The Art of Surprises

Well, it has been a while... AGAIN. Sorry for the delay, this summer I have been working more than ever, and spending my free time at the beach. Can you blame me? 

It was Caleb's birthday on July 17th, so we (his parents and I) decided to throw him a surprise birthday cookout! The planning was pretty simple - steaks and some appetizers, and lots of beer/wine. The guest list was pretty small, we didn't have the manpower to feed a ton of people, and a few of Caleb's good friends weren't able to make it to the island. So, 2 days before his birthday I told him I wanted to take him out to dinner, and have some wine on the beach beforehand. I attempted to blindfold him on the ride so he wasn't sure what beach we were going to go to, but he annoyingly knew every turn we took. However, he was a good sport and left the blindfold (which was actually my sweatshirt wrapped around his head) on, and humored me until we got onto the beach. What a great boyfriend I have. When we walked onto the beach, I let him take the blindfold off, which is when he realized everyone was waiting to surprise him with good food and drinks. The party was great, and Caleb had absolutely no idea! Now, to share a few tips for planning an amazing surprise, and a few photos from the cookout!

Some delicious shish-kebabs that Caleb's mom put together!

A few guests enjoying the party! Caleb's mother is on the left, and my mom is in the dress!

Caleb and I

Squinty!

And now for the tips!

1. Make sure to think of EVERYTHING. Food, drinks, guests, place, time, and of course, how to get the guest of honor there! 

2. If you slip up at all, be very careful and simple with your coverup! If you make a complicated story you are bound to lose track of the details.

3. Think of a backup plan - just in case. Especially if your surprise party is outdoors, weather can change everything.

4. Bring a camera! You definitely want to have someone capture the surprise in action.

5. Don't do it alone! Planning a party (especially a surprise) is difficult to plan and execute alone. 

6. Have fun! If you try and think of everything, and keep it simple, there is no way they will find out!

Nantucket ACKtivity; Squidding!

A few dipping motions, and then there it is! A small tug on the lure and you know to yank the rod up in time to catch the squid. Ink sprays as the squid breaks the surface of the water, and into the bucket it goes. There are some small sucking noises as the squid ejects the rest of its ink, and the rod is put right back into the water for more. It is dark. The pier is lit by only a few lights up and down the edges, and the water is peaceful and murky. There is a slight breeze. The harbor is dotted with small boats, and the pier has boats tied up left and right. People with rods are lined up at various intervals up and down the dock, buckets sitting next to them, waiting. Every couple minutes people yank their rods out of the water, sending their squid flying through the air and into the bucket, then put their rods back for more. 


Even though the squid are no more than a foot long at this time of the summer, the feeling of catching one is exhilarating all the same. As the bucket gets filled up, the feeling of satisfaction grows, as does your hunger after thinking about frying them up for some homemade calamari! Sad, but true. 

Lined up, and waiting

The Squid! (No, this was not our final count!)

Life preserver, and the squidders beyond.

Concentration

The catch! (And the reaction!)

To those who have not been, I strongly suggest it. And bring your camera! Go squidding through the lens!

Summer Scenes

I'm back! This post is going to be a short one - I just wanted to share a few photos that really show what Nantucket Summer is all about. 


Obviously (or perhaps not THAT obvious to those that have not spent any time on Nantucket during the summer) it is not summer without some good old fashion bonfires, charcoal grills, and pallets stacked up on the beach to fuel that fire. 


Summer, to me, is spending endless days and nights on the beach, sipping on a cold beverage, and laughing with friends and family. Watching the sunset on the beach may just be the best feeling in the world, no doubt about that. The warm air turns cool enough to cozy up in your favorite sweatpants and sweatshirt, and wrap up in a blanket. The soft rush of the waves breaking in the background, the burgers sizzling on the grill, and the sight of the ferry passing through the sound are what summer is to us Nantucket Natives. Sounds too good to be true? Here are some photos for you to help wrap your brain around it. 

A shell resting atop the pile of pallets

Sun shining through the pallets at 40th Pole

Grilling at its finest

The bonfire on the beach

Summer Must-Reads

This summer, as with most years, I have been on a reading rampage. Working at a small art gallery, where there isn't always tons of action has given me time to work through my personal book list. Today, I am going to share some of my favorite reads this summer, and hopefully inspire you to read them as well!


The Hunger Games series, by Suzanne Collins:
The Hunger Games is the story of a futuristic community, consisting of twelve districts and the capitol. The capitol is in control, and to prevent a rebellion throws the hunger games each year. Two tributes, a boy and a girl, from each district are chosen to fight to the death in the games. 


Wow. These books are by far my favorite books of all time. There is never a dull moment when reading this series, and for me it was nearly impossible to put them down until I was finished. The mix of action, love, desperation, and the will to live makes these books a great summer read. The storyline will always keep you guessing and interested. I HIGHLY recommend these books to anyone and everyone. 


The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein:
This book was another great read recommended to my by my mom. The book is told through the eyes of the family dog - a really interesting and new perspective. I won't go into many details for fear of ruining the plot, but this is the story of one family's struggles and the dogs view on those struggles. The story begins at the end, and then tracks backwards through memories. 


The insight on humanity through the dogs eyes really makes you appreciate what it is like to be human, and for dog owners lets you inside how dogs may be feeling. The struggle of not being able to communicate with his owners in words is present throughout the entire book, and made me feel sorry for Enzo, the dog. I definitely recommend this to dog owners!


29 Gifts: How a Month of Giving Can Change Your Life, by Cami Walker:
This is the most recent book I read, having finished it today. It is the story of a woman struggling with MS. She receives advice from a friend and spiritual teacher, who tells her to give 29 gifts in 29 days. As the story unfolds, Cami tells each gift she gives, and the effects it has both on her, and on the person or people recieving the gift. 


I found this story to be extremely inspirational, and I too want to try the 29-Day Giving Challenge. There is a website for the project, www.29gifts.org, where you can sign up and tell about your own giving experiences. It sounds like a really rewarding challenge, and I can't wait to start. Even if you're not sure about participating in the challenge, I recommend this book. It gave me the ability to see the good things in my own life, and even if just for a moment, it gave me a more positive outlook - something I definitely need. 


Watchers, by Dean Koontz:
Okay, technically this is not a "summer must-read" since I read it over a year ago, but I still want to recommend it. Watchers is the story of a man who finds a dog that escaped from a lab, and its dangerous journey through life, while trying to escape another lab-escapee. The story is thrilling, and has a lot of different stories strung together. There are suspenseful moments, loving moments, happy moments, sad moments, anything you could imagine, it's there. This is another of my favorite books of all time, and I think a lot of people could enjoy it as much as I did - especially dog owners. 


Hopefully this list will inspire you to dig out a good book, and if you leave near the beach or a pool plop yourself down in the sun for the day and dive on in! Reading to me is one of the most enjoyable things in life, and hopefully you will enjoy these books as much as I did. Stay tuned, more posts to come soon!

The Bonnaroo Experience!

It has been over a month since my last post - wow! With work starting, and everyone catching up at home, my creative juices haven't exactly been flowing. With that being said, I'M BACK! I am settled into my work schedule now, and ready for regular blogging to begin again! 


For my first post after the long absence, I would like to jump back to June 7th and remember the craziness that was the Bonnaroo Music Festival. 


My boyfriend, Caleb, my mom and I left Nantucket on the early ferry (6:30am) on Tuesday the 7th, and drove the 8  hours to my aunt's house down in Maryland. The drive was uneventful, with Caleb driving most of the way. We decided to leave early, because we were meeting Caleb's friend Jon and his brother, Josh, and girlfriend, Becky in Maryland and continuing the drive to Manchester, Tennessee with them. Leaving early gave us time to spend with my family before leaving again, and a few hours to catch up on some much needed sleep. We left around 3am Wednesday morning, leaving my mom behind to spend the week with her family, and headed off to meet Caleb's friend and get on the road! The drive to Bonnaroo field in Manchester was about 12 hours, but we were so excited for the music and festivities to start that it went by pretty quickly. Upon arrival we made the necessary stops at WalMart for food for the weekend, and the liquor store nearby, then got our place in line and waited to get in. The line of cars wound through several roads, and finally we could see the entrance! Cars and trucks were getting searched, programs were being handed out, and everyone was busy setting up their own campgrounds. Luckily for us, we had two cars, and therefore had more space between us, as well as several trees surrounding our area - shade! We got everything set up, grilled our first meal of the weekend, and sat around discussing which bands we were most looking forward to. 


More and more cars filed in throughout the night, and continued all throughout the next day. I had heard that about 70,000 people were at Bonnaroo the year before, so I was expecting a lot of people, but even when you're expecting to see something, it is completely different than actually witnessing it before your eyes. The concerts for Thursday did not start until late afternoon, so we decided to just hang at the campsite for a while, talking, and again, discussing music. Thursday evening we walked to Centeroo, which is where all the stages are, as well as food stands, shops, and air-conditioned tents sponsored by different vendors. Right when we entered Centeroo I knew I was going to love it. There were people everywhere, any kind of food imaginable, and so much to look at and do. It was getting dark at this point, so we didn't explore much, and just walked over to "This Tent" to watch rapper J. Cole perform. That's another thing about Centeroo - the stage names are pretty confusing at first - "This Tent", "That Tent", "The Other Tent", "Which Stage", and "What Stage". You get the hang of it pretty quickly though, and it really is rather unique. 

"This Tent" at J. Cole!

We woke up Friday morning to blistering heat at around 7am. The day was pretty normal up until the concerts started at 3:15 - Eating, drinking, talking. Grace Potter and the Nocturnals was up first. Jon, Josh, and Becky left earlier to catch some earlier bands, and Caleb and I headed in after getting some ice for the coolers. We couldn't find anyone at first, so we ended up being a mere 4 rows from the stage at Grace Potter! Neither of us had seen her before, or heard much of her music, but she was AMAZING. So much energy and excitement. After that, we grabbed some water, I purchased the toe ring that I have been wanting for a while, and we were able to find the rest of our crew in time to watch The Decemberists, and some of My Morning Jacket. Caleb and I returned to the campsite to grab a bite to eat, and then went back in for Arcade Fire, Bassnectar, and of course Lil Wayne. All in all it was an awesome night, with great bands, great friends, and great food. 


Saturday started out much the same as Friday. Jon, Josh, and Becky again left earlier than we did. Me and Caleb took some time to walk along the shops outside Centeroo, grabbed some food at a stand instead of cooking, and then met with Jon, and Becky in time to get good spots for Mumford and Sons. Mumford was probably my favorite show of the weekend. They are so good live, I cannot wait to see them again. After the concert Becky and I split off from Caleb and Jon, and that's where it kind of went downhill a bit. The rain was slight at first, and then we heard some thunder and saw a few flashes of lightning. We figured Jon and Caleb would meet us back at the campsite so that's where we went... and waited. Jon showed up, but Caleb never did, so I went to look for him at Eminem, with no luck. I returned back to the camp, and fell asleep to the sound of some of my favorite Eminem songs being performed in the background. In the morning, Caleb was back in the tent, fast asleep - thank god. Turns out he had walked over to Eminem alone and has a great spot! Unbelievable! Even though I did not get to see Eminem, I got to hear him perform, which I suppose is better than nothing. 


Caleb and I did not stay for any concerts Sunday because we both had to get back to work Monday morning, so we started the long drive back to Maryland, and then on to Massachusetts. We left my aunts house in Maryland at 10pm, and my mom drove the entire was back to Hyannis, MA - through two extreme traffic jams, and got us to the airport in time for us to get to work! It was an amazing Bonnaroo experience, and we are already planning on returning next year. The long trip is totally worth it, and the experience as a whole is so much fun. 

Some Flowers showing through our tent in the Early Morning

Some Tips for YOUR Bonnaroo experience, should you choose to participate in the festivities:

• Bring Walkie Talkies - your phone WILL die, and you do NOT want to get separated!
• Wipes are your best friend, believe me.
• If you aren't lucky enough to get a spot in the shade, you'll need a canopy for sure
• Rugs are a nice touch so you're not walking around in the dirt the entire time
• Bring a tarp in case it rains
• If you can, bring on huge cooler instead of several small ones, it will make your life much easier
• Battery powered fans, enough said.
• Bring CASH - set yourself a budget and bring it in cash, the ATMs charge almost $4 to get money out!
• Chaffing is common because of the heat - cutoff leggings can totally fix that problem (and baby powder)
• Do not bring frozen hamburger pattys or other frozen food - the ice melts like you wouldn't believe
• Scissors and a sharp knife if you plan on doing your own cooking - which you should!
• You can buy camping showers, they are bags with a sort of shower hose attached - I would definitely suggest doing so! They use much less water than just pouring jugs on yourself.
• For the ladies - leave in conditioner! Your hair gets extremely dry in the heat/dust

I highly recommend going to Bonnaroo if you can swing it! You don't have to follow my tips, but they really do come in handy! Until next time, live through the lens, and enjoy your summer!