(Not actually Dylan lyrics, but it is the name of his current tour, which we shall see is very relevant to this blog post.)
Hiya!
How is everyone? Can you believe it’s July already? I certainly can’t. My goodness gracious does time ever fly. Wasn’t I just preparing to leave on this crazy adventure? Didn’t I just get to Bridgeport
I’ve been keeping busy as usual. The last weekend in June I headed in to New York City
Roughly 5.5 hours and several Moody Blues albums later the box office opened and the line started moving. This was it! I could barely stand still in line like a functional human being. And then, 10 minutes and most of my June savings later, I had a ticket!!
I spent a few hours reading in Central Park , waiting very impatiently for it to be a reasonable time to go line up at the theatre for the show. Finally it came, the doors opened and the usher showed me to my seat.
In the gosh darn front row.
FRONT ROW SEAT FOR PIPPIN.
I was shaking and ecstatic and totally blown away. Again, anyone who follows me on twitter knows that I was willing to hang upside down from the rafters in order to see this show. A front row spot was more than my wildest dreams.
The man sitting next to me (Chris I believe) had been in line with me all morning and we got to chatting. He had seen the show (as in that particular production of Pippin) 24 times. He’s kind of my hero. He had some awesome Broadway related stories that kept me quite entertained until the lights dimmed.
It was time.
A spotlight appeared on the curtain, and then a silhouetted figure Fossed (yes Fossed, as in to move in a Bob Fosse-esque manner) up the stage and the glorious Patima Miller appeared (to ruckus applause).
From then on I was on cloud 9. Wow. The show was absolutely incredible. Patina Miller earned every bit of that Tony. She was brilliant. The circus tricks and acrobatics were stunning. Andrea Martin actually stopped the show with a standing ovation half way through the first act. I’ve never seen anyone do that. Terrence Mann was hilarious. Matthew James Thomas (who almost cut my head of with his sword at one point #frontrowproblems) was superb. The entire thing was beautiful and breathtaking and extraordinary. And there I was in the front row to take it all in.
My life these days, I tell you what.
It was just so cool to see the original revival cast, the cast that’s on the album and who won the Tony. It’s such a once in a lifetime experience.
Unless you’re Chris. Then it’s a 24 times in a lifetime experience.
After the show I hit up the stage door and met a ton of the cast, including Matthew James Thomas! I went back the next day (I was in the area, leave me alone) and got to meet a few more people, including Patina Miller (!!!!!) and Terrence Mann.
It was incredible, and totally worth the 24 hours without sleep I ended up doing.
Because I can’t say no to some good late night fun and ended up staying up until just after 3 am with some Harlem and Newark JVs that night. It was a ton of fun and I regret nothing.
That Monday our Teen Achievers program kicked off! We now have 17 kids in the program, which is crazy and amazing and way more than we anticipated. I’m busy all day running around with them. It’s such an awesome change of pace from the rest of my year at work, and I am absolutely loving it. I go home every day exhausted and completely happy. They’re great kids and I’m so excited to spend the rest of the summer hanging out with them!
Hannah and I went down to DC/Virginia for a long weekend over the 4th to visit her mom and step dad and her boyfriend. We had a wonderful time seeing the sights and just hanging out. They are such lovely people and they always make me feel so welcome and part of everything. I’m so grateful for their hospitality.
After another long and awesome week with the Teen Achievers it was time for some rest and relaxation…in the form of a 30 mile hike on the Appalachian Trail ! A group of 14 of us met Sunday at a trailhead in PA about 30 miles north of the site of our Dis-Orientation retreat (which was to begin that Tuesday) and headed out for a 3 day backpacking adventure.
It. Was. Awesome.
Seriously, it was one of the coolest things I have ever done. The trail was gorgeous, the company was great, and it was just so amazing to get out into the woods, disconnect from everything and just walk somewhere. I don’t know, it just suited me. Backpacking is my jam, man.
We did just over 10 miles the first day and stayed at a State Park campsite that night. The next day we meant to do just over 10 miles again, but somewhere along the line the map got messed up and we ended up doing 12. Which was a lot, but so cool to accomplish. We stayed at a shelter along the trail that night. It was great. Lots of space, an awesome creek to stick our feet in and chat around, everything you could want from a campsite. Sleeping, however, was a bit of a challenge. See that white stuff our tents are on top of? Yeah, thats a bed of the sharpest gravel you have ever had the displeasure of encountering. Most of us did not bring sleeping pads, because you have to carry everything on your back and who wants the extra weight? So we were condemned to a night of tossing and turning on these horrible little rocks and got barely any sleep at all. But hey, that’s life on the trail I suppose.
Our last day was supposed to be a little shorter, between 6 and 7 miles and ending at Blue Ridge Summit for Dis-O, but after lunch we kind of split into 2 groups and some of us ended up hiking an extra mountain. We choose to view this as an extra victory.
After making it to the retreat center, we dropped our bags, were refused hugs by several JVC Program Coordinators (to be fair, we smelled horrendous), and promptly jumped in the pool fully clothed.
And it was glorious. We seriously considered never moving.
Dis-O was great. It was awesome to see everyone one more time and catch up on the ends of their years and their plans for next year. We had some great speakers, a talent show (where Sophie and I did not reprise The Confrontation, despite multiple requests), a nice Italian dinner and all sorts of late night fun. Goodbyes were rough Friday morning. I don’t do endings well, and I’m abysmal at saying goodbye. The greater JVC community has been awesome this year. They’ve inspired me, challenged me, supported me, celebrated with me and laughed with me. There are too many of us to be really close with everyone, or even with very many, but it’s such a unique and amazing experience to be part of a group doing more or less the same thing with such similar goals, especially when JVC is such a hard thing to explain to someone who’s not done it or doing it. It’s hard to explain exactly, especially since I don’t really have a firm grasp on everything I’m feeling at the moment. It’s just weird not knowing if, when or where I’ll see any of them again. This community has been my larger context within this year, if that makes any sort of sense at all. I don’t know. I guess what I’m saying is that this community is really special, and I am going to miss it.
Luckily I had something kind of awesome to look forward to that evening. Hannah and I had tickets to see Bob Dylan’s AmericanaramA Tour (Featuring My Morning Jacket and Wilco)!! We headed over to Webster Bank Arena, found great spots near the stage, and settled in for an amazing show. My Morning Jacket was phenomenal, and Wilco was wonderful as well. But really, we were all there for Dylan. Because come on. It’s Dylan.
And guys…Dylan’s still got it.
Oh man does he got it.
He was unreal. Don’t listen to anyone who says he’s no good live these days. He sounded fantastic. He sounded like Dylan. It was so awesome. He didn’t talk to the audience at all, just came out, did his thing and did it well. But even without talking, he still had this amazing stage presence. He was engaging and playful and even conversational, in a way, with how he played and sang. He is an amazing performer. I feel so very lucky to have seen him live. What an incredible night.
It was also really awesome to see him in
After the concert we went home and I slept for the next 14 hours. I was a little bit tired.
We had a quiet weekend. Hannah and I went to Quaker Meeting and I went to Church. Both were wonderful. Now I’m back at work, hanging out with these awesome teens again! It’s great to be back. We’re down to our final 3 weeks in Bridgeport Minnesota Bridgeport
I am, however, exited to see everyone! I miss you terribly and I hope you’re all doing well!
God Bless,
Aimee
