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Whenever I come back from one of my trips out east each summer, I can always count on them to be hectic and jampacked full of things that I need to do. Whether it’s unpacking, getting my content calendar back online, heading right to Fringe, catching up on the contract work that fell behind while I was gone, whatever – there’s always a lot to do as soon as I am home. One thing I’m desperately excited to do is recap my summer of fun and activities with all of you. Now that IndyFringe is over and I’m heading on to my next projects and back to working like a normal person. That said, here is my latest addition to my Monthly Moments – a full summer edition! Enjoy!
Health & Beauty
During the week at camp, no one really cares too much about appearance, so I can’t say that I have much to report on here. I will say that I was definitely able to get my hands on some great goodies from Influenster.
- Live Clean Coconut Milk Body Lotion – This is a great lotion if you like the kind that soaks right into your skin and doesn’t leave a filmy or sticky feeling behind. Plus, the scent is very light so it blends in nicely with any other scents you might be wearing.
- Swisspers Premium 100% Cotton Makeup Removal Wipes – These were great for daily use, but were also good for my kiddos between shows to remove their animal makeup.
- Pure Silk Contour 6 Premium Disposable Razor – I NEVER ever buy fancy razors (and TBH, I probably still won’t), but this one was a pleasant surprise. The blade/head of the razor is flexible and needless to say, worked extremely well.
And it’s also fun to mention that since I’m back from camp, I’m rockin’ my favorite Indigo Black hair again for some variety. Here’s one of my favorite places to get custom color!
Fashion
Again, during camp…appearance isn’t always a top priority. I will say that I got to rock yoga pants, athleisure wear, and sweats most days of the week. You can’t beat it!
However, there is a ton of tax-free shopping to be found in New Hampshire! As mentioned in other posts, there’s a great outlet mall near camp that I use for stocking up on goodies for the year. This year, it was shoes again! You can’t beat a pair of simple black and discounted Vans and new black sandals! Not to mention that there is almost always a BOGO discount and FREE To-Store delivery with Famous Footwear!
It’s also worth mentioning that I found the comfiest $10 black jumpsuit from Synergy in North Conway, so this non-romper/jumpsuit girl may have just become a convert!
Podcasts
Basically nixed these for the summer for audiobooks! My queue is full!
Books
I did manage to get a fair amount of reading in! Thanks to spending a fair amount of time traveling in cars (it’s like 20 hours to Maine) and lots of audiobooks, I’m happy to report that I officially burned through some great reads!
- Sweetbitter – Classic New York coming-of-age story. Also, about working in a restaurant – so that’s already near & dear to me.
- Unmasked – Oh yes, the memoir by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber himself. If you know all the words to anything from The Phantom of the Opera or Cats, it’s decent.
- Baby Teeth – A very psychological thriller. Tough to put down and intense subject matter at times.
- The Wife Between Us – Another psychological thriller. Very clever, written by two authors, and it doesn’t go in any direction that you think it will.
- Bachelor Nation – This is a more journalistic book that takes the reader through the inner workings of ABC’s The Bachelor. It’s an easy listen, that’s for sure. A unique way to hear about how they choose the casts, the bachelors/bachelorettes, and good commentary about why America seems to be obsessed.
- The Millennial’s Guide to Changing the World: A New Generation’s Handbook to Being Yourself and Living with Purpose – Ah, yes. More goodies for us millennials to read and absorb. However, it’s not just for millennials. The guide definitely highlights and breaks down many of the issues my generation faces (overeducated, underpaid, etc.) and makes them relative to the reader – regardless of age. Laying out the facts of millennial life, backed by the statistics to prove it!
Food
When you’re out East, the food options are always so different than some of my Midwest options. Seafood is always cheaper and there is usually a greater variety of options and ways to have it prepared.
I mentioned some of my favorite restaurants from the summer in my posts about Portland, Maine, and the Mount Washington Valley – so check out those posts for some photos!
When I was in Quebec, I also made sure to take advantage of real poutine, actual French Croque Monsieurs and Creme Brulee, and BeaverTails! I’m working on a little Quebec post, so consider this a little teaser!
I’ll also just drop a little photo of the Vermonster here from Ben & Jerry’s. My campers decided that they wanted to do it, so of course, we went and did it! For 15 kids, they got two buckets of 20 scoops of ice cream and toppings – and they almost made it through the whole thing.
TV
I actually paused all of my streaming accounts while I was gone. Since I didn’t watch hardly any TV all summer (I literally saw just a few episodes from Shark Week), I’ve been catching up since I got back!
Random
I have plenty of random updates to share. So here are a few highlights to get you started
- Went to camp.
- Nearly melted in the humidity.
- Bought a new car. (FYI – The steps to title a car in Indiana via mail are 10x harder than they should be! Seriously. Indiana has got to get it together.)
- Directed two shows and a staged reading.
- Made some extended pit stops in Portland, Quebec, and New York City. (Links coming soon!)
- Saw some pretty views.
- Saw some shows.
- Discovered that underwater hockey is a real sport. With a world’s championship happening right down the street from where we were staying. Who knew?!
- Made some new friends and hung out with some old ones.
- The keyword for the summer: ADVENTURE!
- Cried a ton and felt all the feelings.
- Came home to IndyFringe – which is always a good time.
Now, it’s back to some candlemaking and onto my next theatre gig – assistant directing another kid’s show!
TELL ME IN THE COMMENTS: How was your summer? What were some highlights? What did I miss?
