Dun da dun daa, dun da dahh, dun da duhn daa, dun da dun da da!!!

Howdy Circle F Family,

Indiana Jones was at Circle F today in search of his Random Stuff (hence the Indiana Jones theme music in the title of this blog). This was a game of physical, mental and all-around skills. Campers competed in Canoe Races, Rock Wall Climbing, Archery and Puzzle Solving. Music from the movies rang through camp as the campers ran from obstacle to obstacle trying to unlock the mystery. In the end, all had a great time and all found the treasure at the end of the rainbow: evening store.

Each meal we start with a song. After the meal we sing some of the most outrages songs you have ever heard. We have the "Banana Song," "Um-Oht," "The Canoe Song," "Little Red caboose," "the froggie song," "the welcome song," "good morning campers," "down by the bank," "hi my name is Joe," "tarzan," "arustacha," "Johhny Rebec," "the beaver song" and a whole lot more. As the names suggest, these are some crazy songs. A lot of them involve different hand motions and dances and others make you contort your body into hilarious positions. This is one of the wonderful things about camp. Nobody ever questions whether or not we should be singing these wacky songs. If someone were to, at home after the meal, stand on our chair and break into a loud,rambunctious song about a person sticking their head into a skunk whole, we would probably call the looney bin. At camp all of us are crazy and that is what makes camp so much fun.

I really have to throw a shout out to our counselors. They are working so hard to put on the best camp possible. If you were to ask me to choose in between my staff and all of my fun camp toys such as the blob, rock wall, etc... I would take the staff in a second. Many of our counselors are former campers and they are trying to give these campers the same great experiences that they had when they came to Circle F. This is always impressive to me because it shows that they have matured enough to realize the benefits they received by going to camp. I wish that all of you reading this blog could really get to know the counselors. We have the future movers and shakers right here at Circle F. They have so much energy and passion for life. It is part of my job to keep them inspired and motivated, however, I feel like that often times they are the ones who are motivating and inspiring me to reach my full potential. The work they are doing with the campers is truly inspiring. The first goal of Circle F is to help campers grow more independent and more self confident. It is an amazing byproduct that our counselors (and administration) also grow in the process of growing our campers.

If you have any questions about camp, camp philosphy, camp history, or if you have a funny joke please comment on the blog and I will try to answer your questions.

As we come near the end of the first session (sigh), there are some FAQ's that parents normally have:

Q:What day is Pick-UP?
A:Pick up is on SATURDAY June 21.

Q:What time is Pick-Up?
A:Campers will be ready for pick-up by 9:00AM. All campers should be on the road by Noon unless prior arrangements have been made.

Q:When is the Rodeo?
A:The Rodeo is at 10:00AM.

Q:Will my camper be in the Rodeo?
A:The rodeo is open to all campers, however, some campers choose not to participate.

Q:What if my camper wants to stay another session?
A:We do have availability for our 3 remaining sessions. We can arrange for your camper to stay for our next session or to come back for our 3rd or 4th session. There is a 5% discount on you additional session and you also receive a 5% discount on the current session.

Q:How do I sign up for next year? When will you have the dates available? Will the prices go up?
A: I am glad you asked. We have set the camp schedule for 2009 and we will have registration forms available at check-out. If you sign up for Summer 2009 before November 1st with your $500 deposit you will lock in the 2008 rates. You will also receive the early bird discount of 5% off tuition. I highly encourage you to sign up your campers for next summer before November 1st to take advantage of this huge discount.

Q:What is the deal with tipping counselors?
A:We neither discourage or encourage tipping. Our counselors are primarily college students working for money for tuition, books and extra spending money. If you feel the desire to tip your counselors you are allowed to, but it is not expected. Counselors appriciate any type of recognition, and are happy to know that you you, as parents and guardians, appriciate the hard work they have done.

Q:Should I tip the Assistant Director?
A:YES!!! (just kidding)

That is all for tonight. I wish you the happiest dreams of all time.

Fantastic Wishes,
Roger Hanafin and Gang
Assistant Director

P.S. your text language lesson for the day is "B4N" meaning "Bye For Now."