Dealing with Camp Randomness!

[collissimon]

There are lots of different features that are specific to your own camp. These could be little things, ways of lining up, a weekly show or the music played between activity periods… if any are played at all!

At my camp, for example, at the end of every meal the Program Director gives out announcements about what is happening in the day. To get all the camper’s attention, he crouches down, while everyone bangs on the table, and then they all shout something out, and he calls back at them. After the announcements, he will choose which table to go first and second.

This is a very poor description, but makes my point: how exactly do you tell the people around you (or even people from other camps!) all the little things that make your camp special. They are usually mundane, tiny things that happen every day, but make it a unique special place to be in. How exactly can you tell the people back home about your summer?

I think my ineloquence here highlights my point, that it is difficult to fully describe your camp experience, because -regardless of whether a day or overnight camp -it is such a huge all encompassing experience, and as such is like trying to describe an eight week holiday or travelling excursion: either way it usually involves taking lots of photos!

[rockinsmiles]

Oh it really is hard. Not untill this year did my mom find out about how we do meals. Ive been going to this camp for forever and never even thought that my own mother who has taken me there for as long as ive been going there didnt know a thing about how meals were run. I think i take a lot of things for granit and forget that outsiders to camp (even ppl from other camps though they probably would understand more) dont know about the little things that make camp, well, camp!

[Dave]

This is a small thing, and the only one I can really think of right now: Whenever someone is trying to speak in front of a group of campers at our camp, he/she will say "If you hear me, clap once", then "If you hear me, clap twice", then "If you hear me clap three times." This is actually pretty effective. By the third clap everyone knows what is going on and they know to be quiet.

[camper]

at the end of every camp-wide activity, the age groups are dismissed separately and 1 at a time. in order to do that, my mom will tell one group at a time to get into a group lineup at the front of the social hall. for the youngest age group, she says, "ok, sophmores...you have 10 seconds to get into a perfect group line up!" and then she counts down from 10. the sophs come running from every direction and manage to not knock anyone over, and their lineup is PERFECT. it's so funny b/c if she just said, "ok sophs group lineup!" their lineup will take forever and be messy! when the parents come to camp for color war, they always are amazed at how that works and they say they never would have imagined that the kids would do it.

you're right, it's hard for anyone who doesn't live camp to comprehend it.

[EchoLaker]

I found it impossible to explain what "Camp" is like to people who are not in the camping world.

My family, have watched the video, seen the yearbook and looked at photos with me, and although they say things about the aesthetics of the camp - the woodland, mountains and the lake, but they still have no real idea.

I can tell them during various points of the summer in my letters home that I'd gone mudsliding, done climbing wall, swam across the lake, gone tubing, been to Six Flags - but even those - they're just activities, it doesn't describe the shear sense of community, and belonging that the protective camp bubble gives you.

Dave, you mentioned "If you can hear me clap once.....", we also use that, and is a good tool.

I can't comment on Girls Camp/Boys Camp line ups because they were seperate - but our Senior Village line up was great - each morning we'd have the Sports Scores, Weather, and our Entertainment news - including what we called CrazyWatch (the latest news on Tom Cruise and Kate).

Happy Birthday was wished to people in a mulitude of different languages, including Africaanes, Mongolian, French; which was followed by "Kings & Queens and Bishops too.....".

The speciality of our camp when it comes to line up are "Fuzzies", the lil sticky fuzzy guy that you can stick on your hat, or shoulder - they're given to staff and campers, nominated there and then by the staff and campers, you go up, collect your fuzzy, and it's traditional to go and hug the person who nominated you - it's so cool.

If our director couldn't make it to our line up for whatever reason, didn't happen very often but is unavoidable at times, then the Senior Village Head Counselor couldn't give out fuzzies, so we gave our "Recognitions" - same thing, except you just head down the to the front of the Sundeck, shakes hands with the HC and AHC, and hug the person who nominated you. It's a great feeling - yet to people on the outside it's just a handshake !


There were times where the Brits amongst us would just break out into "(I'm a Alien) English Man in New York".

I can't compare to other camps, and the ways they do things, but I like to think that even though it is so hard to describe it, we have something special. They look for two things, to try hard, and to be nice to other people.

It's quite a culture shock to step outside the bubble, and back into the real world. It didn't really hit me until my first night in New York and I had to jump on the subway to get to my hostel, worry about where I'd get food and at what time. The real world just doesn't seem right when you've been at camp for 10 1/2 weeks !

[camper]

every camp has those special things that in their own way, make it the most special to the people that go there. another thing for us is that on the first day at our camp, when first call for lineup at the flagpole blows before dinner, everyone runs out to our flagpole where there are stones in a horseshoe shape that go around the flagpole. each stone is for one bunk to line up at. the returning campers all start on bunk 1's stone and walk around the flagpole, counting the stones until they find their bunk's, where they will line up every morning and every night all summer.

lineup at the flagpole itself is one of my camp's special things. the entire camp (just the girls, the boys do a similar lineup on their side but its a little different) lines up on their stones, and the counselors stand in front of their bunks. my mom stands in the center of the horseshoe and when she stands there, everyone knows to quiet down. once everyone is quiet in the morning, she says, "good morning blue ridge!" and everyone answers back, "good morning lori!" and then if there's a birthday, we sing happy birthday with the "kings and queens and bishops too..." probably the same as you guys echolaker. then if there are any announcements, my mom will make them and if there are groups going out of camp to play a sport that day, she'll announce it and the camp will do the "good luck cheer"- g-o-o-d-l-u-c-k, we wish you, we wish you, good luck today...and then my mom tells everyone to straighten up their lines and then she says "at ease..."and everyone stands w/their legs apart, then "attention..." and everyone jumps and puts their legs together, and then "salute..." and we all put our hands on our heards and the bugle starts. at night its the same except she might ask each age group what their evening activity is if it's not all camp and the group has to answer back w/something funny about their activity, and then we might do look-alikes where a camper who has found 2 girls who are not related that look alike shows the camp by pulling them out of lineup and showing them around to everyone, and the camp cheers if we think the girls really do look alike.

it's just so complicated...even little things like that are so hard to explain.

[ocean]

Our camp is really easy to understand. After everybody is done eating the kitchen aid says "I have an announcement" Then the announcement song is sung. She makes the announcement then the campers sing camp songs until we are ready to go back to activities

[rockinsmiles]

We have to clap thing too! Besides once one of the counselor's had clap 15 times..believe me that doesnt work! we also have them say things llike february or touch their noses..random stuff. but our first way to get the campers quite is for someone to raise their hand way up in the air. then as ppl see others with their hands raised they do the same thing and have to be quiet. it is said that your hand is connected to your bottom lip and then your hand goes up your mouth goes shut!

[CAMPFRIEND]

Our camp is really easy to understand. After everybody is done eating the kitchen aid says "I have an announcement" Then the announcement song is sung. She makes the announcement then the campers sing camp songs until we are ready to go back to activities

How did your song go? When I was a campers we did somthing like this but I can never rember the song!

[camper]

lol we have an announcement song...

a-n-n, o-u-n, c-e-m-e-n-t-s, announcements, announcements, announcements! hard way to die, hard way to die, hard way to die, hard way to die. say a hey, sheckit, b'vakasha, say a hey, sheckit, b'vakasha. a-lee-a-lee-a-lee-a! lori is great, lori is fine, lori has got that WINNING line! whooooo!

sheckit b'vakasha means be quiet in hebrew, lori makes the announcements, and it used to be a sexy line but now it's a winning line b/c of our win philosphy, sexy was not wholesome inclusive or nurturing lol.

[Dave]

We say sheckit b'vakasha at our camp sometimes too.

[rockinsmiles]

This year there was this one girl in my group that was always singing the annoucement song (not the same as camper's) and for the life of me i cant remember it! she gave me lots of laughs with her songs cuz she had been to GS camp the year before and apperently you guys have some pretty interesting songs! :D I cant decide if that or the girl who always sang beatles songs were more entertaining!

[who_stole_my_loofa]

rockinsmiles are you talking about

announcements announcements announcements
what a horrible way to die
a horrible way to die
a horrible way to start/end the day
a horrible way to die with
announcements announcements announcements

[KiwiCRB]

Ours went

Announcments announcements annoooouuucments

A terrible death to die
a terrible death to die
a terrible death to be talked to death
a terrible death to die

We sold our cow
We sold our cow
We have no use
For your bull now

Announcements announcements announcements.

[CAMPFRIEND]

Thank you. Our was kinda like yours. I am going to have to keep thinking!

[collissimon]

We don't have an announcements song, but a Director loves to sing 'You are my sunshine, my only sunshine...' when it rains!

[audur]

Oh man... our announcements song goes:

Announcements, announcements, announcements

A terrible death to die
A terrible death to die
A terrible death to be talked to death
A terrible death to die

Announcements, announcements, announcements

Have you ever heard a wind bag
A wind bag, a wind bag
Have you ever heard a windbag
You'll hear one right now

Make announcements short and sweet
Short and sweet, short and sweet
Make announcements short and sweet
They are boring

We sold our cow, MOO!
We sold our cow, MOO!
We have no use
For your bull now (for your bull now...)

Here we sit like birds in the wilderness
Birds in the wilderness, birds in the wilderness
Here we sit like birds in the wilderness
Waiting for the news

Waiting for the news
Waiting for the news
Here we sit like birds in the wilderness
Waiting for the news

Announcements, announcements, announcements!



... understandably, we don't use the word 'announcements' much...

[Flukie]

We don't say the word rain. We call it "Err" instead. Seriously - you can't even say raingear - you say "Err-gear". This year, someone decided that if you said it, you had to spin in a circle three times and pretend to spit??? Ridiculous when I tried to deliver an announcement about staying dry in terrible weather.

Obviously, it clicked though, cause when I moved back to campus, I told several of my residents to take an umbrella, it was going to err. They looked at me like I was nuts. I've managed to slowly get away from it - but still. Talk about being random.

[collissimon]

It's amazing the random stuff that makes you think of camp!

I was in a lecture at uni, after my first year of camp, and at the front was a brown metal fold up chair, just like we have in the dining room at camp. I got really excited, and all my uni mates thought I was mad!

[who_stole_my_loofa]

The most ridiculous things remind me of camp- even like nast wash rags at restaurants that the busboys use to wipe down the tables. Maybe it's just because camp is always on my mind?? lol

[camper]

please, almost every song on the radio reminds me of camp in some way whether it was used as a camp song or if it was just a song we played in the bunk a lot or if it was a song my campers liked or one of my counselors liked when i was a camper...

[Dave]

please, almost every song on the radio reminds me of camp in some way whether it was used as a camp song or if it was just a song we played in the bunk a lot or if it was a song my campers liked or one of my counselors liked when i was a camper...
Same here. There was a CD I always played on the bus rides and the kids all loved. Every time I listen to it I think of camp and the kids all wanting the headphones. :)

[rockinsmiles]

Yeah it is amazing the songs that remind me of camp. And the fact that some songs i normally wouldnt stand if it didn't remind me of camp :) Yay for music and camp!

[Dave]

Yeah it is amazing the songs that remind me of camp. And the fact that some songs i normally wouldnt stand if it didn't remind me of camp :) Yay for music and camp!
Oh yeah. There's a song I would never listen to if it weren't for camp. On the bus, there was one kid who loved rap. I hate rap. One day he asked me to listen to a song, so I did. I didn't like it (because I don't like rap), but now whenever I hear it I think of that kid.

[collissimon]

Like dancing at a university club night to S Club 7! :o