Ok, so it isn't that bad--and yes, I know you can only get that in extreme situations, like at the top of Everest or way deep in the ocean. However, it doesn't change the fact that I feel like crap and pulmonary edema might just feel like the cold I have right now. Who knows.
My voice? Non-existent. I always love losing my voice at camp. Thus far it has been a regular occurrence for all three summers. It is hard to get the attention of 60+ 11 yr olds if you have no voice.
Other than that, things are going well. I have gotten right back into the swing of things here. Being a GL is like riding a bike--you never really forget. I just do things like I did it last summer, and so far so good.
Last night we had a pretty spectacular thunderstorm and rain shower. I was stranded on the porch of 13 with some other GLs and PDs until 11 at night--when we dashed back to our cabin in the rain. I was freezing for 2 hours and adding to that the dash through the rain--I had a fever in the middle of the night. It wasn't too bad, but I didn't sleep very well.
I am feeling ok right now--just extremely hot and my chest hurts. But I'm taking Cold-Eeze like it's going out of style!
I hate paperwork. I've had so much of it lately!
I have discovered how I can get internet in my room. I have to put the computer up against the window--which means resting my foot on the garbage can and the compter on my knee. It gives my other leg quite the work-out, I'll tell you what, but at least I don't have to dash down to the bunker all the time!
I'll keep you up to speed on the biological warfare that is being waged in my body.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Sunday, June 29, 2008
The Craziness Begins
I left yesterday morning at 8:30 on a huge bus for Paramus, NJ--and came back at 3:45 with that same bus full of little girls and with ringing ears.
Camp has officially begun.
The fact that I have a cold doesn't help matters, either. My voice was almost completely gone yesterday, at a time when I most needed it--talking with parents. Yikes. I was pleasantly surprised, though. I was only yelled at once, and only a couple talked down to me. All in all, that was pretty much a win in the parents of Bryn Mawr campers category.
Josh Budler was the bus leader in charge, but he was on the first bus, so I got to be the brick wall that the parents ran into at the second bus. No parent was allowed on the bus, and no kid was allowed off the bus once she was on. No one really contested that fact, for which I was glad. I did have tons of last minute switches from bus 1 to bus 2--all of which I directed Josh's way.
And then one girl was late. Yes, there always has to be one, right? She was only like 7 minutes late, but the first bus left and some angry dad tried to storm the bus and told me that we had to leave. He informed me that this wasn't fair for us to wait for one girl. Holy buckets. I told him, in a firm voice--or as firm as my hoarse croak could be--that we couldn't leave her and she would be there soon. He wasn't too happy with me. At least he didn't try to get on the bus, though.
My girls are great. They're all excited to have me back and I feel as though I have an unfair advantage in the fact that I know them and they know me--and my counselors and co do not yet. I am hoping I can prevent all 68 of them coming to me for everything--which has been happening all last night and this morning. I keep telling the rest that they have their own GL and that I'm just her co, but they were my girls. They are used to me. This might be a potential problem.
This morning I didn't get up until 7:30, which was a very nice change from the 5:45 in past summers. Because Upper Juniors sleep until 8 or 8:30 this summer!!!! I'm excited about that.
My cold is slowly getting better. I was ordered away from cabin row last night at 11:15 by Charlotte, who told me to go to sleep. I did and slept like a rock until this morning, when my alarm went off.
Let's see how the first day goes....gymnastics try-outs and lice checks, oh my.
Camp has officially begun.
The fact that I have a cold doesn't help matters, either. My voice was almost completely gone yesterday, at a time when I most needed it--talking with parents. Yikes. I was pleasantly surprised, though. I was only yelled at once, and only a couple talked down to me. All in all, that was pretty much a win in the parents of Bryn Mawr campers category.
Josh Budler was the bus leader in charge, but he was on the first bus, so I got to be the brick wall that the parents ran into at the second bus. No parent was allowed on the bus, and no kid was allowed off the bus once she was on. No one really contested that fact, for which I was glad. I did have tons of last minute switches from bus 1 to bus 2--all of which I directed Josh's way.
And then one girl was late. Yes, there always has to be one, right? She was only like 7 minutes late, but the first bus left and some angry dad tried to storm the bus and told me that we had to leave. He informed me that this wasn't fair for us to wait for one girl. Holy buckets. I told him, in a firm voice--or as firm as my hoarse croak could be--that we couldn't leave her and she would be there soon. He wasn't too happy with me. At least he didn't try to get on the bus, though.
My girls are great. They're all excited to have me back and I feel as though I have an unfair advantage in the fact that I know them and they know me--and my counselors and co do not yet. I am hoping I can prevent all 68 of them coming to me for everything--which has been happening all last night and this morning. I keep telling the rest that they have their own GL and that I'm just her co, but they were my girls. They are used to me. This might be a potential problem.
This morning I didn't get up until 7:30, which was a very nice change from the 5:45 in past summers. Because Upper Juniors sleep until 8 or 8:30 this summer!!!! I'm excited about that.
My cold is slowly getting better. I was ordered away from cabin row last night at 11:15 by Charlotte, who told me to go to sleep. I did and slept like a rock until this morning, when my alarm went off.
Let's see how the first day goes....gymnastics try-outs and lice checks, oh my.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Amazing
Here is a link you should check out. I hope it works! If not, please let me know.
It is our Staff video--and has some incredible footage of Drew, one of my favorite people at camp! And yes, I am in the video.
http://my.campminder.com/Videos/
It is our Staff video--and has some incredible footage of Drew, one of my favorite people at camp! And yes, I am in the video.
http://my.campminder.com/Videos/
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Yeah Pictures!
I finally got some pictures for your viewing pleasure...I have been slacking on the camera end of things. As soon as the web site starts posting pictures I'll be able to steal some of theirs with me in them, but for now...you get some quality toga pictures.
We had staff Olympics last night and got to wear togas again to promote it. For some reason we had a serious lack of bedsheets, so there were only about 7 of us wearing togas, but that was ok.
I love my GL group this summer! We all get along so well.
Jack hooked up with Rico, his brotha from another motha, for some good cooking fun in the Cooking room. They made some rockin' edible cookie dough. Charlotte and I had fun, too!
Monday, June 23, 2008
Discombobulation
We had our cabin placement tonight for the General staff. I was super-excited because I got the counselor I wanted--she is in gymnastics and has to be full time. The problem is that everyone in Senior camp wanted her, and since she had to be full time there was no way I would get her. So I went to Bill and told him that I really wanted her. I said I knew she wouldn't be around for rest hour, and he told me that he appreciated that I was willing to sacrifice that and that if she was with me, she would be great. I really appreciated that--I got the Bill Widman stamp of approval, which won me that counselor. She is in my Bunk 12, in Upper Juniors, which she told me she would like.
This is where the discombobulation comes in. We do our placements and are gathering with our staff and I look down and see the counselor I wanted in tears on the ground, saying she didn't want Upper Juniors.
My heart literally dropped to the ground. I wanted to cry. I fought for this girl--I got Bill to endorse me, I convinced everyone that she would do well in that bunk, in my Upper Juniors--and she was miserable about it? I was not cool with that. I felt so incredibly guilty. Of course I'm automatically thinking that here I was trying to do something great for my bunks and for my girls and all I did was manage to wreck a girl's summer.
But I sucked it up and went on with my welcome to Upper Juniors thing with the other 8 of my counselors--who by the way are all physched to be in Upper Juniors with me--and Marjori talked to her. Then I talked to her after that. Turns out, she is fine with the age group, fine with me--but didn't want to be full time in her program area. That made me feel so much better, because that has nothing to do with where we placed her.
I am feeling much better currently, but definitely exhausted and very discombobulated still. You know, it is the little things that throw you off your emotional track here during staff weeks. You're so exhausted physically and mentally that the emotion is of course dragging too. I need to go to bed.
Everything will look much brighter in the morning.
This is where the discombobulation comes in. We do our placements and are gathering with our staff and I look down and see the counselor I wanted in tears on the ground, saying she didn't want Upper Juniors.
My heart literally dropped to the ground. I wanted to cry. I fought for this girl--I got Bill to endorse me, I convinced everyone that she would do well in that bunk, in my Upper Juniors--and she was miserable about it? I was not cool with that. I felt so incredibly guilty. Of course I'm automatically thinking that here I was trying to do something great for my bunks and for my girls and all I did was manage to wreck a girl's summer.
But I sucked it up and went on with my welcome to Upper Juniors thing with the other 8 of my counselors--who by the way are all physched to be in Upper Juniors with me--and Marjori talked to her. Then I talked to her after that. Turns out, she is fine with the age group, fine with me--but didn't want to be full time in her program area. That made me feel so much better, because that has nothing to do with where we placed her.
I am feeling much better currently, but definitely exhausted and very discombobulated still. You know, it is the little things that throw you off your emotional track here during staff weeks. You're so exhausted physically and mentally that the emotion is of course dragging too. I need to go to bed.
Everything will look much brighter in the morning.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Airkicks of Happiness
The General staff has arrived--after we waited literally all day for the bus to show up. I guess they got lost once and were stuck in traffic the rest of the time, so what should have been a 2 and a half hour jaunt turned into 5. We had to push back dinner and everything.
It was late sleep, so I slept in until 8:30, which is unheard of, and then went out to breakfast at the Trackside with Shu, Charlotte, Erica, and Dallas. Of course half the camp turned up at one point or another, so the Trackside was hopping, but we all sat at out own tables. Anyway, the Trackside is famous for serving massive proportions and I got an omelett, which meant that when lunch rolled around 2 hours later I wasn't hungry at all. I helped serve and then ate an apple because we had these amazing golden delicious apples instead of the usual small and red.
So by the time the General staff arrived, I was starving. After dinner, which was chicken parm, my favorite on camp--!!!!!--we went to main campus for some icebreakers. I loathe and despise icebreakers of any form or function. So I helped one of the counselors find some lost luggage and then finally had to play the darn games.
Leadership staff introduced themselves at the Apple-O and then we watched the camp video--kind of a tradition thing. I saw Heather in the video and it made me smile. And then Bill was getting ready to dismiss down to the campfire we were having and he said "If your name is Jessie, you may go first." I just sat there for perhaps half a second before I realized he meant me! So I hopped up and got to lead the entire camp down to the campfire. It was pretty fabulous. And then at the campfire, I got to be in the Wee skit with Ashlee and Adam and Matt Johnson and Jenny Magiet! It was pretty spectacular.
We didn't dismiss from there until 11, at which point I made the rounds with my room of counselors and told them what time reveille blows in the morning--and then crashed. And I wasn't too tired this morning. I have kicked into camp-mode where I'm a morning person and I don't need much sleep.
On the way over to the Bunker this morning with my computer, Drew stuck his head out his office window and asked if we could get some adirondack chairs in there so we can sit together. It was nice.
I think the weather might finally start becoming warm...I haven't gotten a tan at all because we've either been inside or I've been wearing pants. And sweatshirts at night.
And today I am going to be the Group Leader in the camp introductions we do for the General staff. I'm pretty excited about that.
It was late sleep, so I slept in until 8:30, which is unheard of, and then went out to breakfast at the Trackside with Shu, Charlotte, Erica, and Dallas. Of course half the camp turned up at one point or another, so the Trackside was hopping, but we all sat at out own tables. Anyway, the Trackside is famous for serving massive proportions and I got an omelett, which meant that when lunch rolled around 2 hours later I wasn't hungry at all. I helped serve and then ate an apple because we had these amazing golden delicious apples instead of the usual small and red.
So by the time the General staff arrived, I was starving. After dinner, which was chicken parm, my favorite on camp--!!!!!--we went to main campus for some icebreakers. I loathe and despise icebreakers of any form or function. So I helped one of the counselors find some lost luggage and then finally had to play the darn games.
Leadership staff introduced themselves at the Apple-O and then we watched the camp video--kind of a tradition thing. I saw Heather in the video and it made me smile. And then Bill was getting ready to dismiss down to the campfire we were having and he said "If your name is Jessie, you may go first." I just sat there for perhaps half a second before I realized he meant me! So I hopped up and got to lead the entire camp down to the campfire. It was pretty fabulous. And then at the campfire, I got to be in the Wee skit with Ashlee and Adam and Matt Johnson and Jenny Magiet! It was pretty spectacular.
We didn't dismiss from there until 11, at which point I made the rounds with my room of counselors and told them what time reveille blows in the morning--and then crashed. And I wasn't too tired this morning. I have kicked into camp-mode where I'm a morning person and I don't need much sleep.
On the way over to the Bunker this morning with my computer, Drew stuck his head out his office window and asked if we could get some adirondack chairs in there so we can sit together. It was nice.
I think the weather might finally start becoming warm...I haven't gotten a tan at all because we've either been inside or I've been wearing pants. And sweatshirts at night.
And today I am going to be the Group Leader in the camp introductions we do for the General staff. I'm pretty excited about that.
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