Since the last time we spoke, a lot has happened. Another first Friday has come and gone. This time, the interns decided to establish a dress code: fancy. This might have been one of my best-dressed nights of the whole summer. Sporting a striped brown tie, my evening pearls, a black mini dress, and the most important item, sunglasses. Fancy indeed! For this first Friday, I was a map hander outer, the first face that people see for the night. I also was a gallery attendant for the underground and hank and dollys. 

This internship is bringing out skills that I didn’t know I had. One example is that I was tasked with sewing tote bags. Why would possibly be asked to do that you may be thinking? The answer is that we have tons of extra vinyl from the billboard that hangs proudly on 16th street and that Joana Taft asked for it to be done. Simple as that. There are lots of difficulties that come with using vinyl as fabric, and not knowing how to sew anything more advanced than a pillowcase. This was a skill that I had always desired to expand upon but didn’t think I would be doing so this summer. I put my problem-solving skills to the test with this project. Every time I would get my tote-making supplies out, there would be some sort of snag Pins would break because of the thickness of the vinyl, an ever-changing pattern, and a bobbin that just wouldn’t stay bobbed. Every time I had one of these problems I felt like screaming but instead had to sit and logically work through things. Eventually, I got the hang of things and was slowly but surely becoming a one-woman factory. The Pecks, some dear friends, and contributors of the Harrison Center came to visit for one of our intern lunches. Their son is the namesake of one of our galleries, Speck Gallery. Anyways, I was able to gift these two some totes and it was a really special moment for me. 

I’ve started to get sad about the end of the summer. There are lots of things that I have yet to do and goodbyes I don’t particularly want to say. Still, there is more to look forward to in these last weeks. One of my favorite musicians, Clairo, is coming to Indianapolis on the 31st. I managed to snag tickets with one of my favorite friends and some of my fellow wonderful interns. Even though this will be my second time this year seeing her live, I may be even more excited than last time. Two days later, I’m seeing Charli XCX on her birthday. I think being in the city has soothed my musical soul. Back at Valpo, there aren’t many close opportunities to see live music. You either drive to Indianapolis or Chicago, which sometimes isn’t reasonable for a college student. Here, I’ve been able to skate downtown in 15 minutes and go to a little jazz club. I have also been able to work on some music and perform of my own here. Being able to sit down and work on a song and present it to my peers has been a treat. Mg, our extremely talented music intern and I get to do some performances next week. We have been working on harmonies for the show. 

My goal for the end of the summer is to wrap up all the things that I have been working on cleanly. To do research is nothing if it can’t be accessible to others to learn from. It will be really special to see what all the other interns are finishing up as well, although bittersweet I’m sure.