Ever summer since 1994 save for three I have been at summer camp.  I have blogged plenty about camp in the past so it shouldn’t be hard to tell that I love camp.   I was a camper at one camp (Yavneh), and a counselor at two (Micah then Indian/Forest Acres).  This summer I am heading back to IA/FA as I had planned all year despite the fact that we have an extra month of work at the theatre and I won’t get to camp until a little bit late.  It is a bummer, but it isn’t the end of the world.

The interesting thing is that just this past weekend Indian and Forest Acres changed owners.  For the past couple years the camp was owned by friends of my family who have now sold the camp back to one of the previous owners.  This of course is a very interesting set of conditions.  I know the “new” owner as I worked with him the first summer I was at IA/FA.  I even played guitar with him at campfire.  He is a good guy and I am sure that camp will do well back under his direction.  At the same time I am sad that our friend is leaving this camp.  I am sure there are mixed feelings about the change in command throughout the camp community.

In some ways, it seems like an odd time to make a move like this, only a few short weeks before camp starts.  It shouldn’t really affect anything like staffing or enrollment for this summer as that should mostly be finalized.  It will affect the day-to-day operation of camp over the summer, hopefully in a good way.  IA/FA had deep rooted traditions in their 85+ year history and as long as there is someone at the helm that understands those traditions camp will be great.  The new owner certainly is someone who understand the nature of camp.

The most important thing of course is the kids.  The younger kids who didn’t know the “new” owner before probably won’t really know the difference.  In some ways the owner director doesn’t matter as much to the younger kids. The older kids who have been at camp for more than four years will probably see/feel more of an impact.  However, as long as the staff gives them a great summer with lots of great activities, it will be great for them.  While I am there for the kids, it is good to know that the good friends that I have on the staff will almost all be back for another summer so it should be great for everyone.

No matter what it will be a busy summer.  Between the extra show, camp, and planning a wedding I am sure that I will not want for something to do!

Well, it has been quite a while since I posted anything.  Life got really exciting and hectic at the end of the summer.  The end of camp is always a bigger deal than you ever remember it to be, and this summer was no exception.  I had more things on my plate in the last week of camp than I anticipated, and I still have some unfinished ones that I really need to get around to, especially now that my hard drives are back in town.

Getting home from camp, I had the worst travel day that I have ever had.  It started with bad omens in that we missed being able to go to the post office to mail home one last box of stuff.  Why the post office closes early on Saturdays, who knows.  However, from there, things only went downhill.  On the drive down to the airport I managed to get in a car accident that basically totaled my parent’s truck.  Thankfully everyone was OK, but it was not a good situation (not that any car accident is).  It all started because i had to slam on the brakes as there was another accident that had occurred, and everyone was stopping.  It is probably good that I hit the car in front of me as opposed to going around it as the embankment was very steep and the probability of rolling the truck would have been high.

So, I call my parents, who rush down to pick us up and get us to the airport.  Amazingly, we get there with a little time to spare, which is a good thing.  Why?  Well, when going through security, I got stopped because something showed up when they put my carry-on through the X-ray.  Turns out that I had one of Ruth’s bags in my carry-on and it had her pocket knife in it.  Needless to say, the knife got tossed.

After getting on the first plane, things seemed to smooth out, and for the first time that I had done any major travel with Ruth, it was good.  On our connecting flight from MDW to SLC we managed to snag our own row, with no third person, so we were very happy.  However, upon our arrival back in SLC, there had to be one more thing that would go wrong.  One of our bags decided to take an extended trip around the country, so it didn’t make it to SLC that night.  In fact, when I walked into the baggage office and showed them the claim ticket, they already knew about it.  The good news is that they knew where the bag was and they managed to get it to us the next day.  For that we got a $50 travel voucher which is pretty nice.

That weekend did get better though because we had tickets to see The Lion King on Sunday night.  The Lion King is quite possibly one of my most favorite musicals ever.  The music is great, the costumes and head-pieces are spectacular, and it is just a fun show to see.  If you have never seen it, you should.  I had been lucky enough to have seen it on Broadway back when it was new, and I had always wanted to see it again and see how they would get it on tour.  Well, even slightly scaled back to fit in trucks and in smaller theatres, it was a great show.  I still have the music stuck in my head.

Come Monday it was back to work.  Possibly the first thing that my boss said after “hello” was something to the effect of: “Can you push your schedule up a week and hang the show early so we can fly our scenery?”  What was my response?  Well, in traditional me style I just said: “Of course.”  So now I had to round up a crew and get to work to be able to start a week earlier than I had planned.  That is life at the theatre, always unexpected.

So, things are finally starting to settle down and get back to a normal rhythm.  I have plans to go camping on Labor Day Weekend, and then I am helping to lead services for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and then we are doing the show.  I have to figure out my ski-pass situation and all the mundane things that come with being back in the swing of things.  Now that things are normalizing, life is pretty good.

The other thing that happened that is a major time suck is Words With Friends.  It is a iapp for iphone, ipod touch, etc. that is kinda like scrabble, and I love scrabble.  So I am totally hooked.  If you play or want to play, you can get if for free, and then look me up: Icewolf08!

On a side note, I did drop the ball on organizing Bloggerstock for August due to all that stuff I just mentioned.  So, we have pushed the August topic to September for anyone who is interested.  You can get the full scoop at the Bloggerstock Site.

Mmmm I want to linger
Mmmm A little longer
Mmmm A little longer here with you
Mmmm It’s such a perfect night
Mmmm It doesn’t seem quite right
Mmmm This is goodnight and not goodbye

For all we know
We may never meet again
Before you go
Make this moment sweet again

We won’t say goodnight
Until the last minute
I’ll hold out my hand
And my heart will be in it

For all we know
This may only be a dream
We come and we go
Like the ripple on a stream

So love me, love me tonight
Tomorrow was meant for some
Tomorrow may never come
For all we know

Every camp probably has some version of this song or at least most camps.  I am always intrigued by the people I find who I would never expect to know bits and pieces of it.  The above is our camp’s version of the song, which I discovered is actually a conglomeration of two songs, but hey, it’s camp!

Last night was the final Friday night services at camp.  Mind you we are not actually at a religious camp, it is a tradition from the past that has been kept alive and is now a time to reflect on the past week and the weeks or days to come.  Over at the girls camp it is a special time that I think people really enjoy, though the final services generally tend to end in a sob-fest as the oldest girls pass the flame on to the youngest girls and reflect on their years here.  it is sad that another summer is drawing to a close.

After services we went down to the field for the final campfire of the summer.  Ironically, this is the time that the girls come out of the woodwork with skits and songs to do.  It isn’t a bad thing, it is nice that they want to get involved, it just makes a campfire that started late on account of the slideshow at services run even longer.  It was a beautiful night though, and hopefully there were plenty of kids who turned their eyes towards the skies to really appreciate how special it is to sit around the campfire together in such a wonderful place.

It was a perfectly clear night, and laying back with all the girls, listening to people perform and watching the sky was pretty magical.  We saw a host of satellites fly by overhead and I caught two shooting stars.  It is so fun to point them out to the girls and watch the wonder in their eyes as they look up at the sky.

After carrying a sleeping junior up the hill to her cabin I cam back down to get my guitar and the older girls were sitting around the remnants of the fire.  It was the last campfire they would have together as campers.  They asked me to sit and play a few songs with them so I did.  Having such a connection to camp and the kids is so wonderful.  That they think enough of me as part of their camp experience to have me sit with them on their last campfire night is pretty cool.  It made a beautiful night even better.

Have you ever noticed that the sunset is usually significantly more exciting and colorful on an evening after a storm?  I suppose I could just be making that up or dreaming it, but I think that it is true.  When the clouds break up and the sun gets low in the sky the golden color really shows through.  Summer evenings here in Maine are almost always pretty spectacular, but on a night like tonight, after two days of bad weather, it seems like there is nothing better.

Here at camp the light streams through over the mountains in the distance and the river, then through the tall pine trees that line the high bank, and across the field.  I don’t think you could ask for a better backdrop and lighting when we walk out of dinner and then as it gets later in the evening and taps get played.  The silence and stillness during those moments when everyone in camp stops to listen to the bugle is quite magical.  If you have never had the opportunity to stop each evening, reflect on the day and listen to the floating melody of taps on the bugle (especially when played by a great camper) then you should.  I suppose it is kind of an American thing, but I would imagine that anyone from anywhere would appreciate it.

The evening after a day or more of rain is also special because kinds want to be out and enjoy the remnants of the day.  We take advantage of every moment of daylight that we can get, but the games and activities that get played are much more interesting than those during the course of a regular day.  Little pickup games of anything as long as the equipment is out and available.  It is a tim when everyone is actually in camp together and there are enough people around to get a decent game going.

Evenings are always a peaceful time.  Sure, sometimes we get a little hyper, or we have a dance night, but for the most part, it is one of the best times of day.  The world cools off (most of the time), people relax, and this is when the bonds of great friendships show.  Everyone has a friend and everyone hangs out together.  It is a beautiful time that hopefully everyone stops to appreciate sometimes.  You don’t have to be in a special place like camp to stop and appreciate the summer evenings.  It might have a slightly different effect if you live in a city, but I would imaging that if you stop and reflect, it is pretty similar.

All things considered, it is kind of hard to follow my last post.  Needless to say, it has been quite along week.  We have a saying at camp: “The days are very long but the weeks go by too fast!”  It is so true.  Sometimes I wonder if shows like 24 could really happen in the span of a single day, but when I look back at all the things that happened some of the days this week, it seems a little more plausible.  We seem to really be able to pack a day full of things to do, especially when you wake up at 7AM and go to bed at 1AM.  Which by the way, I am still not sure how I manages that most of the summer.

Last Monday seems so far away, heck, so does yesterday.  I know that I went on the camping trip on Monday, but that seems like years ago.  In the span of a week I have driven hundreds of miles, gone camping, scuba diving, played guitar at two campfires, wrote a tribute to a dear friend, got signed up to play camp-counselor 2-on-2 beach volley ball, and so much more.  I was actually very happy that for the most part today, my services were only required for the setup of the big screen so that our Spanish “mafia” could watch the World Cup finals.  It was actually a relaxing day and the heat wave has mostly broken it seems.

All these things have gone on, and while I was sitting at campfire, watching the embers drift in the thermals I was thinking that tonight would be a great night to write.  Well, here I am getting back to my computer and I feel like I have just hit a block.  I don’t really know why, other than the fact that I feel like I should be writing more than just the summation of the things that have happened over the past week.  There is something so mesmerizing about watching the embers from the fire dance up into the sky.  That is probably what made me think that it would be a good night to write.  Watching that always reminds me of the scene in the movie The Right Stuff where the embers from the aboriginal fire seem to fly up into space.

Today was just one of those days, all the best intentions, none of the motivation.  I have a list of things that should get done, and I probably could have checked a bunch of them off today, but I didn’t.  In truth, I didn’t really do much of anything besides play guitar and eat today.  It seems like all we do on Sundays is eat.  Mostly because we have a late breakfast, but lunch is at a normal time.  The sad thing is that we manage to have both one of the best meals and the worst meal of the week on Sunday.  I am sorry, cold-cuts on rolls that are not big enough for a sandwich just does not a dinner make.

Unfortunately, while it sounds like many of the thoughts and ideas that I put down on last week’s comment card were applauded, odds are nothing will change.  I missed most of the staff meeting this week because I was setting up for the World Cup.  I heard through the grapevine that some of the admin liked my ideas for making the daily schedule better, but often times this is one of those organizations that won’t change because they think the way things are is tradition.  Well, it could be better and I wish that we could get it there.

Life is good though.  Camp is fun.  Maybe if I play my cards right I will get to go on another trip.  That would be a lot of fun.  It is just nice to do something different as the day-to-day routine here can get old fast and when you have lots of kids out of camp on trips, hiking, at competitions and at the lake, it can be like a ghost town.  In some ways, it makes the job easier, but it can also make it less fun, especially for the campers.  It seems though that for the most part people are in good spirits, so that is good.