The August Party!

The weekend of the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th I traveled up north to Perth Andover and attended the *August Party*... This party has been going on for 23 years and this year I was lucky enough to be invited to attend & entertain. Four days of camping on one of the most amazing plots of land I have ever had the pleasure of visiting. The party had great people, lots of food, and more music and musicians than you could shake a stick at.

It was an absolutely amazing time!!

The plot where this party takes place is nothing short of paradise. There is an upper and a lower level to the property and in the lower section sits a pond where I swam every morning. The weather was nothing short of perfect... Even the one rain storm we had was awesome!

It's hard to recall all the great moments and conversations I had. The first thing I did upon arriving in Perth was head to the Baird's Camping Grounds and I met the local celebrity Heidi Baird. She was my #1 girl all weekend and is a truly genuine and kind woman. I don't know what is wrong with all the men up in Perth, because she is a catch if I ever saw one! Heidi was my first contact and I am truly lucky that she is the woman she is. I am a huge Fan of yours!

The Bogan Bar serves a variety of food and has entertainment that can set up both inside and outside. I know this because I had a stellar Greek salad and I also played both outside and then inside. The crowd was small, but intimate and kind. I had a great time at the camp ground and stayed up playing music with a group from Toronto who stopped by the bar after their show... They are called the *Uber Hussies* and they are super talented girls. It was great...

Thanks to the Gallager's for coming out to the show and making me feel so welcome.

I spent the first night set up in a pimpin trailer at the Baird's Campground. It was sweet and comfortable and the fridge was even stocked with a chocolate bar. *haha* I had a great sleep and woke to hang out with Heidi and some girls she works with. Then we ran errands around town before heading out to Dan and Cindy's place.

I had a great time kicking around with Heidi and proceeded to call her the *local celeb* after seeing how many people she knows and how they all adore her. Heidi had to stop at Home Hardware and so while we were there I decided to get some supplies to make some hoops for the weekend. You see, I was in Fredericton by the time I realized I didn't have my hoop with me... So, this nice man Winston helped me get all the gear I needed to make hoops.

The first thing Winston said to Heidi was... "She can't be from around here." He said that people around there just wouldn't think to do something like this. I bought all the supplies and then we headed out to the site of the party. Way back in the woods and out of the way... What an amazing space.

So, upon arrival I put together and taped up the hoops with the help of Perry and Heidi. Perry was the muscle and the tape cutter, Heidi was the art director and I just kept at it until they were all done. After each hoop was made I would show off my hooping tricks... Ah the inspiration began from there and everyone was soon infected with my love for hooping.

I set up my tiny little tent just around the corner from the bridge & no one could figure out how I fit into such a little tent. Some nights it was pretty cold. This is why traveling alone kind of sucks... The boyfriend is at home and so I had to tough it out alone. It was really hard on me at some points, but as soon as I got into a conversation with the amazing people around me, my loneliness just melted away.

Each morning I would wake to the sun and coincidentally *Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young* & head straight down to the pond and take a morning dip. It is the perfect way to wake up and at least feel a little clean even though I was a true hipster all weekend! *Yum*

I played a ton of music over the weekend and sat around the fire, talked to all the great people and found out about all of them and how long they have been coming and who they know in the crowd. It was great.

There are too many people to name, but I had a great amount of personal jokes and connections with all of you. The children in themselves was enough to make me overwhelmed with love. The girls hooped it up like champs and really took to me and the kids were a great source of comfort when I needed to play. The beach volley ball was a ton of fun & horse shoes too, even though I got kicked off my team cause I had to go get some eats.

I was told upon arrival... When the foods up, you go eat, don't delay or it'll be gone. So I listened to that and made sure I was all about the food when it came up.

Thank you Dan & Cindy for such an amazing party. I don't think I could be anywhere else during the month of August. Everyone kept asking me if I was coming back and I would just smile and say 'Where else could I be?' It truly was a great weekend!

See you all for the 24th year!!