Weekend of Fun

Optional Fun Field Trip #2:

Because Camp is in Small Town Up North, which I do not consider to be an adequate representation of American culture, I try to plan fun things outside of Camp for our staff (6 of whom are international). Plus, international or not, we all need to leave Camp every now and then for our sanity. So this past weekend, we had a lovely trip into the Big City.

After the campers left on Saturday, we piled into a 15 passenger van and headed South. We drove straight to a large mall, where staff spent the evening shopping, eating, watching movies and relaxing. Originally, I'd planned to do the same, but the mall is so close to my house that I decided to just drop them off, go buy groceries, and hang out at home for a few hours of relaxing on my couch. Plus, all of them were staying at my house, and since I haven't been home for a while, I wanted to make sure it looked presentable.

Good thing I decided to stop home. First of all, the road construction was out of control, so I was lost for 45 minutes. Frustrating, but good to map out before they got into the van with me. When I got home, I realized that I forgot my keys. They are with my car keys, and since I didn't drive, I forgot them. No problem, I hid a spare key on my porch in case I ever made the mistake of forgetting my keys. I am so smart and resourceful like that. But when I went for the key, it wasn't there... hmmm....

Both roommates were out of town, but H still had her phone on her (Because on the 5th call, she finally answered). She let me know when she'd been home alone she moved it because it was too scary to have it out there. I had to try really hard not to freak out on her, because well, GROW UP! I have too much responsibility on me, too much going on and not nearly enough time in my day for things like, "I was scared." Um, maybe grow up a little bit and be an adult. I don't have time for this. I own the fact that I made a mistake forgetting the keys, but the brilliant part of the plan is that I had a backup plan for myself in case that ever happened.

My dad was out of town, my mom wasn't answering her phone, my grandma and aunt didn't know where my mom was, my best friend didn't answer her phone, none of my windows were unlocked, and so I sat on my porch and had a meltdown because I was all alone and I couldn't get into my house. Also none, not one, of my windows are ground level, meaning that even if I wanted to break one of them, crawling inside would be tough. Nice to know that someone would really have to work to break in, but not comforting at the time.

Finally my mom called me back. She was an hour and a half away, but offered to come rescue me. When I bought the house in October, my mom repeatedly demanded a key until I finally gave in. Thank goodness for mothers. She is smarter than me and I so thankful because she is not only smart, she is very kind. I felt terrible asking her to drive all the way to my house, but I also had 11 staff coming in 2 hours, and I didn't want them to see me crying on my porch. So I went to the grocery store and bought food for breakfast and lunch the next day, and then sat on my porch, eating grocery store sushi until my mom came to let me in.

Later, I went back to the mall, picked up the staff and brought them home. I'm not sure if they were expecting a cardboard box, or what, but they were so funny when they walked in. "You left THIS for camp? You must love your job!" I have worked hard on my house, so it was nice to hear they thought it was pretty. I took them on a tour and they looked at every photo album and in every closet. They sat on every chair and jumped in my bed. It was sort of like showing a group of puppies around, but it was nice too. After the tour, they changed into pajamas, tossed their sleeping bags on the floor and settled in for movies, snacks and sleep.

On Sunday morning, I woke up early and made about 50 pancakes. I don't know why I didn't just buy cereal, but no, I made blueberry, chocolate chip and plain batches of pancakes. Camp Directors don't do things the easy way, we do them the fun way. Before I started cooking, I had to run to the grocery store for more milk, and when I was leaving, I ran into a board member. He asked what I was up to and then commented, "I bet you don't get home very often." Um... duh... How long have you been on the board?... But he offered to cut my grass or help take care of my house while I was gone, which was a very kind gesture. I thanked him and told him my roommates would probably appreciate it, but no thanks.

After breakfast, we went to the Science Museum. Some of the staff had questioned the field trip choice, thinking it would be lame, but it is a very cool museum, and I think everyone had a blast, despite the initial hesitation. After the museum, we returned to my house for a BBQ and some backyard games. My best friend, her fiance and my brother had all come to the museum with me and were there for the BBQ. It was nice to spend time with them, although it made me really homesick. I have not sat out in the sun, or just relaxed at all this summer. Even fun things, like field trips, require a lot of responsibility on my part, and I'm getting tired. I want to just chillin my backyard, soaking up the sun. I have such a wonderful staff and a great job that I love, but I miss home, my roommates, friends, and I miss being carefree.

In the late afternoon, we drove back to camp, stopping at Target to load up on bug spray and candy and random things staff needed. We got back to camp and I crashed into bed almost immediately. I'm struggling a little bit this week because I am leaving camp on Wednesday morning for the wedding, so I'm feeling a bit detached. I just want to go back home, hang out with X, and not think about all of the details of each day for a while. I'm trying to be focused on kids and staff and camp details, but I'm ready for the wedding stuff to start. Soon...