Days of Camp! July 19, 2018

Hi Folks,

Camp is sometimes a very strange, unusual environment.  Case in point; take a look at this photo…

What do you see?  It’s a garbage can, yes?  Yes, that’s what it is.  A very basic receptacle for garbage.  Honestly nothing more.

But not at camp.  Wanna know why?  Because it is not just merely a garbage can.  No, no.  It is a NEW garbage can.  We just got it from Amazon.  So…well….that’s a whole different situation.

A new garbage can raises many, many questions?  Those have included:

When did we get that?  (Note the “we.”  I love it!)

Where did it come from?

How much was it? (None of your business)

Who ordered it?  Did Leslie order it?  Was it the maintenance guy?

What happened to the old garbage can?

Are we going to get ALL new garbage cans?

Did you pick green on purpose?  Wasn’t the old one green too?

Did it come Fed Ex?

No fooling….at least 20 different questions from 20 different kids.  So, moms and dads, rest assured we’re putting your tuition dollars to good use.  We got ourselves a garbage can AND a conversation piece.

We continue to bask in the glory of Mother Nature’s good mood.  We’ve teetered on the brink of too-hotness, but haven’t really crested it.  It has been sunny and nice ever since our 2nd Session kids arrived, and that’s given us the climate we need to kick off our activities and trips.  Second session has a nice feel to it, and we’ve seen friendships forming and flourishing.  There are smiles everywhere you look, and the separation between new campers and old has already passed.

We pulled off Picture Day without a hitch.  The beautiful weather sure helped.  And with all of that stuff out of the way, on Tuesday afternoon we started with 1st and 2nd periods.  The boys were ready to get into a more campy routine, and so were the counselors.  This is our time when we get a good read on how the activities will run since everyone is at their peak of excitement and enthusiasm, and they ran beautifully.  We like seeing the kids working hard on the skills they’re being taught, while also enjoying the light mood of camp.  That night we kept the energy level up with some Blue & White games.

Yesterday was our first full day of activities of the new session.  On those days we like to kick off the festive mood with some music at breakfast.  And, as you would expect, once the tables were cleared, the boys like to get up and shake their booties.  By the time we finished announcements the kids made a break for the door, ready to start their day.  And it was a super nice day.  It got warm, but not too hot, and by early evening you could feel the cool off coming.

Last night we played Capture the Flag.  If you already know how we play our version, you can skip this paragraph.  If not, then fasten your seat belt!  We run 3 games at the same time on the same fields.  So if you’re a Junior Village camper on the Blue team, you’re playing Junior Village campers on the White team, but on the same fields where the Intermediates and Seniors are playing each other.  AND the flag you capture can come in one of two forms.  One is a big ol’ pool noodle that is pretty conspicuous.  The other is a rubber football and that one can be thrown to teammates as you try to run it back across the mid-line.  It has added many dimensions to the game, and last night’s was a great one.

Today has been another beauty.  It reached about 78 degrees at the warmest point, and we had a steady breeze blowing through camp.  We’ve had an awesome day of activities, and tonight is the Counselor Hunt.  Our staff will go and hide and the kiddies will try to find them.  It’s hide and go seek on a massive scale.  My goal is to not get caught too early and…to not fall asleep while I’m hiding.  No promises on either.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

  • No announcements today.

FUTURE TRIP DEPARTURES:

  • Quetico Provincial Park, Canada – 12 days lake canoeing

That’s all the news for now.  We’ll write again soon!

Benches up,

Mike & Leslie