I could write a book

Alright!! Lots going on, but here is your blog. Finally! (PS - I'm going to wait until I'm sitting in the airport to go on facebook and steal pictures from people, but when I do I'll be posting them on shutterfly) There's a lot to talk about, so please multiply each chapter in awesome points by about 100 because it loses some enthusiasm and awe when I try and write about so much. I've really been having a fantastic last few days here.

Chapter 1 - My hike
Sunday was a big day. I woke up at around 7:30 to meet Mark, the bagpipe player from Brigadoon who also happens to be a park ranger, for a hike on the East Inlet trail. I had really hoped I'd get the opportunity to climb Baldy this summer (Baldy is the most unique looking mountain around here and kind of the sentimental one to the people in town) but it would have been a huge endeavor and it give me a reason to come back. Anyway, it was a really refreshing journey. Nothing stupendous to see but I did get a MUCH closer look at Baldy which was neat because I could look all the way to where I usually see Baldy from and it was like the view that I've had this entire summer was backwards. Mark was a decent hiking partner too. He gave me a neat (fake) tattoo from a bagpipe band that he's into.

Chapter 2 - Steamboat Springs
I sorta rushed Mark to get us back home because I was FINALLY able to work out a plan to meet with my mother's cousin, Andrea, and spend a night in Steamboat. It's truly a shame that it took this long to get the opportunity and I wish I could have had more time because it was SO FUN! First off, Andrea is fantastic as is Steve. We got to talk about family and what not the entire ride there and then we spent the night pub-crawling to all their favorite places. It was really nice to get out of this tiny town and actually see things like, oh I don't know, buses? Haha, it was as if I was trying to ease my way back into city living. I will say I got kinda fed up with hearing "Hide your beagle, Vick's an Eagle!" all night, but we'll let it go. =P Anyway, I got to sleep in a real house with a real bed and a TV in the room even! It's the little things, you know? After a fantastic nights worth of sleep, I got to explore Steamboat on my own for a little while before having to ride back with Steve to Grand Lake in time for changeover. So Baldy and also Andrea are TWO reasons why I have to come back here.

Chapter 3 - The Freedom Band plays at The Lariat
So some of the people in the company have grooved out together over the summer playing real folksy type music. They call themselves The Freedom Band and they're really really excellent. They performed at the cabaret and even recorded a cd together I believe. Anyway, one of the bars that we often go to in town, The Lariat, agreed to have the band play there on Monday night. It was so much fun! I drank more than I usually can and the whole company was out enjoying the show. It was neat to get out of the theater but still all hang out together.

Chapter 4 - Final Evening Changeover/Slumber Party at Marks
Not much to say about the final evening changeover. I find it really incredible how many times I did such hard manual labor right after shows this summer. I mean, I did evening changeovers at PSF last summer, but not to this scale. These were HUGE set pieces and very heavy and often times I was responsible for bringing down some of the heaviest things because I was too short to carry large lighter pieces. So I'm pretty damn proud of myself for getting through the summer this way (and pretty ripped if I may say so). Cat bought the 10 of us beers afterwards and we all drank together in the theater.

After that, I went to one of the company member's friend's cabin which they'd loaned him for when they were away. We had a slumber party complete with video games, board games, food and beds. It was really cute.

Chapter 5 - Cleaning the bathroom
OH EM GEE. I worked on the bathroom for, like, 4 hours yesterday. It's definitely way cleaner than it was when we got here. I can't believe I didn't pass out from toxic fumes. Seriously, 4 HOURS.

Chapter 6 - FINAL BRIGADOON
It feels like just yesterday when I was freaking out trying to find plastic bottles and fake heather for this damn show. It feels weird now that it's over. The final show went really well...okay no. The first act did. Act 2 was kind of a shit show if you'll excuse my language. People messed up lines, choreography, songs, the works, but it wasn't too bad in all honesty. I ran the fog machines for the last time this summer and thank goodness for that because I'm so over them. Brigadoon had the most and the youngest kids as guest artists and it was sad seeing them so sad about closing a show. I don't know if it's that there are still two more closings or if I just didn't love the show as much as others I've done or if I've just been doing this for so long that the sentimental value doesn't hit me as hard anymore, but I didn't cry or anything. I suppose I'll miss it in a way, but probably not much.

Chapter 7 - Striking Brigadoon
There's really not much to say about this. We tore Brigadoon apart today. I cleaned the props loft weeks ago so I didn't have to work on that much. I cleaned up a little backstage but I'll have to work at it a lot more on Sunday when all the shows are finished.

Okay, I'm definitely losing steam here so I'm going to save The Jazz for tomorrow. Take care! 3 more days!