If you're my 'regular' audience then you might have noticed that this post is chronically overdue. Due to that fact and me leaving you hanging near the end of the summer I'm going to do a (hopefully) brief post wrapping up the last week of camp and then later tonight or tomorrow (most likely tomorrow) I shall do a wrap up on the camp season as a whole.
So without any apology and with absolutely no further ado I'll just start writing things here.
Tuesday was a typical Tuesday.. it consisted of 3 trail rides and was only unusual in that it was the last Tuesday of the summer. Any formal acknowledgement of that fact by myself or any other staff members was greeted with loud and aggressive denials by others on staff. It was also a notable day for the fact that I took another nap after lunch, once again permitted by the 'beta' schedule that week and made necessary by the absolute exhaustion that had built up over the last few weeks. To put this in perspective... it was my 3rd nap of the summer, and the second of that week.
wednesday (day 57 if anyone was still counting) was lake day... annd my notes are a bit fuzzy by now so I'm sure it was a blast. I remember good times and I may have made a point of tracking down the few staff I hadn't dunked yet and go that part of the to do list completed. But I don't know that I'd admit to that under normal circumstances, whee for the internet and my propensity to ramble.
Thursday was a day that contains one of my favorite memories from camp. It also contained the bittersweet process of doing our activities for the last time that summer, the last time to saddle, the last time to get out and ride, the last time to unsaddle. In the context of camp or anything that you love so dearly it becomes very difficult to go through that process but at the same time I just had to keep telling myself that it's the first time for the kids... and it's not manly to cry.
The story I referenced happened during the counselor meeting, a group of kids ran up to me and said that they'd found a few expended shotgun shells on the edge of camp and wanted to see if we could go look for more. Now for some odd reason (what I now view as divine providence) I had an unusual amount of energy at just that moment in time so I decided it would be good to go hiking with the kids! Why not? it's thursday! and there are only 3 or 4 of em that want to right? So I agreed, only to find out we had about 10-15 kids that wanted to go... meh it's camp! lets have some fun eh? turns out we had a blast scampering over the rock face for almost an hour and found all sorts of interesting things. the only downside to the whole experience was that one kid slipped and stuck his hand on a cactus but then we got to hang out in the nurses office while he got all the spines pulled out.
Friday was the last day of camp and the first of the goodbyes... admittedly the most difficult part of the summer. I don't know what else to say at this point except that to all of you who were a part of the long road this summer... it was an honor.
I'll throw out a pair of posts tomorrow, one a wildly introspective end of the season return to the real-world thing, the other a more recent post about what's been going on in the camp world lately. Now that it has been promised... don't be particularly surprised if it is late.
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Day 55. The last beginning of the summer.
Before I get into the details of today let me first say that as you might notice (or might not have until I said it) that I'm about a week behind... So for the next few days the details may or may not be entirely accurate. During camp I have a very weak connection to actual time passing.. so some things that I say happened on a certain day may or may not have happened on that day. They did happen at some point this week.
That having been said...
Monday began with training, there was just a few snippets left to get out of the way before the kids started arriving. It was also outlined that this week would be a bit different and all activities would be 2 hours long. This isn't a new thing for us down at the horses but it was a bit different for everyone else. The idea behind it is to free up time so the kids can more reliably be on time for activities. We'll see how it turns out.. but it seems like a good idea.
The kids started arriving shortly before lunch and we had two rides head out in the afternoon. This week I had 2 guys helping me out and despite being 15 and 16 respectively they really did a great job with getting rides out and keeping the kids safe today. One of them has been with me all summer and continues to do a great job leading the line and helping with groundwork, and the other was totally new to our crew this week and helped interact with the kids. I've been very happy with my crew all summer long and this week appears to be no exception.
Also another advantage to the slightly different schedule this week is that afternoon activities (and dinner) are half an hour later. The supreme advantage of this is that after lunch we actually get a wee break and today I used that window to take a short nap. I haven't had the need or time to take many naps at all this summer but I was so exhausted today that I just needed to stop for a moment.
umm... I think that's it for monday...
-Nick
Monday, August 6, 2012
Day 54. Sunday is a fun day?
Sunday morning began with the perhaps unwise decision to attend the early service at church (one we were only 10 minutes late for). I say unwise because it seemed logical that I could take a nap after church and before training (I did get one but it was only about 7 minutes).
After church we moved the heaviest television imaginable... Consider the character of atlas if you would... now replace the world with a television. That was this TV. After shifting the earth under the TV (it was easier than moving that stupid thing) we went to pizza! [take a wild guess who picked the place :)] From pizza we went and moved a refreshingly light couch to the same place as the TV... The crazy heavy tv that will make a fantastic door barricade should the zombies come.
From there it was back to camp for staff prayer and the beginning of another round of training. (which went fairly well). I don't know everyone's names this week... but I only lost my sanity once during the process, and it was quickly relocated.
After training it was sleepytime! yaay sleepytime! and thus began monday.
-Nick
After church we moved the heaviest television imaginable... Consider the character of atlas if you would... now replace the world with a television. That was this TV. After shifting the earth under the TV (it was easier than moving that stupid thing) we went to pizza! [take a wild guess who picked the place :)] From pizza we went and moved a refreshingly light couch to the same place as the TV... The crazy heavy tv that will make a fantastic door barricade should the zombies come.
From there it was back to camp for staff prayer and the beginning of another round of training. (which went fairly well). I don't know everyone's names this week... but I only lost my sanity once during the process, and it was quickly relocated.
After training it was sleepytime! yaay sleepytime! and thus began monday.
-Nick
Day 53. Saturday night's alright?
Saturday was a very chill day (so relaxed I even forgot to post)
The day began at about 7am... when our dear old camp grandpa greeted many people with his typical enthusiasm. The only problem with that is... he was doing it in the main hall which greatly amplified his already booming voice. Still you might be wondering why this is a problem... well... that main hall mentioned has a few rooms and such things that open into it. one of these rooms (seperated by a very much NOT soundproof wall) is the boys staff dorm. yep, you guessed it... the place I had been until just then been very happily sleeping.
I awoke but lacking the necessary motivation and social skills to see people (especially those whom were responsible for waking me up, or those who had encouraged it) I decided to read my book for a bit, and turns out that when I've got a chance I burn through good books... So not only have I finished with the name of the wind (which I mentioned earlier this summer) I have also finished book 2, the wise mans fear. Both good books and I highly recommend them to adult readers.
After finishing my book I ventured out into the now quiet main hall for some breakfast and discovered that at some point the population of camp had been reduced to myself, the Scottish brothers, the dreaded one, the lady of the dreaded one, and the child of the lady of the dreaded one. We were also joined by the mr. and mrs. captain before long, and at some point the parents of chaos and little chaos joined us as well. (the names have been slightly obscured to protect the innocent. and to amuse myself)
The day that followed was wonderfully unstructured and involved (in no particular order) shooting shotguns, mtn dew, good conversation, ham sandwiches, a nap, no less than 5 bowls of cereal, another good conversation, more mountain dew, a round of age of conquerors, and listening to the brave soundtrack.
it was great!
-Nick
The day began at about 7am... when our dear old camp grandpa greeted many people with his typical enthusiasm. The only problem with that is... he was doing it in the main hall which greatly amplified his already booming voice. Still you might be wondering why this is a problem... well... that main hall mentioned has a few rooms and such things that open into it. one of these rooms (seperated by a very much NOT soundproof wall) is the boys staff dorm. yep, you guessed it... the place I had been until just then been very happily sleeping.
I awoke but lacking the necessary motivation and social skills to see people (especially those whom were responsible for waking me up, or those who had encouraged it) I decided to read my book for a bit, and turns out that when I've got a chance I burn through good books... So not only have I finished with the name of the wind (which I mentioned earlier this summer) I have also finished book 2, the wise mans fear. Both good books and I highly recommend them to adult readers.
After finishing my book I ventured out into the now quiet main hall for some breakfast and discovered that at some point the population of camp had been reduced to myself, the Scottish brothers, the dreaded one, the lady of the dreaded one, and the child of the lady of the dreaded one. We were also joined by the mr. and mrs. captain before long, and at some point the parents of chaos and little chaos joined us as well. (the names have been slightly obscured to protect the innocent. and to amuse myself)
The day that followed was wonderfully unstructured and involved (in no particular order) shooting shotguns, mtn dew, good conversation, ham sandwiches, a nap, no less than 5 bowls of cereal, another good conversation, more mountain dew, a round of age of conquerors, and listening to the brave soundtrack.
it was great!
-Nick
Friday, August 3, 2012
Day 52. Of farewells and teamwork, of another job well done and catching up on blogs!
Friday, Friday, Friday!
The day began slowly and accelerated steadily until I just crashed. (more on that later)
Breakfast and such things happened at their allotted time but This day was slightly different so I was able to help serve breakfast (after quickly consuming a few biscuits myself). It was a good time and I was happy to be able to see the whole camp in that way, I've long said that If they could spare me at horses I'd be happy elsewhere and days like today reminded me of that. (not to say i'm not happy where I'm at)
The morning led into the normal cabin/camp cleaning frenzy but I managed to avoid that entirely by taking the two campers who hadn't ridden out on a quick trail ride. We had a chance to do some trotting and covered more ground than we normally do. It was a great time for us wranglers and the girls had fun helping saddle and unsaddle their own horses.
lunch was mac and cheese with hot dogs, a meal I have a soft spot in my heart for (and a soft layer around my belly because of) but it's always a 'the end is nigh' sort of moment when that meal happens. After lunch was a few all camp activities (ice cream ultimate, and the same water game we played during high school camp, minus the forts) The kids had a blast but I was so tired that I could barely walk... and thus I took a much needed nap. (my first all summer) until it was time for court.
Late afternoon the kids (and staff) participated in kangaroo court. The idea is simple, staff and campers are brought up on charges ranging from "conspiracy to dunk everyone at lake day" to "having too cheerful of a smile all the time" and so on and so forth. Punishments were meted out and were typically entertaining and slightly embarrassing. (although the good ones such as being too kind and whatnot were met with punishments such as being first in line for lunch etc.) It was a good time and seemed to be mostly well received.
Dinner happened (nachos) and the kids went their way... regular camp cleaning happened and thennn...here we be. We're watching thor on the projector and everyone is solidly into their detox and recuperate routines. Prepping for sunday when we do it all over again.
-Nick
The day began slowly and accelerated steadily until I just crashed. (more on that later)
Breakfast and such things happened at their allotted time but This day was slightly different so I was able to help serve breakfast (after quickly consuming a few biscuits myself). It was a good time and I was happy to be able to see the whole camp in that way, I've long said that If they could spare me at horses I'd be happy elsewhere and days like today reminded me of that. (not to say i'm not happy where I'm at)
The morning led into the normal cabin/camp cleaning frenzy but I managed to avoid that entirely by taking the two campers who hadn't ridden out on a quick trail ride. We had a chance to do some trotting and covered more ground than we normally do. It was a great time for us wranglers and the girls had fun helping saddle and unsaddle their own horses.
lunch was mac and cheese with hot dogs, a meal I have a soft spot in my heart for (and a soft layer around my belly because of) but it's always a 'the end is nigh' sort of moment when that meal happens. After lunch was a few all camp activities (ice cream ultimate, and the same water game we played during high school camp, minus the forts) The kids had a blast but I was so tired that I could barely walk... and thus I took a much needed nap. (my first all summer) until it was time for court.
Late afternoon the kids (and staff) participated in kangaroo court. The idea is simple, staff and campers are brought up on charges ranging from "conspiracy to dunk everyone at lake day" to "having too cheerful of a smile all the time" and so on and so forth. Punishments were meted out and were typically entertaining and slightly embarrassing. (although the good ones such as being too kind and whatnot were met with punishments such as being first in line for lunch etc.) It was a good time and seemed to be mostly well received.
Dinner happened (nachos) and the kids went their way... regular camp cleaning happened and thennn...here we be. We're watching thor on the projector and everyone is solidly into their detox and recuperate routines. Prepping for sunday when we do it all over again.
-Nick
Day 51, of lakes and boats (again)
Thursday, was a great day. We headed into town immediately after breakfast with our pontoon crew and hitched up to the boat, After doing our safety checks we strapped the boat down correctly and then continued on to the lake.
Upon our arrival I was happy to see the same kiosk person there and we had a very brief and enjoyable conversation on the way into the park. We put the pontoon into the water with very little difficulty and shortly after that noticed that one of the skids on the trailer (the things the boat sits on top of) was mostly floating. Not a huge deal but it was a bit nerve-wracking since one of the other 4 was already attached with baling twine and good intentions. By the time we pulled the trailer around to where we parked it we found that we were down to 1 skid that was attached properly and 3 that needed assistance. The moral of the story is that we need to fix our trailer (something I've been assured will be happening soon)
Despite the typical frustration of being on setup crew, lake day was a success. The kids had a great time and the staff was very involved and energetic all the way until we loaded the buses. I limped the trailer back to the church and was happy to leave it there and drive the rest of the way home with just a suburban to worry about.
The evening brought us an infusion of berry labor and the wonderful conversation that comes whenever jon, adam, and myself are in close proximity. I am not ashamed to say that I was up a bit late recharging my intellectual batteries chatting with those two men. I did manage to get into bed before friday arrived, but as you're aware the blog posts were scarce this week.
-Nick
Upon our arrival I was happy to see the same kiosk person there and we had a very brief and enjoyable conversation on the way into the park. We put the pontoon into the water with very little difficulty and shortly after that noticed that one of the skids on the trailer (the things the boat sits on top of) was mostly floating. Not a huge deal but it was a bit nerve-wracking since one of the other 4 was already attached with baling twine and good intentions. By the time we pulled the trailer around to where we parked it we found that we were down to 1 skid that was attached properly and 3 that needed assistance. The moral of the story is that we need to fix our trailer (something I've been assured will be happening soon)
Despite the typical frustration of being on setup crew, lake day was a success. The kids had a great time and the staff was very involved and energetic all the way until we loaded the buses. I limped the trailer back to the church and was happy to leave it there and drive the rest of the way home with just a suburban to worry about.
The evening brought us an infusion of berry labor and the wonderful conversation that comes whenever jon, adam, and myself are in close proximity. I am not ashamed to say that I was up a bit late recharging my intellectual batteries chatting with those two men. I did manage to get into bed before friday arrived, but as you're aware the blog posts were scarce this week.
-Nick
Day 50. Of many rides and surprisingly on time schedules.
Wednesday, unlike a typical week was a day of activities. We took 3 rides out over the course of the day (one in the morning, two in the afternoon). They all went well and the biggest "excitement" came when we had a horse decide that he'd rather lay down than be ridden further, the rider hopped off and then once the horse got back up we continued on and had a great ride. Although I did have to award another trophy can of dew to him as a consolation for a horse issue.
The sunburn that I started aquiring on tuesday was in fine form by wednesday night... turns out when I'm running around so hard I forget entirely to put sunscreen on. Downside is that it was that kind of week to this point, the upside to that is this was the first week I was that exhausted and busy.
The younger crew I had this week really shone today, monday and tuesday we had a few difficulties staying on schedule because I was trying to teach and train while fixing issues and that strategy really paid off today. We were so on time that even after an hour+ in the saddle we were still back with 10 minutes to spare so we got horses watered and were ready to rock and roll by the next rides. I still wasn't on time for supper... but at least I got to eat while others were still in the dining room as opposed to the 'typical' timetable this week.
Despite or perhaps because of this I was exhausted by the time night games rolled around and I was pretty happy to get to bed in a pseudo timely manner to prep for lake day...
-Nick
The sunburn that I started aquiring on tuesday was in fine form by wednesday night... turns out when I'm running around so hard I forget entirely to put sunscreen on. Downside is that it was that kind of week to this point, the upside to that is this was the first week I was that exhausted and busy.
The younger crew I had this week really shone today, monday and tuesday we had a few difficulties staying on schedule because I was trying to teach and train while fixing issues and that strategy really paid off today. We were so on time that even after an hour+ in the saddle we were still back with 10 minutes to spare so we got horses watered and were ready to rock and roll by the next rides. I still wasn't on time for supper... but at least I got to eat while others were still in the dining room as opposed to the 'typical' timetable this week.
Despite or perhaps because of this I was exhausted by the time night games rolled around and I was pretty happy to get to bed in a pseudo timely manner to prep for lake day...
-Nick
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