WILAC S2 P6

This job cannot be done with one Maintenance worker
Joe needs a JC
"Why did the cow jump over the moon?"
"My mom is very poor, and..." (Actually from last week)
"Everyone has a gorilla
Joe is not a DJ
Jitterbuging cannot be made-up
Broken soda canisters explode
There are too many people at meals
"Burn the rope to drop the box"
"I'm one-cheeking it here"
Compy did it
Only Joe's cabin can keep quiet in the night game
"My name's Tony Petreli; I can fix yer car."
"Thankful for the rain and the rainbows"

*Don't always ask why

So this week was Junior High Week One, also known as the best-kept secret of the summer. I was the only mantenance worker on staff (besides my boss), but the kitchen crew and male life guards were very helpful this week. Well, everyone was helpful this week in one way or another, from pitching in to clean the bathrooms to making sure their tables were actually cleaned off. In addition to my daily maintenance rountine, I also helped out with the Reader's Theater production, which carved out two hours of my day to trying to keep Junior Highers quiet. Nothing bad happened, and everything was completed as it should. The fires were fine, bathrooms were clean, games were played, and tables were moved.

I learned two major things this week: 1) I can't do it all by myself, and 2) You don't always need to ask why. The first one is pretty straightforward. although you could go all existential about it and extrapolate it into a huge, universe-encompassing moral lesson. The second one was taught to me in two different ways. First, we had a volunteer who would always ask, "why?" even when the answer was obvious or the question didn't need to be asked. It ended up becoming so ridiculous that it just became tiring after the first day. Second, I saw certain staffers second-guessing both their actions and the events that were happening to them. It drove them (and, as the one who has constantly hearing about it, me) nuts. Without going into too much depth, all I can say is that sometimes, it pays to not worry and let everything cause bumps along the way. Sometimes, it's okay to let it roll over you and just relax. Trust me, I've worried about enough nonsense over the years to be able to say that worrying too much is hazardous to one's health.

So, next week is Junior High 2, the Best Week of the Summer, and I actually go back to camp in a little more than an hour. This is the last week for the counseling staff, apart from a few who will stay on for the Family Weeks, and it is the week with the most campers of any week. It also has some of the most fun activities of any week, but it will still be a challenge to everyone.

WILAC, S2, P5

JR. Week 2

"Make your own baby"
Hannah can't eat tortilla chips
Making a shower with a built-in coffee maker is an awesome idea
Bruised ribs hurt
Everyone needs a note every now and then
River mud sounds weird
Everyone can do the penguin dive
Lindsey can get competitive
"Narwhals, Narwhals, swimming in the ocean..."
Seth went 300 on that raccoon
"The pool sunk"
"Gag me with a blowtorch"
Joe and Lauren are now married
Steel-toed boots prevent broken feet.
If you can beat the heat, stay inside
Tony needs to stay out of the sun
Always wear sunscreen, even when you don't think you need it

So, I know this week's list of quotes is shorter than most, but by the time I sat down on my bed to type out all the funny stuff from that day, I was toast. Even now, as I sit here typing this, my brain still refuses to de-fry itself and recall all the precious memories from this past week. This past week concluded the reign of Juniors on the campground without much trouble. Given that the temps were in the triple digits for the last two days, it could have been a lot worse. Thankfully, no campers became victims of the heat; unfortunately, one staffer did and is now out for the next week recovering.

Next week is the "Best Kept Secret of the Summer," a secret so well-kept that we only have 82 campers at the moment....yeah. Anyhow, it's the first of two weeks of junior-high campers and the only pair of weeks that are radically different, but more on that after next week. This week should be a relaxing week...except that instead of 3 maintenance workers, there's only one: me. As said before, one is out recovering, the other is out trapped in the Adirondacks. This'll be interesting...

Oh right, the lesson I learned this week


...


Ummm


...


Oh, right! Don't let your squabbles with one person affect your relationships with others, because it can, nay, will come back to bit you, hard. It's not exactly something I learned this week, since it's sort of a common sense idea, but I was thoroughly reminded of it Wednesday night.

Not really sure what else to post this week. I think I need to get back into the habit of writing in order to effectively write these things. meh

WILAC S2, P2

Jr. Week 1

-"One, two, three, eyes on me"
-Lakewater ice-cubes are an interesting prank
-Joe will be a Bible bicycle cop
-"Bind us together Lord / Bind us togeth--CAR!!"
-Danielle isn't evil
-"Bumblebee, bumblebee, give what you've got to me"
-Compy makes a beautiful flower
-We all know where Cory's looking
-Wet and Wild Water Wars > Splash Games
-"Sin covers all love"
-"You just dropped a ball"
-When pranks go out of control, we clean up"
-"Yeah, but 'The mystery of the vanishing poop' sounds better than 'The mystery of the vanishing toilet paper'."
-Tony'll flirt with anything that moves
-Ish can't car-jack
-"What? Were you going out to your mailbox naked and a guy was jogging by who also happened to be naked and you bumped into each other and accidentally had sex?"
-Charlie the skunk is back
-Cory's a soprano
-"Oh, so that's where Black people came from."
-Reily can't handle hot sauce.
-"That's not a donut; that's flour."
-Hannah hit her eye 11 times in one week.
-Girl drama sucks

So, this past week was a lot more...well, everything good than last week. We got more work done, there was no catastrophic failure in any of the municipal aspects, the kids were easier to manage (there were also less of them), the weather was less harsh, albeit a lot dryer, and everything seemed to resolve itself.

As for a larger thing I learned at camp, I guess it would be that everything will work out in the end. Easy to say, hard to believe in. Without going into too many details that aren't mine to share, this week I saw a lot of prayers get answered, problems work out in time, and well, the quote " I'm okay because I have God and he's all the love I need. He'll help us through" pretty much sums it up. Not everything can be solved purely by waiting and praying. Sometimes, action is necessary, but even that action can be as simple as lending an ear to listen. So then, how do we know when to wait something out and when to do something about it? I think if someone had the answer to that, then the world's problems would be all but fixed (Oh, wait...I forgot about human nature...right...never mind). I'm always an advocate for approaching a trial head on if it's smaller, especially interpersonal problems, and waiting on the bigger ones until they've been thought through thoroughly.

Not sure what else to put on this week's post other than I also received an offer for this upcoming year that totally rocks my socks and I got to reconnect with someone I was a fool to not stay in touch with.

Next week is Junior Week 2, which should be just about as awesome as this week was.

WILAC S2 P3

Ty wears his sunglasses at night

Never offer to make out with someone to prove you're straight

Lauren shouldn't huff sugar

$5

You'll find work if you look for it, and if you don't

"QUIET!!!"

Tony doesn't drive on diesel

Seniors like to shower

"Do it on the weekend"

Camp is bad when the water's out

Seth can shoot 4 clay pigeons with one BB

"Ow...you shot me in the chin"

Tom was the skunk

Danielle M. is evil

Chelsea is a marks(wo)man

Stephen is a pyromaniac

It's always good to have someone to talk to

Well, this week I didn't really have any big revelations or major changes to my life. I'm really tired this weekend, so much so that I'm misspelling about every third word as I type. I did learn, however, that being the "nice guy" can simultaneously be wonderful and horrible at the same time.

Anyhow, I'm really sorry to my readers (all 4 of you as far as I know), but I'm really tired and our of energy for the day since I had an awesome day hanging out with one of the best people in the world. I may update this one later in the week, but it seems unlikely.

Next weeks starts the beginning of three easier week, Junior Weeks 1&2, and Junior High 1 (the best-kept secret of the summer.). Remember, there's still space available to anyone who wants to join.

Goodnight New York~!

WILAC, S.2, P.2

What I learned during Precious Jewels Week:

(N.B. As I was typing, I realized some of these sound rude, but were originally said in innocent context, which I have included at the end of the quote)

"Anyone need a hoe?"

"Drive it like it's stolen"

'Barzelfarf"

"If you wanna get wet then go roll in a puddle"

"That's how we do it BaYouCa style: freeze 'em and beat 'em" (referring to chicken)

"Lemme put my pants on" (referring to my pants that zip off into shorts)

"I will hip check you into next week"

"We don't slap, we grab" (referring to being the first to grab a ball away from the opponent to win a round of Electricity)

When it rains, it pours

My car is for sale for a dollar

I'm a hetero version of a gay best friend

A pawpaw is a small tree/shrub with sweet berries

Hypocrisy

The benches on the left side of the dinning hall are lower than the right

• Don't ever judge a book by it's cover.

That last one is what I want to focus on this week as I was on both the receiving and giving side of this cliché. Surprisingly, this has nothing to do with the actual Precious Jewels, who are, for hose of you who don't know, mentally handicapped campers that the camp hosts for a single week. This year, I did not have any campers in my cabin (which is good since my counselor was having health problems), instead I had a cabin full of volunteers from a youth group in Michigan. It could have gone better...

Long story short, their youth leader, when respectfully approached on the matter of a miscommunication that left us without beds, completely shut us down because we were younger than him. (yes, this will be a bit of a rant. I'm trying to get over it, but I need to spew for a bit) Have I mentioned yet that he was probably only five years older than me? I'm not over-exaggerating either; he literally said we were too young to talk to adults about this stuff. Us, who are entrusted with the safety and leadership of preteens, teens, and mentally handicapped adults. and this man, who was in charge (barely) of a group of adolescents encouraged his group to break rules and made more inappropriate jokes than the entire group combined.

I'm trying to follow 1 timothy 4:12, "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity" (NIV), especially the last part, but I am having trouble. On of the things that really gets on my nerves (among being interrupted and when people ask me for advice and then completely ignore it) is being criticized for my age, especially since I'm young for my grade level (Sophomore at college and only 18). Deep breath...they're gone. I just have to forget about them.

I know that's kind of off-topic for cover-judging, but it fits well-enough. I'll also admit (without giving away too many details) that I judged someone unfairly this past week, and I was dramatically proven wrong. It wasn't so much an age thing, but not knowing someone's background fully, which is next to impossible to know upon meeting someone (Hi, my name's ___ and my life story begins when...). So, it just proves once again that I'm not even close to being a good role model yet, but I think I managed to save the situation.

Well, I think that's the gist of it for this week. Next week is Precious Jewels Two--I mean, Senior High Week, which is the end of the "hard" weeks. Keep all of us in prayer.