailey Jean for Blog-tember and share your music tastes!

August & Everything After

As I've mentioned before my summer isn't quite over yet. Tomorrow myself and the camp director are headed back to camp to finish shutting down the site for the winter and tying up a few loose ends with paperwork. I was home for the weekend though and I spent most of my time trying not to hyperventilate about the "what happens next" thoughts that seem to be taking over in my head. 

In an attempt to combat the influx of stressful and anxious inducing thoughts I spent a lot of time this weekend cleaning my room and watching 19 Kids & Counting. I did leave the house long enough to spend the day at my grandparents and take some photos, which was probably the highlight of my weekend. 

I really need to figure out what to do with all these photos. I think my first step is going to be investing in a external hard drive to store them all on, but after that I'm not sure. I don't necessarily want physical albums of sunsets, flowers and random animals with the occasional family/friend photo taking up space in my house. But it also seems silly to let them all sit in their digital state for all of eternity. I'd love to hear your suggestions on what exactly to do with all these photos. Especially the ones I take while playing with the camera…let's be real, nobody wants or needs hundreds of photos of my coffee cup. 

Sunsets are my absolute favourite. 

I've got a busy few days ahead so my posting streak is probably about to end before it ever started but hopefully once I return to the land of reliable internet I'll have life a little more figured out. Until then I am off to sort through another box in my closet and pack up some things I'll need for the next week. 

Linking up one last time with Rachel & Lisa! I've really enjoyed participating in their Weekly Wrap-Up link up over the past few months!

Hello, Friday!

1.  Camp is really only 95% over. The campers left and the counsellors are gone, even myself self and the director have gone home but there are still things to do. The director and myself are heading back up on Tuesday for the week to finish shutting down (defrosting the fridge/freezer, packing away linens, doing inventory etc.) It's left me in a weird mood though, I've started reflecting on the summer but it's really not quite over yet and there's still more that could happen. And I'm sort of re-entering the real world, but again next week I'll be back to jogging pants, rubber boots and tie-dye as acceptable work attire. 

2.

I came across this quote a few days ago and I haven't stopped thinking about it since. I'm so guilty of letting myself get overwhelmed in situations or with people and details that I forget about the beginning.  More often than not the reason I start something is because I want to, because it's something I love, for someone I love and I chose to be there. But I forget, I focus so much on treading water that I forget how much I love to swim. I need to remember how much I love to swim. 

3.

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I don't think I've mentioned it this summer because there's been so many other things to mention but H. & R. & I now live in three different provinces, three different time zones and thousands and thousands of kilometres apart. And it sucks. We've always lived apart but we still managed to see each other every couple of months. It required a lot of travelling but it was doable and we made it work. Plane tickets aren't cheap and it's a lot harder to coordinate days off which means I can't say with any amount of certainty when the next time is that we'll all be together. The good news is there are group iMessages and Skype and FaceTime and lots of other ways to stay connected.

4. I need to go get groceries this afternoon and I'm currently trying to plan my route so that not only can I go to the two grocery stores where things are on sale but I can also swing by Michael's to use a 50% off coupon and make a pit stop at Subway to satisfy a craving I've been feeling for two weeks now. 

5. Getting back into blogging is high on my priority list. I had the best intentions of reading though all of the 500+ unread posts on my Bloglovin' feed but I just couldn't. I figure it's best to start fresh. So I cannot wait to catch up with everyone's summer adventures and start posting here on a regular basis once again. And to kickstart my return to blogging I signed up to participate in a Journal Swap hosted by Lisa & Nancy and I am super excited about it!

Linking up with The Farmer's Wife and Lauren Elizabeth! 

What Happens Next

If I could go back and start at the beginning all over again I'd do a few things different. 

I would have done a better job communicating and spent more time writing and communicating with myself so I could express my thoughts and feelings to others. 

I would have focused on the big picture and reminded myself that 10 years from now I won't remember the minor details that I found so annoying in the moment.

I would have drank more water and less coffee.

The thing is my contract is ending this month and I may not get the change to do things over again. I wrote about my loyalty to my current camp last year and I still feel a lot of the same feelings I did back then. The difference is I realize that I can't stay with a place/at a job forever where there's no opportunity for it to become full-time. I'm not really sure where that leaves me though.

Once again I find myself staring into the future and only seeing a giant question mark. And I'm trying really hard not to let that giant question mark make me overly anxious. 

Instead I'm focusing on making the last couple of weeks in this job good ones and trusting that something great is just around the corner. I should know by now that things happen when they're supposed to happen and it's often at the last minute. 

"I will put my rainbow in the clouds to be a sign of my promise to the earth."

- Genesis 9:13

Into August

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I can not believe that this summer is basically over. 

The last two weeks have been a whirlwind of tears & laughter mixed fuelled by extreme chaos and moments when you are positively certain your life must be a TV show. For example, one morning last week I found myself digging through the camp dumpster in search of a spoon that had accidentally been thrown out. A lot of our campers bring their own equipment that has been adapted to help give them independence. This particular spoon belonged to a camper who without her adapted spoon isn't able to feed herself. After tearing the kitchen and dining area apart (including the dishwasher) it was determined that the only place for it to be was in the dumpster. Luckily we found it in garbage bag #7. Not only is it lucky because the camper got her spoon back but also lucky because we didn't have to dig through the other 10 bags that were sitting in the dumpster.

In all honesty the dumpster moments are the easy moments. They are funny. You know that it's going to be a funny story to tell a little farther down the road. The hard moments are being happy for the people around me who are moving across the country for the dream job, getting accepted into their first choice school to complete their masters, falling in love; etc. etc. overcoming the feeling that I'm not just getting left behind but I'm getting lapped. I am so thrilled for everyone else's successes and happiness. The bottom line is always that you want the people you love to be happy. Even if they're being happy with someone else or being happy 10,000 km away from you. 

My Job Is Weird

I laughed out loud when I saw that the prompt for the day was "your day in GIFs"…because I'm at work, camp is in session and there is just no telling what's going to happen in the run of a day around here.

I spend a lot of time intervening before counsellors/campers make bad decisions. Like having a contest to see how much hot sauce they can eat on a spoon or wear the same t-shirt for five days in a row. 

I drink A LOT of coffee.

In-between I do a lot of singing and dancing to one-hit wonders & popular songs from 10 years ago.

I never know what's going to happen next when camp is in session. No day is ever the same and I can honestly say my job is never boring. Chaotic, ridiculous, fun and challenging but never boring.

Linking up for Blog Everyday in July!

Five Favourite Things

Cactus

Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli was one of the first books that I read that really stuck with me. More than just a favourite book the characters, interactions and philosophy of the story has stuck with me since elementary school. In a lot of ways it's influenced who I am. In high school I was lucky enough to be part of a stage production of the story with my best friends. I used a quote from Love, Stargirl as my yearbook quote when I graduated. And whenever I come across somebody who shares a love of Stargirl I feel an immediate connection to them. My love of the book has lead me to develop a serious fascination with the desert and cactus. I've been on the lookout for a perfect cactus plant to have as my own and I finally found one a few weeks ago at Wal-Mart of all places for $3.97. It now sits on my desk and looking at it makes me happy.

Sunsets

Call me a stereotypical white girl if you must but there's nothing that forces me to take a minute and bask in the beauty of nature and the world than a sunset. Every sunset is different but they're all 'God Moments' I'm so awe-struck by the perfection of the colours blended together as the sun sets. Sunsets are also one of my favourite things to photograph. I love the contrast of black shadows against a pink/purple/orange/yellow/blue sky. Someone once told me that if I was a colour I would be "sky-blue-pink", which of course is the way to describe all the colours of a sunset. I took that to heart and the nights when the sunsets on a 'sky-blue-pink' are among my favourites.

Photography

I'm not a master photographer. I don't have scores of families begging me to take their photo or companies hoping I'll photograph their latest product in the best light. But I love seeing the world though my camera lens. I have a friend who is super into photography and he's always making comments about how I don't share my photos. Every time he says it I'm confused. I share some on here but other than that I don't feel the need to fill albums on Facebook or dedicate an entire Tumblr for my photography. I certainly don't pass around my journal for everyone to read and comment on so I won't do that with my photographs either. It's something I enjoy doing, it helps me be creative and notice the things around me from different perspectives. It's for me.

Daisies

Daisies are my favourite flowers. If I was brave enough and I could convince my future husband to agree I would name a little girl Daisy-May. I'm very specific in my daisy love though, I have no time for those artificially neon coloured ones. It has to be the real thing. Yellow middles and snow white petals. The wildflower type are my absolute favourite but I appreciate the garden variety as well. 

Frozen Hot Chocolate from Second Cup

I got a little deep with my first four favourites so I'm throwing this one in here too. I love a good dose of caffeine. Hot Coffee. Iced Coffee. Iced Cap. Frappachino. They all have their place in this world. My favourite fancy coffee shop treat though is a Frozen Hot Chocolate from Second Cup. I'm not even 100% sure why this is. I don't consider myself a chocoholic, I enjoy hot chocolate on occasion when it's cold outside but I almost always choose coffee or tea. There's something extra delicious about Frozen Hot Chocolate though. Plus I rarely get to have it so when I'm in the vicinity of a Second Cup it makes the experience all the more magical!

Also linking up with Amanda at Meet @ The Barre!

Hurricanes & Dinner Dates

Before I launch into 1000 excuses about why I have failed so miserably at "Blogging Every Day in July" let me tell you about my week. 

This past session started off with a hurricane warning. So the day before the campers arrived the director and myself made an emergency trip to town to buy more rope/tarps/bungee cords to secure stuff down plus enough lanterns for each of the cabins to have one incase we lost power. While we were in town the counsellors back at camp filled all the bathtubs with water and took everything outside inside. You really don't realize just how many projectiles you have around until you're preparing for 100 km winds. 

Camper Drop Off was more chaotic than usual since a dozen or so campers decided to come the next day rather than drive in a hurricane to get to camp. Luckily the winds didn't really pick up until later on in the afternoon after the majority of the campers had arrived. I say luckily because this meant the counsellors were able to entertain the campers while the director & I dealt with the hurricane. 

At one point "dealing with the hurricane" meant standing on the start of our dock with a walkie-talkie watching for it to break loose while we waited for the maintenance guy to come over to do a quick repair job because the waves and wind were hitting at just the right angle to jiggle the bolts holding the dock together loose.  We weren't super worried about the dock because that's easy enough to replace…what we were concerned about was that attached to the dock is our boat so if the end of the dock was going to break lose and float away the boat was going along for the ride. 

The rest of the week followed suit and I don't think I've ever been happier for a Day 7 to come along so I can get my life in order again. Including getting back to blogging. 

The prompt for today is Five People (Dead or Alive) I would like to have dinner with. 

1.  Ellen DeGeneres: Not only is she hilarious but she has so much compassion for other people. I'd love to hang out with her for a few hours and listen to her talk. 
2. Shane Claiborne: This guy fascinates me. If you haven't heard about him before you need to google him right away. I love how passionate his is about his faith and how how intentional he is about doing what HE feels called to do even if it goes against the mainstream church. I'd love to share a meal with him and have some seriously deep discussion. 
3. Laura Ingalls Wilder: I will always love Little House on the Prairie. I have read the books thousands of times and I never get tired of the stories. I would love to meet her in person and hear her stories directly from her with added details and insight. 
4. Kelly Stamps: I don't think there are too many bloggers out there who aren't at least semi-familar with Kelly's blog Kelly's Korner, it's one of the first blogs I really started reading on a regular basis. I just think she is the sweetest and although she's perhaps a little more conservative than I am I would love to sit down with her and listen to her talk about her faith. She just seems like such a genuinely nice person who really desires to use her talents and gifts to make a difference.
5. Taylor Swift: This is my fun pick. T-Swift would probably be okay with just grabbing some fast food and eating it while laughing and giggling about life. And then we'd bake cookies for dessert and everything would be fun and sparkly. 

Guilty Pleasures

I always struggle to figure out what exactly constitutes a 'guilty pleasure' opposed to something I enjoy that other people don't. There are a few things though that I definitely consider guilty pleasures and also feel a little twinge of embarrassment whenever someone finds out I'm even remotely interested in them...

Blogging

This is a bit of a grey area…I'm not really embarrassed about my blog…but all the same I live happily in the blog closet as far as my friends go and whenever someone from the real worlds finds out I have a blog (even if they can't read it) my palms start to sweat and I rush to change the topic immediately. 

Reality TV

There is just something so comforting about watching other people make bad life choices. I may not have my life together, but I also don't have multiple baby daddies or a criminal record so things aren't all that bad. 

Coca-Cola

Pop is terrible for you. Dark pop is basically the devil's drink. I just don't care, it's so delicious and satisfying. I figure as long as I drink lots of water in the scheme of things a can of pop every few days isn't going to kill me. 

Timber by Pitbull

I just can't stop listening to this song. And it is SO terrible. Everything from the fact it's an overplayed pop song to the lyrics make it terrible. I listen to it on repeat whenever the mood strikes though. I once listened to it in the car for a solid half an hour. It's just so happy and upbeat it instantly improves my mood whenever it comes on. 

So that's what I've been indulging in lately, what guilty pleasures have you been enjoying? Don't forget to link up with Juliette, Faith & Allie for Blog Everyday in July! 

July! July! July!

That's right after almost a month of never once bothering to even pretend to write a blog post I'm jumping in with both feet and committing to blogging everyday in July. I miss writing and interacting with other bloggers but I've struggled to find motivation to make it happen. 

Enter Blog Everyday in July…motivation acquired! 

In honour of Canada Day everyone else participating in the challenge is blogging about Canada. Which, being a proud Canadian I can totally get on board with. I don't actually have any plans to celebrate Canada Day because in Camp Land it's also Day 7. And on Day 7 the campers leave, so basically the only thing I want to do for the next few days before another 36 campers show up in sleep, eat, shower, read and spend a lot of time catching up with what's going on in the real world.

I don't have any exciting Canada Day plans to share but I did wear my favourite red & white converse for a while. Until I realized camp was over and I could be reunited with my flip-flops.

As much as I'm enamoured with all things southern and my love of Vanilla Coke runs deep I'm pretty thankful to be born up north. Even when I'm wearing my winter coat in June if I got to pick a country to live in I'd choose Canada every time. 

Friday Favourites : Summer Camp Edition

Heidi Ho Blog Readers! (I have no idea why I felt the overwhelming need to start this post with that greeting but I'm embracing it, and you should too.) In celebration of being at camp for the summer I've gathered up a few of my favourite summer camp related lists and pins and songs and quotes that make me grin from ear to ear every time I read them. 

63 Signs You Were A Summer Camp Counsellor  is top of my list. You can tell that the person who wrote it gets camp. And it makes me extra excited that although I'm somewhat removed from the world of being a counsellor, there are a lot of things on that list that still apply to me as a "camp professional" with the added bonus that many of things on that list don't fall into the nostalgic folders of my mind but in the things that are still part of my job category. And for that I am forever grateful. 

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Ah yes…the post-camp clean up. And no matter how well you think the campers' helped sweep their cabin and triple checked that there were no socks under the bed it wasn't well enough. Same goes for counsellors…you might assume post arts & crafts the counsellors will get a cloth and wipe the paint off the tables but that assumption would be incorrect. 

Pinterest

I adore this photo. I found it on Pinterest and I can't seem to find the original source…just a rabbit hole of pins and Tumblrs. Campfires are one of my absolute favourite things about camp and I've been snapping lots of fire pictures every chance I get. One of my goals for the summer is to get the perfect one.

Via

Speaking of Tumblrs Camp Confessions is one of my favourites. They are spot on, especially this one. Camp Fashion is the best fashion. The other day I went into town wearing leggings (stained with bright red paint from the tractor), a tie-dye tank top, a navy blue staff hoodie from 2008 splattered with bleach stains and a camouflage ball cap. I rounded out the look with my bright pink rain boots.

Linking up here! :)

Campfire Confessions #2

I had all the best intentions of posting yesterday but things were a bit chaotic around here so it didn't happen. In an attempt to keep up with my goal of posting my weekly confessions I'm making it happen now!

It has been 3.5 days since my last shower. It's on my "things to do today list", which probably means I'll get to it tomorrow. I would just much rather sleep than shower. 

I poked my head out of the blog closet to a friend a few days ago and it was scary. Her first reaction was surprise followed by trying to guess what exactly it is I blog about and then a few minutes of trying to guess my blog name. Luckily she was nowhere close and the conversation ended when a good song came on the radio.

I love camp. I hate camp food. I was in such a good food groove before camp and now it's pretty much all out the window. This next break I'm going to buy some real groceries (not just bagels & bananas) and make some meals to freeze and eat during the next session. 

At this very moment in time I'm contemplating curling up under my desk and sneaking in a nap before I have to set up for the next activity. I've already had 3 cups of coffee today (it's only 2 p.m.) and I'm still confident I could fall asleep standing up if given the opportunity.

It took forever to get the trampoline set up because the ground was still frozen (it's an in ground trampoline), now that it's all ready to go it's my favourite stress reliever. There's nothing better for working out aggression than jumping up and down on the trampoline for 20 minutes.

I've been eating a lot of bagels and I have sesame seeds stuck in between all the keys on my laptop. 

I have three half-written posts in my drafts that I need to finish and publish. I was gone on a canoe course over our last session break so I didn't get a chance to finish them. I also didn't really get a break, which is probably a contributing factor to my level of exhaustion.

Campfire Confessions #1

Happy Day 5! Once camp season hits I generally have no idea what day of the week it is and if you ask me what day it is I can guarantee I will reply with "Day 3" or whatever camp day it happens to be. (For those of you who are unfamiliar with camp sessions are usually organized by days. At my camp Day 0 is the day that all staff come back to camp after a session break (the days between each group of campers) campers arrive on Day 1 and go home on Day 7. There are always a few days between Day 7 and Day 0 for staff to go home and get prepared for the next week.)

I have decided though that I will keep track of Wednesdays because that means it's time for Confessions with Kathy! And between living/working/eating/sleeping/breathing with the same group of people (mostly in their late teens and early 20s) I'm going to have somethings to rant about   confess.

- I should probably be more stressed about the current staff situation, especially the lack of a head cook…but stressing really isn't going to fix anything so I can't be bothered. Finger's Crossed that sometime between now and June 2nd a cook materializes?

- I have been listening to a lot of Taylor Swift lately, it helps me deal with life.

- Daily "Let it Go" sing a longs have also become a coping mechanism.

- I started elaborate Pinterest inspired start of camp gifts for the head counsellors but ran out of time to finish them before camp started. I put the final touches on them last night and in typical Pinterest Project fashion they are far in superior to the original idea.

- It's been an emotional couple of days but I haven't hidden under my desk to cry yet and I've only ate gummy bears in bed once. I'm doing okay.

- Being surrounded by a bunch of 18 & 19 year old counsellors makes me feel old.

- Being surrounded by whiney people makes me cranky.

- Since moving to camp my coffee consumption has increased by 500%. By the end of the summer it will be the only thing flowing through my veins.

- I feel like I haven't written a real blog post in months. Everything is link ups and lists and random ramblings. Then again, I have no idea what constitutes a "real" blog post so you can be the judge.

- A few counsellors have walked by my office and clearly think I'm really busy doing work at 8:00 a.m., little do they know I'm just blogging.

I do need to wrap up this first confession session of the summer so I can finish planning my sessions on the Budget (Why we Don't Use Broom Sticks as Swords) and figure out how I'm going to stay warm for the rest of the day. Seriously Canada, Get your act together.

And Then...On The Bright Side

Years from now when I reminisce on the summer of 2014 "and then" will be a heavily used phrase. Since we arrived last Friday it has literally been one thing after another. We've had 4 staff quit at the last minute (one at 6:20 a.m. on the first day of staff training) and one just didn't bother to show up…we've e-mailed and phoned and left messages for her but so far no response. We're pretty sure that at this point we can assume she quit and just didn't tell anyone but it's still a mystery.

Aside from all the staff stuff it has been bitterly cold. And while the East Coast of Canada isn't known for it's tropical climate as a general rule it does get warmer than 10 degrees by the end of May. I've been sleeping with my heat on 20 wearing a sweater and multiple pairs of pants and layers of blankets to stay warm. 

Through in some building repairs that need to be made after an exceptionally snowy winter and a broken kitchen appliance and you have a full recipe for a whole lot of chaos and a much more stressful start to the summer than anyone was prepared for.

The good news is that amid all the chaos I have gotten to practice with my camera on a bunch of different occasions. I've decided that escaping from the fast-paced camp world even just for 15 minutes by stopping to take photos of flowers or grabbing my camera and shooting the sunset is going to be my go to stress reliever this year. So maybe that means more consistent blog posts? I'm not making any promises though, especially considering it's past midnight and I have words typed up and one photo watermarked but I kind of wanted to to share a few more photos and write some more words…I would also really like to get more than six hours of sleep. 

The moral of the story is I'm still here, making an effort to document the summer as often as possible. 

Happy Summer Camp Eve!

There may be a frost warning in effect for the next couple of nights, temperatures below 0 and snow on the ground but all the same my bags are packed and this time tomorrow I will be on the road towards camp! 

Myself and the Camp Director are heading up tomorrow for a week of cleaning and opening camp, the four head counsellors arrive on Thursday for a couple of days of leadership training before the rest of the counsellors arrive on Saturday evening for a week of staff training. Our first session of campers happens the first week of June and even though that seems so far away right now I know it's just around the corner. 

I'm a weird mix of nerves and excitement. There are a lot of contributing factors. One of the main ones is that odds are this will be my last summer at this particular camp and it will almost certainly be the last summer working with this specific staff team. On the flip side I'm feeling a lot less overwhelmed about the summer than I have in the past.

I still have a lot of things on my to do list for the day but I'm not really worried about getting them all done. Yesterday I made an impromptu trip to town for shampoo/conditioner, deodorant, toothpaste - all the exciting things. I did snag a pair of $6 aviators from the little boys' department of Wal-Mart. There are a lot of downsides to being petite but being able to buy things from kids' departments is not one of them!

I've reached the stage in the packing process where I start to panic that I'm forgetting something important. To counteract that feeling I just start throwing anything and everything into my bags "just in case" regardless of the likelihood I will be in need of multiple pairs of black panty hose or a pair of high heels over the next few weeks.

I am off to spend the next few hours eating my last pre-camp meal (it's pizza, duh) and strategically loading things into my car and putting the finishing touches on my road trip playlist.

I have a post scheduled for tomorrow but it will be a while before the internet gets hooked up at camp and probably even longer before I have an hour to sit down and write something worth publishing!

Until then, send your sunny weather my way and extra prayers of a summer full of love, happiness and no trips to the emergency room!

You Win, Thursday.

Thursday May 1st, 2014

8:35 a.m.: Swipe my thingy to exit the parking garage and instead of flashing green, opening the garage door and letting me drive to work it flashes red and the door remains shut. I try a few more times trying to process what I'm going to do to solve this problem. Luckily a nice lady comes along and lets me out and suggests that I was just hitting in the wrong place.

8:44 a.m.: Driving to work still pondering my near death experience in the parking garage and realize that today is May 1st. Thus, the reason my thingy (does anyone know what those electronic chips are actually called) stopped working was because my parking permit was only for February, March & April. Alright, let's start praying now that there's a spot opened in the overnight visitor parking.

8:50 a.m. : Arrive at work. There was a brief power outage last night and when the power came back it tripped our phone system and as a result none of the phones were working. Normally a major annoyance but not a colossal issue. Today is the deadline for camper fees. Meaning a constant stream of people calling and asking if there's still spots in specific sessions or wanting to pay their balance over the phone with a credit card. Or assuring us that the paperwork is in the mail etc. Basically mass chaos.

9:00 a.m. - 5:15 p.m.: Work, Work, Work, Work, Work.

5:15 p.m.: Realize I'm still at work. Completely surrounded by sticky notes and highlighters and folders overflowing with forms and to-do lists and to-call lists. Surrender for the day, pack up my things and leave.

5:45 p.m. :Arrive home from work (there was a parking space, Hallelujah!) get into my apartment (on the 7th floor), put chicken in the oven for supper (that hasn't defrosted nearly as much as I wanted it to), put away dishes and tidy the kitchen before reaching for my phone to tweet about how excited I am to watch last night's episode of Survivor. Except my phone is nowhere to be found.

6:00 p.m.: After searching the few places I've been since I arrived home from work conclude that I must have left it in the car. Exit apartment and go down seven floors and outside (where it's now started to rain) to my car. Search my car. No phone. Conclude that my beloved iPhone is almost certainly still sitting on my desk at work.

6:30 p.m.: Realize that although my chicken is cooking my limited groceries mean I don't have an obvious side for my chicken. (I'm moving this weekend so I'm trying to eat all my groceries so I don't have to move them). Conclude that perogies are really my best option for a side.

7:00 p.m.: Chicken & Perogies for supper!

I am going to enjoy every bite of my weird supper and then I'm going to take a long hot shower and just get through the next two weeks.

Summer Lovin'

Linking up with Helene & Taylor to share just a few of the many reasons I am counting down the days until summer! Even though summer weather doesn't happen around these parts until July I consider the day I move to camp (May 18) to be the first day of summer!

Without further explanation I present to you

I Can't Wait For Summer Because…

• Dollar Drink Days at McDonald's. Hello, $1 Iced Coffee!!
• Campfires
• Daylight until 9:00 p.m.
• Adventures with H. & R.
• Flip Flops!
• Sundresses
• Sunshine 
• Photography Adventures
• Swimming
• Warmth!
• Stargazing
• Chats on the dock
• Tie-Dye!
• Laying in the grass
• Seeing returning campers
• Smell of sunscreen
• Enjoying the outdoors
• Summer rainstorms
• Camp!