Mmathis
TurtleMommy
- Joined
- Apr 28, 2011
- Messages
- 13,928
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- Location
- NW Louisiana -- zone 8b
- Hardiness Zone
- 8b
- Country
Camp Turkey is what they call it 'cause it's the week before Turkey Day [in the US -- that's our Thanksgiving for all y'all in the UK & Canada]. It's a 3 night, 4 day camp. Basically, the adults teach various merit badge classes. I taught TEXTILE and MEDICINE, which are repeats for me. I had something for every one of the 5 class periods.....oh, for a break!
Our night-time temps were in the 30's -- that's cold for here. My sleeping bag is supposedly rated for 30F, but I was still bundled up in thermals and fleece and slept cold the 1st 2 nights [3rd night I was comfortable]. Didn't get much sleep.
And whenever I would almost doze off, my darn bladder would decide it was time..... But now I have a "system" that works pretty well, so I don't have to leave the tent and face the cold air for hikes to the bathroom.
And to top it off, yesterday, mid-day I began having floaters in my left eye. Already have that in the right one. Then, as I'm driving home last night, began having light flashes. Not really symptoms of a retinal tear, but I went ahead and saw the eye doc this morning. All is well. Except that I now have floaters in BOTH eyes
There was a record attendance at camp this year. The average is around 250. We had 430-ish! That's including scouts and their leaders as well as the adults teaching merit badge classes. They had to add tables in the Mess Hall and it was so crowded you could hardly move. No idea what the "safe" capacity is. But I get impatient in lines, so volunteered every AM and a few other meals to help on the serving lines. We eat last, but at least I'm doing something! The food was GREAT! We have a local troop that takes very good care of us at Camp Turkey.
Our troop is pretty dysfunctional, and there are a few scouts and leaders who....... Well, anyway. Our troop and campsite was total chaos. No leadership, no organization. No, there was leadership, they just didn't do anything -- don't get me started. So I stayed frustrated! There were even adults who were disrespecting camp rules -- setting wonderful examples for the boys......grrrrrrr!
In our TEXTILE class there was a young scout with behavioral/medical "issues" who drove us crazy. I was able to talk to his leader and we worked out a plan, so things went better. But, boy! I was ready to have him pulled from the class for his disruptive behavior, but at the same time, I wanted him to stay because he was totally enjoying the class. Turns out, the parents failed to fully disclose what the triggers were for this kiddo. Parents, really? You couldn't have clued your son's leaders in?
On Monday night, I was sort of the "adult on duty" back at the campsite, as the kids and other adults did their things. A group of us were around the campfire, and it was a true Boy Scout moment! The boys were behaving, having fun, singing songs, no one killed anyone, the fire stayed contained, and they accepted me into their circle. Until.......THUMP, followed by painful yell! One of the boys was trying to break a fire log by jumping or stomping on it [OK....not too smart]. He fell just right and broke his leg instead of the log. He's a very large stature young man [seriously, he is a little overweight, but mostly he's just tall with a big frame]. Everyone [scouts] was laughing at him, and he was laughing a little, too, so everyone thought he was playing. But within those first 30 seconds, I knew something was wrong. Long story short, he had a very bad break. Such a good, sweet young man, and I'm thinking why couldn't it have been one of the annoying, you-want-to-ring-his-neck kids.
Normally I'm such an introvert and not a mixer, but I met lots of new, really neat people! There was one leader with the most beautiful accent -- he is orginally from Camaroon and was an Eagle Scout in his country. I asked and he told me all about his country, growing up there, the culture, the food -- wow! So he's now in the US [east Texas, to be exact] raising a family and still involved in scouting. Oh, and there was the guy who came in to help with another class. He was teaching Braille as part of a merit badge. He showed me the Braille typewriter and all kinds of related stuff. And one old guy who's been in scouting and in the local area literally forever -- I've seen him but never spoke to him, so we met. Lots of wonderful stories to tell about his scouting experiences!
The next day [yesterday] was the last day...... And now I'm home, sleeping in my own warm bed with my Hubby and kitty cats to keep me warm and cozy! Already writing out notes and making plans for next year! I really do enjoy our Camp Turkey!
Our night-time temps were in the 30's -- that's cold for here. My sleeping bag is supposedly rated for 30F, but I was still bundled up in thermals and fleece and slept cold the 1st 2 nights [3rd night I was comfortable]. Didn't get much sleep.
And whenever I would almost doze off, my darn bladder would decide it was time..... But now I have a "system" that works pretty well, so I don't have to leave the tent and face the cold air for hikes to the bathroom.
And to top it off, yesterday, mid-day I began having floaters in my left eye. Already have that in the right one. Then, as I'm driving home last night, began having light flashes. Not really symptoms of a retinal tear, but I went ahead and saw the eye doc this morning. All is well. Except that I now have floaters in BOTH eyes
There was a record attendance at camp this year. The average is around 250. We had 430-ish! That's including scouts and their leaders as well as the adults teaching merit badge classes. They had to add tables in the Mess Hall and it was so crowded you could hardly move. No idea what the "safe" capacity is. But I get impatient in lines, so volunteered every AM and a few other meals to help on the serving lines. We eat last, but at least I'm doing something! The food was GREAT! We have a local troop that takes very good care of us at Camp Turkey
.Our troop is pretty dysfunctional, and there are a few scouts and leaders who....... Well, anyway. Our troop and campsite was total chaos. No leadership, no organization. No, there was leadership, they just didn't do anything -- don't get me started. So I stayed frustrated! There were even adults who were disrespecting camp rules -- setting wonderful examples for the boys......grrrrrrr!
In our TEXTILE class there was a young scout with behavioral/medical "issues" who drove us crazy. I was able to talk to his leader and we worked out a plan, so things went better. But, boy! I was ready to have him pulled from the class for his disruptive behavior, but at the same time, I wanted him to stay because he was totally enjoying the class. Turns out, the parents failed to fully disclose what the triggers were for this kiddo. Parents, really? You couldn't have clued your son's leaders in?
On Monday night, I was sort of the "adult on duty" back at the campsite, as the kids and other adults did their things. A group of us were around the campfire, and it was a true Boy Scout moment! The boys were behaving, having fun, singing songs, no one killed anyone, the fire stayed contained, and they accepted me into their circle. Until.......THUMP, followed by painful yell! One of the boys was trying to break a fire log by jumping or stomping on it [OK....not too smart]. He fell just right and broke his leg instead of the log. He's a very large stature young man [seriously, he is a little overweight, but mostly he's just tall with a big frame]. Everyone [scouts] was laughing at him, and he was laughing a little, too, so everyone thought he was playing. But within those first 30 seconds, I knew something was wrong. Long story short, he had a very bad break. Such a good, sweet young man, and I'm thinking why couldn't it have been one of the annoying, you-want-to-ring-his-neck kids.
Normally I'm such an introvert and not a mixer, but I met lots of new, really neat people! There was one leader with the most beautiful accent -- he is orginally from Camaroon and was an Eagle Scout in his country. I asked and he told me all about his country, growing up there, the culture, the food -- wow! So he's now in the US [east Texas, to be exact] raising a family and still involved in scouting. Oh, and there was the guy who came in to help with another class. He was teaching Braille as part of a merit badge. He showed me the Braille typewriter and all kinds of related stuff. And one old guy who's been in scouting and in the local area literally forever -- I've seen him but never spoke to him, so we met. Lots of wonderful stories to tell about his scouting experiences!
The next day [yesterday] was the last day...... And now I'm home, sleeping in my own warm bed with my Hubby and kitty cats to keep me warm and cozy! Already writing out notes and making plans for next year! I really do enjoy our Camp Turkey!
