V. America’s Best Talent
in the wings at the talent show (photo by taylor)
Riese: I couldn’t believe that the last night was the last night, but then it was the last night and it was the last night. To the best of my recollection, I had been drinking continually since 4pm and, per ushe, I’d only been able to consume 2-3 bites of dinner before being hauled off for somebody’s pressing needs/desires.
Julie & Brandy hosted The Talent Show and we’d had people sign up to perform. It was mostly campers — and I don’t even know where to begin reviewing that amazingness and talent — but also Bren did stand-up, Gabby read a poem, and Alex, Katrina, Stef & Laura did a musical performance. There were poems, songs, raps, hula-hooping, and “skits.”
Carly: In all honesty, I was a little concerned about the talent show being boring or too long, but once it got underway I was BLOWN AWAY by the level of talent and enthusiasm I was seeing.
Stef: We didn’t really piece together what exactly we’d be doing until the day of, but for the amount of time we spent putting our talent show act together, I was pretty proud… Everybody in the talent show was just amazing.
Riese: So , backstory of Stef/Katrina/Alex/Laura’s “Make Love in this Club”/”Bad Romance” mashup — in November 2009, Laura visited Katrina at school and they did an acoustic cover of “Make Love In This Club” and put it on Facebook. I remember watching it and thinking “I love my children so much!” Also in late November 2009, Alex decided to learn the “Bad Romance” dance, and went and filmed it at Stef’s house. I remember when she came home (well, to my apartment) afterwards with the video, I was there with Julia (Miss February) and Alex showed us the video and was like, “do you think it’s good? Should we put it on autostraddle?” and Julia and I were like HOLD THE PHONE THIS IS THE BEST THING TO EVER HAPPEN TO YOUTUBE. We posted it immediately. So, in addition to being awesome in its own right, their Talent Show Mashup brought it all full circle — how we’ve all grown and changed! — together.
Katrina: Covering Usher/Lady Gaga songs on ukuleles: something you would have predicted happening at camp that totally happened at camp. I discovered something that I never knew about myself before, which is that it had been my dream to rap in front of hundreds of women. Who knew. Feel free to view the inspirations for this performance through this video of 19- and 20-year-old drunk me and Laura covering Usher for the first time and of course, this Stef and Alex Autostraddle classic.
Stef: I do not remember anything about our actual performance, only that I was afraid to look at Alex lest I burst out laughing or forget the words.
Lizz: When Alex, Stef, Laura and Katrina performed “Love in this Club” I really felt like, for the first time in my life, everything was going to be okay.
Laura: I think the main takeaway from the talent show was a) autostraddlers are really REALLY talented and b) you have not lived until you’ve seen Alex Vega dance.
Alex: This talent show was one of the best things that have ever happened to me. To think we were actually worried about it – that not many people would want to jump on stage in front of 160 other lesbians. Not only did many sign up, but all rocked it and turned a regular talent show into a series of perfect little moments that I’ll seriously remember forever and I don’t care how cheesy that sounds. My heart exploded in my chest that night and I may or may not have teared up a little (in a good/overwhelmed way) when the hula-hooping happened.
Brittani: This was the best talent show I’ve ever been to. In addition to people being on stage with feelings, everyone was extremely entertaining and cute. I gave several standing ovations. Plus, Beth rapped.
Marni: I was sitting to the side of the stage and out of the corner of my eye I saw Beth, the site director, standing just outside the entrance to the room with a piece of paper in her hand, peering in. I went over to her and she said, “I wrote something, do you think there might be time for me to perform it in your talent show?” And I smiled and said, “You’re on next.”
Carmen: Beth rapped for us about hoping we had a lot of sex and I offered to sign her to Lil Carmen’s label, Pretty Money Records. We’re very exclusive.
Marni: She’d written the most adorable rap about our group and how great the weekend had been. She’d been amazingly sweet and accommodating to us the whole time we were there, but I didn’t really appreciate how lucky we were to have found her and such an open-minded, safe place for A-Camp until that moment.
Emily: The only thing gayer than a bunch of lesbians in the woods playing guitar around a campfire is a bunch of lesbians in the woods singing “Call It Off” by Tegan and Sara. I mean really, it was almost more gay than gay sex.
Carmen: I thought about texts I should not send multiple times during this process, namely during “First Day of My Life” and “Call It Off,” also known as “The Moment At Camp In Which Katrina And I Remembered Instinctively How To Harmonize Tegan and Sara Together.”
Little Rascals sing Tegan & Sara (photo by ashley p)
Riese: You know when you find someone and make them join your team because they are really awesome and then you get to witness everybody else finding out how awesome that person is? That’s what happened at camp with Gabby over and over. She’s a kickass poet, and what she read at camp was so so so amazing that afterwards I literally got up from side-stage, ran to the back, gave her a hug, told her I loved her, and then ran back to my seat.
happiest moments (photo by taylor)
Robin: Words really can’t express how unifying the talent show felt. It was nice to sit down beside Marni, Riese and Carly and really listen and watch everything that was happening in front of me. I was blown away by the sentiment and love from that stage.
Crystal: When some of the Troubletones got up on stage and performed this Autostraddled version of “Don’t Stop Believing”, my heart burst. It was that one A-Camp moment that I’m sure I’ll remember decades from now.
Laneia: The talent show was seriously amazing. I kept wanting to cry/fall apart at the support from the audience! If a person forgot the words to a song or dropped something they weren’t supposed to drop, the audience was just so sweet and full of love. It was like everyone just wanted everyone else to feel good about what they were doing.
Jess S.: Everyone did such a fantastic job, but my favorite part (besides Brandy Howard announcing that she likes my ass and vagina during the staff introductions) was when my cabin (Forever 21, YAY!) did a hilarious skit where they did impressions of the staff. They seriously nailed it. I felt like a proud mom.
Riese: Oh my G-d, the impressions of the staff skit — firstly, they totally made it impossible for me to talk when I went on stage later because they nailed my stage presence so acutely (involves, apparently, me covering my face and bowing a lot) that I totally had to come up with a new way to stand. P.J made a great Julie Goldman.
Emily: After the talent show Brandy Howard introduced me as the love of her life which I will never forget, and then Riese made everyone come and it was super great.
Riese: I just loved everybody so much the whole night long. I also kept drinking out of Marni’s flask. The only thing that could’ve made this night more perfect would’ve been Tess and Tinkerbell being there!
Carmen: I was wearing my YOLO shirt and everyone kept accidentally looking at my boobs. Sometime between this and the dance, I found out Brandy Howard knew my name.
Laneia: Forget it, I was too overwhelmed to even process the end of the talent show. I just loved everyone in the room so much that I almost died, basically. And Brandy Howard said my girlfriend was hot!
Brittani: Being on stage with Team Autostraddle pretty much made my life and I can’t wait until I can stand on stage in a room full of shiny-faced queerios with a bunch I’m proud to call my co-workers again.
Riese: Although I didn’t realize this at the time, I was WASTED by the time I got on stage — you guys, altitude is a thing! — and I’ve got no clue what I said besides that I told everybody that they had to COME next time, and I couldn’t really get over how funny that was. Like the double meaning of COME. Uh-huh. HILARIOUS!
I kept thinking of that Stephen Dunn line: “I love the number of people / you can love at the same time.”
“The Talent Show was the funnest time I had at camp. In fact, it was one of the funnest nights I’ve ever had in my whole life. I feel sorry for people who will never know the feeling of being in that room.”
– Brandy Howard
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VI. Dance Dance Revolution
Bren: During dance decoration time I finally learned how to properly tie a balloon. The secret: two fingers. That’s also the secret to lots of things at A-Camp.
dance prep (photo by taylor)
Carly: Spoiler alert: I haven’t DJed in like, years, and had entirely forgotten how to do so. So the dance was a BIT delayed and the first 6 or so songs were plagued with some technical difficulties (at one point I thought I had entirely blown out Alpine Meadows’ speakers but it turned out I just had a crappy cable), but hopefully not too many people noticed.
Carmen: I rapped multiple songs throughout this dance on stage, including but not limited to “Headlines” and “6’7′.” DJ Carlytron was deeply and extremely sympathetic to my need to hear more Drake. Brittani and I rapped together for a one-time-only-until-next-time moment in future lesbian rap history. Joanna showed me pictures of her girlfriend and I showed her pictures of my dog about five minutes before she terrorized Wolf Lodge and forced the people within it to “have fun and dance.” Jamie and I got drunk and talked about getting hired because we are very cool people. When we were done there was a strange sleepiness in the cabin.
Brittani: I pre-gamed a dance with ice cream. I rapped Drake with Carmen. I danced with pretty girls. I believe this goes in the books under “perfect night.”
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“The dance was a great release and we all had fun getting dressed up and dancing the night away.”
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Laneia: The dance was so cute! I wore my party dress and watched girls dance and be happy. It was a safe space, for sure. A sexy safe space.
Carly: Realizing that I was DJing a dance for a lodge full of lesbians in the mountains, laptop perched on a lectern while I drank Jameson from a flask (I never learn) and ate ice cream – all while wearing a captain’s hat – made me really happy. What a world!
Lizz: I go dancing all the time, but something about being at “A Dance” caused me to revert back to being in middle school. All of a sudden I was running all over the place to see who was dancing together and hear the latest gossip about who was hooking up. I was suddenly totally shy, averting eye contact with cute girls and I think I actually turned and ran away from someone who said something suggestive to me. I’ll tell you what though, if I could actually go back to middle school, I’d totally want Carlytron to DJ my Bat Mitzvah
Brandy: The confusing feeling of loving Robin & Carly’s relationship SO MUCH and wishing that they would never ever break up, while honestly wanting to have sex with both of them.
Carly: I’d been planning to end my set on “We Are Young” by Fun. all week, because I knew Riese loved that song, but nothing could have prepared me for the feeling of a roomful of drunk lesbians crowded around my DJ lectern screaming the lyrics in unison. So, so cool.
Sarah: The last night in the cabin with “Forever 21” AKA “21 Hump Street” (which they formally changed their name to) was the definition of perfection. Along with my co-counsellor Jess S and videographer Lauren Aadland, we were able to hang out and ask them questions about their weekend. The air was thick with respect, love, feelings, ando course, processing. We took turns speaking about what Autostraddle means to each of us and how it’s affected our lives, respectively. I think this was the most incredible moment for me because I heard these almost strangers talk about how Autostraddle is their family, how they are now family and how Autostraddle has become their community — because their original family has cut them out, because their family simple ignores this aspect of who they are or because there’s no LGBT community where they live.
Most importantly, I continuously heard about how they feel loved by Autostraddle and by the people who are a part of making Autostraddle a real thing. This. We’ve broken through the screen and gotten into the lives/hearts of our readers. It’s a beautiful thing, and I’m so proud to be a small part of something so incredible.
(photo by vanessa)
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I can’t fucking wait for the next camp.
Loved your recap on Gay Pimpin!
And we can’t wait for you to come…
next time i’ll get you and julie an edible arrangement for any bear-related incidents
brandy, will we get to go on another five minute prom date? cuz your buying the corsage this time…
that first photo i am dying brb
Another caption could read: “Winning camp” aftermath.
team effort. good hustle.
This has been said a million times before and deserves being said a million times again: Whitney, you (and your story) are amazing and I am so grateful that you shared it with all of us. Really the only thing I regret from camp is being too awkward to talk to you beyond saying hi maybe so now I am using the INTERNET to tell you that I think you are so very brave.
“This is why I came to A-Camp — to share, to listen, and to be understood in a safe space. This experience will matter the most to me always.”
Exactly.
I’m really late to the commenting party! Thank you for being at the panel. It means so so so so so so so so much to me that you were there.
And hello to you on the internet! I really want to give you a hug. Let’s do a virtual one now, and if you’re at A-Camp in September or if our paths cross in the future I’ll totally give you a real one.
<3
this oral history series needs to be published and distributed at future camps
some feelings:
i missed the dance thanks to the macking on girls workshop, THANKS KATRINA AND GABBY.
i have a crush on every troubletone.
so i missed a kind of important family thing to come to a camp and i def told a very glossed over version of what i was doing “oh, i’m helping my friend riese run a bunch of seminars and workshops…” and didn’t so much explain that i was going to be drunk in the woods with a bunch of babes.
yesterday at mothers’ day i finally sat down with my mom, explained what autostraddle is, my involvement in it from the beginning up til now, how fulfilling it was to meet everyone, how inspiring all my friends are/were, how amazing it was to be a part of it, how excited i am to be a part of the next one, how proud i am of riese and the rest of the team, and then i showed her the uke video. she was super excited about it, although she promised me she didn’t understand a word of katrina’s rap (suuure).
guys, even my mom is kinda into hot laura.
hot laura is the great equalizer
I’m pleased that our cabin made a name for ourselves where it counts!
1) “It was like The Devil Wears Prada except I was wearing American Eagle and not a bitch.” I love you, Riese.
2) Crystal, it was Coyote Shivers.
3) Carmen, can Gabby and I also get signed to Pretty Money Records? Our hit single “Lizz in Charge” is going to change the world.
4) BETH YOU GUYS. BETH.
5) The photo where Alex is dancing to Bad Romance makes my heart happy.
6) Brandy, give us a call anytime…
7) Staged dramatic reading of the oral history at next A-Camp?
8) WANT TO GO BACK TO CAMP RIGHT NOW.
Was just going to reply to Brandy with “you have my cell, right?” and then realized you beat me to it. :)
of course you can be on the label! can i be on at least one to five tracks on your mixtape? if i was richer or lil wayne i’d fly you out and rap with you right now. instead — we wait for battleship.
we will write a rap about battleship.
i feel like it bears mentioning that Vega is a SICK beat boxer
BEARS
VEGA!!!! Vega is probably one of the coolest people I’ve ever met I think.
eeee! thanks Marni!!
So, I just want you guys to know that despite the fact that I was a huuuge theater-fag growing up and performed in tons of plays and musicals, I somehow developed massive stage fright around age 14-15. As a result, the Don’t Stop Believing song was the first thing I’ve performed in front of an audience in about 10 years, and the weird thing is, I wasn’t even that scared because I was so fucking excited to share our ridiculous little labor of love with everyone at camp. Also, I love all of you.
hahah me too, except all I did was hold up FEELINGS. that talent show was incredible.
I’M SO GLAD YOU DID #highlight
I wasn’t scared either! Because of whiskey.
You guys are really really good at putting into words all the sublime and ridiculous feelings that I still can’t grasp by myself.
I am loving the amount of blazers in this recap. Lizz, you did good.
I only counted 3. I think the rest were open button-ups.
does anyone who went to the ropes course remember when we were signing our waivers and the instructor said “Marni told me that you all are already familiar with harnesses”? I knew it was going to be fun after that. also super scary, but fun.
ohhh YES. She was a classy act.
While I acknowledge that I did set the tone, I made that harness joke to just her and the other instructor, QUIETLY, before anybody else in the group got there. She then proceeded to make inappropriate jokes to the whole group for like 10 minutes. IDK I guess I just assumed she would understand the difference between a one-off joke amongst a small group of staff and jokes told to a large group of mixed company who are paying to be there? And also know when something stops being funny?
I still have a lot of feelings about this because that woman brought beef later on and I’m still pissed about it
the first three jokes were funny…and then it got weird.
WHAT?!! I never heard about this! haha.
“The only thing gayer than a bunch of lesbians in the woods playing guitar around a campfire is a bunch of lesbians in the woods singing “Call It Off” by Tegan and Sara. I mean really, it was almost more gay than gay sex”
Omg I need to go to there. When is the next camp??
I was going to respond to this exact quote! So perfect! Seriously though, everything was the gayest thing ever, which is why camp was the best.
so many cute pictures/videos. so many feelings!
I am so happy for everybody who got to have this experience.
I know it’s hard but I have to ask…(again)…
A camp or Israel?!
it’s Morocco or A camp in my case. the flight to camp is about 6 times longer and a hundred times more expensive but I’m definitely leaning towards camp. also, germany represent!
oh hi lia, long time no talk! :)
germany represent!
where would you be flying from?
hey maria,
I guess I will be in Hamburg in september anyway so there’s a good chance I’d be flying out from there if I actually go/get a spot. I suppose so will you? we could totes get on the same flight and get drunk at the airport bar of whatever city we stop over:)
yes yes yes I love the sound of this!
if we both decide to go to camp it’s on!
!
i vote A-Camp for both of you!
my love for you kinda does top israel though…
1) It was really exciting how many feelings the Book Club had about the Babysitter’s Club.
2) I’m really upset that I didn’t attend Music Trivia and thus answer the question I WAS BORN TO ANSWER (Coyote Shivers was totally Liv Tyler’s step-dad at the time ISN’T THAT AWFUL AND PERFECT?!).
3) When we all started singing “Call It Off,” Grace rolled her eyes and muttered good-naturedly, “This is disgusting…” before joining in and I laughed so hard I almost couldn’t sing and it was perfect.
I stand by my original feelings. It was disgusting but also hilarious, and I wouldn’t change it for anything.
Preach!
Next time there should probably be a Baby-Sitters Club appreciation panel/help group. Book club was really great, but I still feel embarrassed for blanking on my favorite authors (besides Sarah Vowell, obvs) and LGBTQ books. Oh well.
Same, but I NEVER BLANK ON THE BSC.
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhmygodmyfaceiseverywhere.
Saturday was definitely the best day of my life. Seriously. I don’t even know if I can add in any more feelings to this. I might have to process and return back with something more meaningful than the fact that MY FACE IS EVERYWHERE OMIGOD.
YOUR FACE IS EVERYWHERE OMIGODDD :D
So THAT’S what you look like. I admit I was curious, cause I see your comments a lot and like them
And we’re from the same city which means this anonymity is inexcusable.
“Also, making campers (I see you Shilpa and Tough Guy Beth) perform skits/roleplaying the Do’s and Don’t’s of Macking, was effing priceless.”
… not a tough guy, secret softy – Shh!
perhaps ‘bad bitch’ would be more appropriate
haha thanks for the shout out gabbyy
me too, boo. not so tough. definitely more like big momma softie love gabbz but damn if both of us don’t look sharp as fuck in a tie.
Xo
amen.
Okay, I found something to describe my feelings. I think this pretty much sums up all of A-Camp for me:
Oh Emily Choo, you are so very cute.
Doesn’t really get much cuter than Emily Choo does it?
i’m pretty sure emily choo is the cutest person in the whole world
Any chance of a sober cabin or something at the next camp?
This was mentioned before, I’m pretty sure a bunch of campers didn’t drink.
many many many people were sober! especially because drinking under 21 is expressly FORBIDDEN. also bears.
Yeah, I most definitely did not drink and that didn’t imbibe any of my capacity for having fun. To be fair though, I get just as stupidly “intoxicated” just hanging out with drunk people, so that probably affects it.
(p.s. Sorry to Leslie for totally failing at the first attempt at piggy-backing. That’s probably the best example of me being “drunk”)
Yeah, E numbers + caffeine replicate most effects of being drunk for me. (But just to be sure I top it off with a hearty dose of my friend Mister Vodka. Because, Irish.)
That was the best though. I was just telling someone about how that was the first night and when that happened, everyone in the lodge looked around like “oh, so that’s how it’s gonna be.”
And that is how it was. And it was good.
P.S. I hoisted you successfully and I was drunk! HA!
But then after the dance I gave you the proper piggy-back while you were drunk in a dress so we are EVEN, my friend!
Yup, for September camp everybody will have the option to request a ‘sober cabin’!
Yes, it will be right next to the “people who go to bed by 8 PM” cabin.
I really hope you’re joking. Those of “us” (like all queer people ever) who are in recovery or uncomfortable around alcohol for various reasons are still very fun and exciting. : )
often more fun and exciting from my experience… or at least certainly more interesting to hold a conversation with :)
You’re talkin’ ’bout me again right Cap’n?
No, she’s not joking because there were far too many people that went to bed early (and this has no correlation to whether or not they drank alcohol)
Going to bed early did not directly translate to going to sleep (amirite y’all)
Unfortunately in our cabin it did =\
I was totally joking. I guess I needed an outlet to express my concern/bitterness that many people spent $300 to be surrounded by 198 amazing lesbians AND THEN WENT TO BED EARLY. Sleep is for death.
Also, I know the non-drinkers can party and have fun because Papi, who doesn’t drink, lasted even longer than I did every night, AND SHE’S FUCKING AWESOME.
papi was at camp?
Ahhh you guys are all so cute I am actually dying.
PS Megan really is super hot.
she has the best hair
i like her a lot.
After reading these three A Camp recaps i feel like robbing a bank to go to the next one
when and where? I look totally not suspicious and have midwestern charm and grace and a good innocent smile. I’m also good at diversions and carrying heavy stuff.
Um, I live in Spain, but if you can fly here and help with the robbing operation you can totally keep half of the money and we’ll fly back straight to camp!
excellent. I’ve always wanted to go to Spain!
lol everytime I hear “go to Spain” I laugh because I had a friend once who was super prudish and that was her code word for sex.
Gaby at the macking seminar “Lesbians can smell bullshit..Like from a mile away!”
Also, also..That sex panel changed lives!
I feel as though I have greatly missed out. And I feel as though I hope greatly I can go this fall. Because I have all the feelings right now and it almost feels like i was there but i wasn’t and. . .
Also, does anyone else think a panel on faith and queeriosity would be awesome? Cause I do. I think it would be very awesome.
yes! marni and i talked about that on the drive back as one of the panel topics for next time.
YUS! I’m a great big queer who has a lot of feelings about faith and queeriness. raised southern baptist, kicked out of church after i came out, and now planning to go to seminary fall of 2013. . . there are bad feelings positive feelings neutral feelings, just feelings!
This is an excellent theme and I really hope that it can still happen in a few years when I’m free from uni and finally have enough money to fly over and go to Camp. Do you guys have many ideas yet about how different activity slots are going to change over time, or if they might be repeated? (I’m guessing there may be elements of this). Even though I would come for the people no matter WHAT the activities were, I feel that I would have really really liked to attend the Queer Women of Colour session in particular and I’m sad that I couldn’t be there :(
before a-camp came into my life i missed it so bad, i missed it so so bad. (and you should know that.)
Crystal, I’m really glad you were as moved by our routine as I threatened you would be. I have a really specific memory of saying “YOURE GONNA CRY” and then being like “shit, man, what if no one likes us?”
In other news I’m really amused to see that I’m holding a pbr in every picture here.
while we were singing it i remember thinking “oh god people aren’t laughing are we not funny?” and then i watched the video and realized people laughed at every line, bless their little hearts.
I never doubted you, Leslie
So Riese, do you get paid in unicorns to make sure that at some point in my day I’m misty eyed?
The things you women say to/about me are just too beautiful sometimes.
I guess the only way to express my feelings is through song. ::puts diva on::
Ahem:
Looking out on the morning rain (awhoo)
I used to feel so uninspired
And when I knew I had to face another day (awhoo)
Lawd it made me feel so tired
Before the day I met you,
Life was so unkind
You’re the key to my peace of mind
Because you make me feel
You make me feel
You make me feel like a natural Lesbo (Lesboo)
-fin-
this is why we love you.
i second that emotion
The dance party was probably literally the best night out of my life. I love dancing so much you guys but I never go out because I don’t want to get skeeved on by gross boys. The one gay club here is all male go-go dancers all the time, no thank you.
So thanks for having a safe space for boogie-ing that wasn’t pervy, with amazing music and awesome people!
Three feelings re: this recap.
1. I know who performed Sugar High in Empire Records without even having to think about it NO BIG DEAL.
2. There are multiple photos of my friends in all 3 recaps so far and so I’m eating some pizza to contain my extreme jealousy.
3. My best friend writes the LSATs October 6th and “will probably not be able to come to camp” because apparently she will be studying all September or something. Can someone please come up with a master plan to help me convince her to come to camp instead of studying (needs to be more convincing than “I’ll help you study on the plane! No I won’t get airplane drunk! Really!” because I tried this today) AND/OR volunteer to be my new best friend when I have to come to camp alone? Okay thanks in advance.
I’m an awesome best friend and I’m definitely going to next A-CAMP. Plus I also live in Canada! I think I remember you saying you’re in Canada…
We can study girls on the plane and get airplane drunk!
Tell her that it’s only 4 days! And she can study extra beforehand to make up for it! And it might just change her life! And show her the video of Gabby’s poem!
Riese, I love you forever.
SUCCESS
how do I get to be Intern Grace’s Intern?
why didn’t we just combine high tea with the sex panel? like dinner and a movie, but with tea and sex.
DUH.
I did this! I drank my tea at the panel. It was greater than great.
just popping it to point how how freaking adorable the little rascals are in the front row in the “happiest moments” photo.
little rascals are my favorite
this probs has something to do with my inappropriate love for younger ladies
but really they are so darn cute
(especially when they happen to host a camp-wide t&s sing-a-long)
Like Brittani, I felt like I was going to die during the Queer Women of Color panel. Total Exhaustion finally set in about halfway through and I’m pretty sure I was visibly deflating.
Another thing: that morning I realized I had lost my sunglasses and asked Robin/Beth if anyone had found them and by lunchtime I had them in my hands. I mean it’s just sunglasses, but I thought it was great that, for example, my cabinmates could leave their macbooks out in plain sight with no fear of it getting stolen.
I LEFT MY LAPTOP AT THE DANCE — like i brought it to the talent show (’cause i was still carrying it b/c i was doing the driving schedule) and then forgot it there (which NEVER happens at home, i’ve never accidentally left my laptop ANYWHERE, i’m like obsessively hyper-aware of its locale at all times as if it was a living breathing thing) and realized hours later and returned to the place and the dance was in full-force and my laptop was there, still, just waiting for me
Unfortunately my razor and nail polish disappeared out of my cabin. :(
That’s too bad – I guess you can add razors and nail polish to the short list of things worth taking (along with alcohol).
That just reminded me – someone in my cabin left their ring by the sink for days and it was still sitting there after we moved out the last day. One of the cleaners came by Wolf Lodge with it but I didn’t know whose it was or if it meant anything to anyone.
Who has the video of the Tegan and Sara sing-a-long? I still haven’t seen it, and I was in it!
And why did no one mention the panty-throwing? I thought that was a pretty note-worthy moment.
Vanessa posted it in the Facebook group, but I just tried to view it and all I get is black nothingness. It might just be my computer. (at least I think this might be it? the title is the date, so)
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10101130218190489
i think saturday was my favorite day. it’s so hard to pick favorites but i think if i HAD to, this day would win.
some feelings:
omg i can’t believe riese mentioned my name in this post!
(sidenote: pretty much every day since camp i’ve woken up and thought “omg i can’t believe riese knows who i am”)
seeing my photos in the recaps is SO exciting, and the final photo of jackie with the hula hoop and the sunset in the background is my FAVORITE a-camp shot, so it is extra exciting to see it included.
also exciting that i am IN one of the (zine) photos–i thought i accidentally avoided the camera all weekend, so it’s fun to see proof that i actually was at camp!
speaking of, the zine workshop was FANTASTIC
i felt so calm and serene and happy, like i was where i was supposed to be
and i talked to haviland a bit near the end and she said the whole scene reminded her of riese’s bedroom “back in the day” and how her floor always looked how the lodge looked and then my heart felt really large and i just had an intense rush of emotion toward riese, love, i think, because she let us all in to her bedroom floor and that’s so intimate and private and she let us in
the talent show was fucking incredible
seriously one of the most enjoyable & impressive things i’ve ever attended
and laneia i totally know what you mean, the audience vibe was practically the best part of the show
so loving, so accepting
i love beth so much
top 2 regrets:
1. should’ve taken more photos
2. should’ve gone to the queer woc panel…that is the #1 thing i am sorry to have missed. i know others have already asked but i would LOVE if there were a transcript or accessible video available for this panel.
…will i be back in september?! i sure as hell hope so…
oh god i wrote a novel
story. of. my. life.
I’m excited to see the workshop’s zine, even if it’s just in digital format!
I don’t think I saw anyone’s pages, so it’ll all be a surprise!
it’s like a snapshot of everyone’s in-the-moment feelings.
oh also
the behind-the-scenes zine is one of the best things i have ever purchased
EVER
$22 well spent.
absolutely agree it is currently on my coffee table along with my prized sally mann landscapes book, so it’s for real.
awwwwwwww
I really don’t know if my comment just posted (damn technology) but it was along the lines of Alex – you are my new dance hero. Please can you teach a dance class (for Bad Romance) at the next camp? I might be the only attendee but there will be worship in my eyes. And I’ll teach you the running man in return if you can’t do it already.
I put “dance lesson with Alex Vega” on the original schedule without telling Alex
I also signed her up for the talent show without telling her
Basically messing with Vega is one of my new greatest joys in life
I’m gonna put it out there but dance class with Alex Vega next year to………..Marry the Night. Oh yes. Oh yes indeed.
oh we tried it. it didn’t go well.
i was there when she discovered it! her tiny rage!!!
it is so sad that i took a disco nap that turned into “falling asleep with all my clothes on” and missed WE ARE YOUNG, when the whole car ride to camp i was preparing myself for the WE ARE YOUNG moment
What is the tea described as “toasted green tea with vanilla that tasted like roasted marshmallows” called so I can immediately go out and buy it? Thank you!
I drank this but I have no idea what it was called. Sorry this is no help whatsoever.
http://www.whiteaugusttea.com/products/Leaves-of-Fortune%E2%84%A2.html
woohoo! Thank you!
Ex-Disney child stars. I could have had it all.
You people are fantastic. I might try to drag my French ass all over there in September.
This week some one smashed my car and this a-camp recap has been the only thing that has successfully cheered me up since.
So thank you for this recap and thank you (so so fucking much) for the beautiful weekend that was A-camp.
this is sad i’m really sorry about your car :(
thank you!
im sorry for intimidating you :(
also i found you wildly intimidating to talk to in person at camp but i am totally fine leaving heartfelt comments to you on the internet. so.
(did this happen to anyone else, guys? i am not a shy person but sometimes i felt so shy at camp.)
There were sooooo many people I didn’t talk to at camp. Mostly cause it was just so overwhelming(in a really good way.) I kept finding myself just staring around at everyone like, is this really happening? I also felt a little shy at camp because everyone was super awesome and good looking.
i’m super shy, that’s why i drink.
Yay! The queer women of color panel was SO good! I could have listened to you guys talk for hours/days. The talent show was ridiculously amazing, probably my favorite thing at camp.
I seem to remember stumbling upon a 20 or 30 person game of spin the bottle in one of the lodges after the dance. I was maybe a *little* drunk but did this really happen or am I making it up????
Oh, it happened.
they came bro.
I keep reading the A-Camp recaps about all the fun stuff, the panels, the people, the feelings, the pictures and all I can think about is:
LANEIA HAS A GIRLFRIEND? FUCK!
Yeah, and she’s amazing! Day one, she walked up and introduced herself to me and she was just so real, and chill and genuine that I was truly impressed with her. I had this instant “Damn Laneia! You’ve got crazy great taste!” thought in my head. Two amazing people like that belong together.
…yes, heart warming….
Totally pretending you’re talking about me, though.