Day 1- Camp Hampton

Dear Diary,

I hate to say it, but so far camp has been off to a rough start. The campus where the camp is held isn’t as close to town as I hoped, it’s only actually three miles but around here that equals a $20 cab ride. Normally when on vacation this wouldn’t be a problem, I’d just hand around my resort. But the campus I’m staying at isn’t as resorty as I thought it would be. It is very quaint I’ll give it that, but quaint in a Shutter Island kind of way… The village of Southampton is everything I expected and more. It’s very humbling to walk around a town where literally every single home is a mansion, literally it’s insane. But I can’t figure out why these people need all that space because they are all tiny. The women are anorexic thin and the men stand below six feet. I feel like a real fast ass around here. Not to my mention my cute shabby chic scarves and sweaters I picked up from Nordstrom Rack and H&M for this trip now just look Shabby Shitty. My outfits were just fine a week ago, but now they look all faded and raggy. I’ve gone into a few of the stores here but I get that Pretty Woman feeling, like all the store workers can just tell I’m a Nebraska hooker. I found a J Crew here, but even that is more expensive than usual. It’s called J Crew Beach, and it features beachwear starting around $200. Thank God I didn’t bring my Target Beach attire. I tried to walk to the beach, I heard it’s supposed be gorgeous, that’s what everyone keeps telling me. But sometimes I think people here I’m from Nebraska and they just instantly assume I’ve never been to a beach, they all seem to think it’s going to be a real treat for me like I’m just going to go off my rocket with excitement of getting to see dat big ol bunch of water for da first time. “Oh you’ve got to go to the beach! You’ll love it!” It’s a beach, what’s the big deal. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy going to the beach every once in a while, but it’s really nothing more than a glorified lake if you ask me. So anyway, I start walking down a neighborhood toward the beach. House after house has front yards the size of a college campus and back yards I can’t even begin to see. The sidewalk runs out so I start walking on the street. The streets are huge with gigantic trees hanging over so it’s a pretty scenic walk. Well suddenly the street ends and I can see the beach is going to start, but the beach is lined with huge gated homes and I can’t see a way in. It’s about this time I realize I’m the only person walking on this street without a mop and broom in hand… And probably the only person with an American citizenship. Not wanting to get forced into a work camp I decided I might as well turn back. So back to the village I go to catch a $20 taxi back to campus.

The campus sits high on top of a hill where I’m told you can see the ocean when it’s not foggy, which so far it has been all of the time. The buildings are old and have that grey east cost beach look. The dorm I’m staying in is called Shelter Island, a little to coincidental if you ask me. Have you ever stayed in a dorm alone? Not just a room, but like the entire dormitory? Well I had to last night since I made the dumbass choice to fly in a day early. It was the scariest night of my life. Luckily, I took my mom’s advice and went for a lovely liquid dinner and popped a few pain pills on the way home so I was able to sleep a good thirteen hours. I would wake up sporadically through out the night, but as soon as I would see I was facing a white cold cement wall and remember where I was I shut my eyes again. It was a blurry confusing night. I had dreams jumping back and forth between my brief stay at MDS medical center and moments where I thought I was in the movie One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest. I went from Nurse Ratched forcing drugs down my throat with a young Jack Nicholson and Danny Devito screaming shit in the background to a white trash MDS nurse sticking me with needles. Meanwhile the light from the lighthouse just outside my window was constantly seeping in begging me to peak outside and take a look. But I knew one look outside was all it would take for me to see the dead children who had drowned in the ocean because of the lighthouse. It was one of those nights when daylight couldn’t come fast enough.

The conference begins today around 4:00 p.m. So again I’ve spent the day in town wandering around pretending I’m a local. I’ve realized New York people are like me on steroids. I know I can be pushy and demanding, but these people are much more than that. I had a 70 year old grandma try to cut me today at the café. Oh, hells no. I may be a country hick but I’m not about to let a dark haired Mrs. Goldstein push me aside, the Holocaust is over, there’s enough food to go around. Time to head back, it's almost 4:00 p.m., hoping to meet some new friends tonight at the welcome banquet.

XOXO
Judy Bloom