The Absolute Worst Part Ever: Leaving

4 weeks, or 8 eight weeks flies by before you even know it, and soon you will be packing up to leave camp. At first thoughts of home flow through your mind, seeing your parents/ guardians, your siblings, sleeping in a real bed, showering without shoes, a long shower, sleeping all day, having your favorite foods again, and seeing some of your friends. 

You pack up, not really knowing how because your mom probably did it for you when you came to camp. So your counselors help you fold all your clothes,  as neatly as they can. You start counting down your lasts, last breakfast, last lunch and last dinner. The night before you leave is normally a ceremony reminiscing the summer. In many camps the ceremony is some kind of candle light thing. The people in charge of all girls and all boys pick a couple of campers that were exceptionally great during the summer. It is a huge honor to get. The chosen campers will light a candle, while sad songs play in the background. Everybody sits and cries and now thoughts about home leave, and all you want to do is stay forever. 

The next morning the entire camp wakes up early because pick up starts very early (well about 9 am but hey that is early!) The bunk sits together and over the loud speaker one by one each camper on camp is called. You hear your friends get called, you cry, then go back and spend your last minutes with your friends. Suddenly you hear your name over the loud speaker, and it is like you are going down the huge part of a roller coaster, your stomach drops and tears prickle in your eyes. All your friends come running up to you and hugging you from every single direction. Your counselors start bringing you over to your car, and putting your stuff in the trunk while you run and see your parents. You will be so excited to see them, but so sad you are leaving. You give your last hugs and your car starts driving away. Your parents drive pass everyone and your friends are on the side of the road frantically waving at you. In the car there are probably a lot of tears, yours, your parents (so excited to see you) and maybe even your siblings. You are so upset but here are some things to remember:

1. This bond you have with your new friends is unlike any other bond, you were with these people 24/7 and they are now probably your closet friends

2. There will be a reunion around Thanksgiving time so you can see your friends that live far away

3. You can talk to these friends whenever you want via, phone, email, Facebook etc.

4. Go back the next summer, and the summer after that, and soon you will be an expert like me on the most amazing place in the world, Camp. 

Roll Call

What is a Roll Call? If you asked me before I went to camp, I would never be able to tell you what it was. But now, I am an expert.
At the end of each session the counselors get a rectangular board, and the campers paint it, or design it any way they want. After it is dry, the counselors and campers come together and think about things that each camper said a lot. Each camper and counselor gets one. For example, when I was a camper, I would always ask what we were going to have for lunch so one year mine was: Missy "what's for lunch today?!?" Cohen.  **These are always appropriate and the camper who it is about ALWAYS has to agree with it, if not a new one is made**
After each person in the bunk gets one, the campers get to list all the great memories of the summer. After that the campers pick a bunk song, and a bunk motto.
After everything is done, the roll call board is placed in the bunk. It is always great to go back to all the bunks you have been in and see all the great memories. It gives you great flashbacks and is so fun to see things you used to say.

Job Chart

I know you might be thinking JOB CHART?!?! But I promise it is not as bad as it seems! Each bunk is like a little mini house. There are about 12 kids in each bunk, with three counselors. Sooo 15 people are living in this tiny space. So every day there are a couple of jobs that need to be done.

Every day the head counselor will change the people who do which jobs. Some of the jobs would include: sweep (2 people), dustpan (2 people) , garbage, clothes line (yes your wet stuff hang up on a clothes line), sinks/ toilets (2 people) , queen (makes sure everyone is doing their job), mail (gets the mail everyday), and sometimes others.

The reasons for this is since so many people are living in tiny areas, the counselors just want to make sure that the bunk is tidy and so things do not get lost. 

These "chores" are fun. The counselors, or campers play music and everyone dances along. Clean-up is normally directly after breakfast for about thirty minutes. Everyone has to make their bed, and make sure their things are clean before they can start doing their daily jobs.

At the end of the week, the head of all the girls, and all the boys, will go around each bunk and check the bunk for cleanliness. The best girl bunk, and the best boy bunk will get a prize! The prize could be a pizza party, ice cream party, or the bunk might get a special prize! 

There is always something to look forward fro when doing these jobs! So make sure you are clean, and make sure that your bunkmates are all cleaning because the prizes are always awesome!

Shower hour

At home, you can walk in your shower, barefoot, stay in the shower for however long as your heart desires. Unfortunately, that is not the case at camp. All day you run around from activity to activity, take a dip in the pool, maybe go in a lake, and by the end of the day, everyday, you are dirty! But, so is every other kid there. Shower time is normally right before dinner, and about an hour long. (Sometimes on weekends they make shower hour an hour and a half!)

Things needed to shower:

Shower Baskets

1. A shower basket (you can get these at Target, Bed Bath and Beyond, Walmart etc.)
2. Shower shoes*** (since so many people are using the same showers BRING shower shoes. Old navy flip flops are just as good)
3. Shampoo and Conditioner (2-in-1 is great because its takes less time, but you can bring both and that is ok)
4. Body wash (I would recommend not to bring bar soap, because when it sits in the shower basket it gets a little gross)
5. Face Wash ( you are running around sweating all day, make sure that you wash your face)

You might be wondering where you shower. At some camps, they have a shower within each cabin. If that is the case, only your bunk will shower in that shower, but still bring those essential items listed above. But, at some camps there are shower houses. That means that all the girls shower in one shower house (which has about 16 showers) and all the boys would shower in their own shower house (also with about 16 showers)

What some shower houses look like

Now you might understand why it is important to take a quick shower. If all the boys and all the girls on camp have to shower in 1 hour every single kid needs to take a super fast shower! Super fast means about 5 minutes or less! I know, I know "How can I shower so quickly?" is the question always asked. What you have to do is get in the shower get your hair wet, use your shampoo wash it out. Get your conditioner (if needed) rinse it out. Body wash, and face wash can be done at the same time, and then you are ready to go!

** REMEMBER*** Always wear shoes in the shower, and always take a fast shower!

Things to bring (appliances version)

Okay, so I am sure many of you are wondering what kinds of things you should bring besides clothes. iPods and iPads are acceptable to bring. HOWEVER, if they got lost, stolen, broken I hate to say this but it is your fault. There is a high chance of these devices getting water damage. So a suggestion if you do bring these, do not bring them out of the bunk! You do not want these ruined! iPods are awesome to bring because if you cannot fall asleep, you can always listen to music, play a game or just relax. If you have an iPhone with music on it, the counselors will make sure that the phone and texting part is not working. Soooo to save everyone the struggle, just take out the SIM card before!

Other things that you should bring: flashlight, books ( I know it is summer and you don't want to do summer reading but it is better to do a little at night before you go to bed rather than waiting until you get home from camp and have a couple weeks before school starts, and you want to see other friends). Also you guys can bring gameboys, and portable play stations, but just remember that they are all your responsibility if anything happens to them. 

Hair dryers are good to bring, however for girls, when everyone is getting ready for dinner at night, there is always a struggle to fit everyone in the mirror so you will have to find space for that, or you could bring a little mirror which always comes in handy. I would advise not to bring hair straighteners. The weather is always humid, your hair will not stay straight and you will be sweating while trying to do your hair!

Lastly, bring a little bit of money (at most 20 dollars)! This is for any field trips. On field trips you normally will not get a lot of money to spend, so this is so you can buy some other things on the trips. HIDE THE MONEY SOMEWHERE SAFE AND THAT YOU WILL REMEMBER*** 

TEEN TOURS!!!!

A lot of summer camps have a huge program for their campers that are too old to be campers, and too young to be counselors. SOO they go on a teen tour!!

hotel with no electricity

Teen tours at summer camp are normally when the campers are about 15 years old. The tour lasts anywhere from two weeks to two months! When I went on mine, it was a little over three weeks. The tours can happen is so many places. For example, west coast trips (where you travel the states in the west coast of the USA), east coast trips (same as west coast, but east coast, Canada, Alaska, Hawaii, Costa Rica, Europe and more. The trips are endless!

resort we stayed in

The director of your camp picks a place (or sometimes more than one) and sets up a program with a company wherever you go. However, it is not like a vacation that you would be going on. There are normally a lot of jokes, and a lot of community service that is done on these trips. Yes, there is a lot of fun things that are planned, but on a lot of these trips, the purpose is to give back.
I went on a teen tour in 2010 with my camp. We went to Costa Rica, and it was by far the most amazing experience of my life. We stayed four hotels, and did LOADS of community service, and hiked a lot. We went zip lining through the jungle, and white water rafting. We stayed at a beautiful resort, and also stayed at a hotel with no electricity. We got the best of both worlds and I would change one thing on my trip.

things we saw on hikes

I'm Homesick :(

There is always some points in the summer when you will get homesick. I just want to let you know that it is totally understandable! I am 18 and in college and I get homesick here at school, and at my sleep away camp. Sometimes I hear a song and think about my mom, or I see someone and miss my dad etc. When you are homesick, you are going to think that you NEED to go home and you cannot have fun at camp. But that is NOT true!! Having fun is the only way to get you out of your homesick funk.
This year, one of my campers was so homesick for the first week. She cried everyday, and when she wasn't crying, she was mopping around. She would come up to me and tell me that she wanted to go and she hates camp and this was not for her. My co counselor and I decided that for three days she had to give it her all. We told her to try at the activities and put in effort. So she decided she would try. My camper was signed up for one month and ended up staying the whole summer because she LOVED it. She actually cried because she did not want to leave.
Everybody gets homesick. (I know the boys out there are going to say they don't, but I have personally dealt with a lot of boy campers that were very homesick) It is apart of camp. BUT, it makes you so strong! You are always going to miss your family when you are not with them, but after going to camp and being homesick, you will now know how to deal with it, and not let it get you down!
The best things to do when you are homesick at camp  are to write a nice, long letter to your family telling them how much you love and miss them, and telling them that you love camp. A few tears might come out, but after they read this letter about you loving camp, they are going to know it was the right decision to send you there! They miss you just as much as you miss them, I promise!

Just remember: stay positive and have fun because that is what camp is all about!!

Rainy Day Schedule

Since summer is sometimes humid, (especially in New England) it does rain a lot. Every time it rains it is such a bummer but a nice rainy day schedule is always so great. On a rainy day schedule, all outdoor activities are cancelled and the person that makes the schedule, makes sure that every bunk has an indoor activity. A lot of the times, these schedules include "bunk activities." 

Bunk activites can include sooo many different things. Sometimes they just have the campers hang out inside the bunk and play games. For this, I would recommend bringing cards. Cards are so awesome and a great time killer.

Other bunk activities are cleaning, making up dances and skits, and so much more. 

A lot of times the director will call a rainy day schedule and the rain will only last a couple of hours, and then the schedule will return to normal. 

Personally, I LOOOOVE rainy day schedules. It is more time to spend with your bunk mates and best friends. The days are very relaxed. You do not need to hustle from one activity to another, you get to really chill out and lay low for the day.

Now for some suggestions- bring rain boots and a rain jacket!!! The rain drops in the summer are so big, and sometimes it does rain for so long! And when you have to run from your bunk to the dining hall, these things are necessary!

FOOD

FOOD. 4 letters, but has so much to do with the entire camp experience. Food can either make or break someones time at camp, so listen in and hear all the secrets.
Since there are around 200-300 campers at most sleep away camps, the food has to be made quickly, in big servings and efficiently. Being at a summer camp for twelve years, I have seen everything from grilled cheese, pizza, eggs, etc. Sometime the food looks gross, but tastes so good, or sometimes it is as gross as it looks. But, with that being said you cannot let your eyes deceive you!!! To tell if it is something that you will like abide by these rules:

1. Smell it. Do not stick your nose in the tray, take a little on your plate and quickly and casually sniff.
2. Touch it. I know you have probably always been told "Don't play with your food." but this is a time when it is okay. You need to see if it is hard, soft, mushy, etc.
3. Taste it. Take a little bite and then you will know whether to keep chewing, or sneakily spit it into your napkin.

Some food people just do not like. Most camps have a huge salad bar of everything you could think of, carrots, cucumbers, peppers, spinach, lettuce, and much more. If there is a food that you do not like, just head on over to the salad bar, and fill up there.





When I was a camper, PB &J was my go to meal if there was something I did not like. Now, because of all the peanut allergies, it is not that easy to get. Ask your counselor to see if they could get you some, if not PB & J, ask if there is any plain pasta available.



There will always be something available for you to eat whether it is the meal, the salad bar, or whatever the counselor can rummage up in the kitchen.

Activities, Activities, Activities

I know I have talked a lot about the activities that are offered and how they are countless but here is a list of some that are offered at my camp
Swimming

• water aerobics
• water zumba
• free swim
• laps swim
• water polo
• diving

Boating

• canoes
• kayak
• surf bike

Baseball
Softball
Kick Ball
Soccer
Football
Lacrosse
Tennis

Basketball
Arts & Crafts
Drama
Computers
Library
Nature

• fishing
• hiking
• finding animals

Dance
Volleyball
Nukem

GaGa

Running
Archery

Horse Back Riding
Ropes

• High ropes
• Low  ropes

The list goes on and on and on. My brother did not want to go to camp because he is a  basketball player. He is now playing in college and thought going to summer camp would not help him, and he should be at a specialty camp. But, he realized that doing all the other activities like running, swimming and baseball would help him gain strength, endurance and speed while he was playing basketball there.
The specialists that teach these activities are trained specially for the sport. The specialist knows so many things and games that can be played dealing with that sport and is there to make sure you have a fun time playing it.
During the day there are usually 6 periods. For half of those activities, you get to choose what you would like to do, and the other three are activities done with your bunk, and other bunks that are in your age group.

Technology?

My brother has always been the guy that came home from school, went into his room and played NBA 2K(fill in year here) for hours.
I was and still am the kind of girl that is always on my cell phone.
However, at camp these things do not exist.
When my brother first started going to camp he was so mad that he could not bring his xbox, playstation, gameboy, etc. He literally had no idea what he was going to do if he could not bring any of these things to camp. However, the activities offered are countless!!! I know my parents always told my siblings and I to go outside and play. But, when we had these awesome things inside like computers, TVs, playstations, etc. why would we want to go outside???
But at camp, there is no option to stay indoors and play with out fun things. We have to go out in the fresh air and do any activity that comes our way.
Every year when I go and have to leave my cell phone at home, it is like I am losing a piece of me. But, I always feel liberated when I do not have my phone. I am not pressured to be on it all the time and I can actually do fun things rather than sit on a couch and look through Instagram all day. By the time me and my brother get home from camp, we do not want to use our technologies because it feels so weird and different without them. But that does not last too long because we have to catch up on everything we missed out!

I know this may seem so horrible because we live in a world where technology is everything. But it is so nice not to use technology for a couple of weeks. Instead of calling or texting your friends and family, you get letters and packages instead. When you hear your name get called for a package, it is such a great feeling. And when you read a letter, it is so much more than a casually text of "hey what's up?" The letters are pages long explaining so much, and you would never get that if you had a phone with you!

F is for friends who do stuff together

The greatest thing that someone who went to camp will gain are lifelong friendships. I know that it sounds corny and cheesy that you will meet your best friends, but it is so true. Your camp friends are so much more different than home friends. I'm not saying home friends aren't awesome and great too, but its a whole different relationship. With your camp friends, you are sleeping in closed quarters with them, you live together, you do every activity together 24/7. It is like having a slumber party every night, but with your brothers/sisters.
The bond you have with these friends is irreplaceable. My best friends in the world have been my camp friends. We have been through so much together and know everything about each other that it is hard not to be close with them.

This picture is me and my friends when I was eight years old at camp. Ten years later, and these girls are my support system and closet friends. 

Many of my camp friends do not live close to me, so we were always worried that during the year we would lose touch. But that is not the case. You become so close that you just call these people up and talk the night away. Because many camp friends do not live near you, it makes you work harder at your friendship so you do stay in touch. 

Camp friends = best friends

How To Make A Comfy Bed

At any sleep away camp, you are going from the luxury of your home with a nice bed, to a plastic mattress on a bunk bed. I hate to tell you this, but the beds are sooooo uncomfortable if you do not make it correctly. However, I have some great tips to get the back and neck ache away, and a good night sleep every time you climb onto your bed.


TIPS TO MAKE A GREAT BED
1. Start off with a mattress cover/ bug lock. Since camp is all outdoors, little creatures find ways to come in, and they are not welcome in our beds!

2. An egg crate mattress pad. This is a foam pad that makes it so you can sink into the bed which will make it much more comfy.

3. A feather bed. If you do not have a feather bed a duvet cover can be a great replacement.

The top white "thing" is the feather bed

4. The bottom sheet
5. The top sheet
6. Your comforter. Make sure that this is not too heavy because it is summer and SUPER hot out
7. Add a blanket at the end of your bed. Some nights it's too hot to even sleep under your light comforter so the blanket comes in handy.

*****MAKE SURE THAT YOU FIND OUT WHAT KIND OF BEDS THE CAMP HAS. SOME ARE TWIN XL WHILE OTHERS ARE JUST TWIN. ALL THE SUPPLIES LISTED NEED TO FIT THE BED!!!!!*****

Ready... Set... GO!

Mid- way through the summer, most camps have some kind of "Olympics". It could be anything from color war, boys vs. girls, or Olympics. In all of these there are normally two camper representatives and two counselor representatives. The camper representatives are the oldest kids on camp who have been great campers so they get this huge honor. The counselor representatives are also two great counselors.
Color war is when the entire camp is split into 2-4 teams(colors) (amount of teams vary depending on how many kids go to the camp). It is normally three to four days long of all different competitions. The competitions are endless from swim meet to track meet to name that tune. Everyone dresses in the colors, chants for their teams and wants to win the war!

Boys vs. Girls is normally a one day event, where the camp is divided into a boys team and a girls team. The girls normally wear pink and the boys wear blue. The whole day is a competition, however less competitive than color war or Olympics. There are normally some of the same big events like swimming, and track but there are more tiny events like volleyball, and soccer. At the end of the day the girls make a song as well as the boys and sing it to the judges, who then tell the camp who won the events for the day, the song, and then finally the whole day. (At my camp the girls have not won in 11 years :( hopefully that will change soon!

And lastly but most certainly not least, is the Olympics. The camp is normally divided up into four different teams (countries). This is just like color war, but instead there are countries involved. Everyone goes around wearing their countries colors, face paint, flags and so on. The competitions are endless! Swim meet, track meet, tug-o-war, camp wide relay race, and so on. On the last day the representatives teach the team cants and songs that will be sung, there are skits,  kids learn dances too, and then you find out the winner. Hearing your team name is like learning you have won the lottery. The greatest feeling ever!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5SHl_Ehkac 

Every competition is the most amazing thing ever at summer camps. Every single person gets so into it, day-camp, campers, counselors, and even the judges. Get ready for the time of your life at any of these events.

Do's and Don'ts of packing

If you are going to a sleep away summer camp there are many Do's and Don'ts to learn. Starting with what to pack. Every year when I go I am so tempted to pack all my dresses, skirts, nice shirts and more. DO NOT DO THIS!!!
Everything you bring to camp will come home moldy, damp and smell like your summer home. Girls, DO bring Soffe shorts                                                           

athletic shorts for boys

Soffe shorts for girls

DO bring Hanes white V-necks. Girls, I know you think this may just be for boys but every girl and guys at camp will be wearing them, It will be the best investment in the world. You can tie-dye them. You do not care if they get wet, muddy or stained because they are just cotton shirts. They are THE best shirts to wear when you are going through a long, hot day. Both boys and girls, bring big t-shirts. You do not want to bring nice t-shirts to run around in all day. The big t-shirts (like PJ shirts) will not cling to you when you are sweaty, and hot.

DO NOT bring any sort of clothing that needs to be hand washed, or cannot be put in a dryer. Most sleep away camps have laundry services do all the laundry. It gets sent out, comes back most of the time ruined or five sizes too small. Bring clothes that you do not mind losing, shrinking or turning pink. There is always that one person that puts a red shirt with all the red clothes and everything turns pink. Be careful when you sort laundry!