Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Walkin in Memphis

So I am back from camp. It was a long month that somehow flew by before my eyes... It is strange how something can seem long in some senses and short in others. Coming back, it seems like I missed so much and was gone forever but while I was in it the days were flying by. I am very glad I decided to do camp and really feel like the summer was amazing... people were a little hesitant about my choice to leave home for a month but I feel like if there is something I want to do, I need to get out there and do it! It was a lot of hard work (for many different reasons) but something that I do not regret one bit. The friendships that were made, re-made, and strengthened at camp are so important to me and the impact I got to make on the campers was really awesome.

Now that I'm back, I sure am glad to be back in a large city. In Monteagle, you pretty much have just a few options for eating out... Subway, Waffle House, McDonalds or Sonic for fast food and Mi Casa, Papa Ron's, and Shenanigans for dining in. Shopping? Well you can go to Mountain Outfitters for your latest outdoor gear, hit up the Fred's or Family Dollar, go to CVS, or haul it down the mountain to one of 4 WalMarts within 20 miles. No wonder people are so reliant on WalMart.

I also really like being back in Memphis because I get to see people I haven't seen in a while. Like Jake! He actually came and visited for a long weekend between Camp II and Camp III. We had such a nice time.. He did the camp thing with me Friday morning, then we went and ate at Stirings for lunch (I had the brie platter as usual... yum), went to the University Bookstore, and then went down to the Memorial Cross and hiked to Proctor's Hall and back. We got back and did the whole banquet/eucharist/dance deal for Friday night and then Saturday sent the kids off. We then went to Chattanooga for a movie (Up! so sad!) and ate Mellow Mushroom. I forgot how much I liked Mellow Mushroom. Can we get one in Memphis, please? I'll just have to make sure when we go visit Jacob and Ezra that we go to the one in Knoxville. Jake brought the dogs who really liked being able to roam the grounds of Dubose. We even took the dogs swimming because it was so hot they were overheating. Some people did not like that we took them in the pool but let's just be honest - that pool was nasty before they even were in there!

Now that I'm back from camp, I'm doing a lot of catching up... catching up on school, on sleep, on bills, on making a budget, on playing with my kitty (who has grown so much!), on the gossip, etc. I have some awesome pictures from camp but unfortunately when I went to burn them onto a CD because they are all on the camp computer, I did it wrong and now don't have the pictures until Charles brings me another cd of them. I've got a lot of things to get done and most of all am very excited for Friday night because I'm FINALLY getting to see Wicked. I've been wanting to see it ever since I started to listen to the soundtrack in college and now it is in Memphis and my parents have tickets! I cannot wait. I hear it is fabulous.

Jake starts class next week and so that will be a big change. We've made our budget and are sticking to it. I had to go to Saddle Creek yesterday to get a new charger for my macbook (old charger died... 80$ for new one.) and passed by JCrew, Ann Taylor Loft, Gap, and Banana, all who were advertising sales in their window (60% off! how can you say no?) - well I did say no. I'm also writing down everything I spend so I can keep track better. We're cooking a lot more at home and only buying for the day so we don't overbuy at the grocery store. Last night's dinner was delish and only cost 10$ - grilled chicken that had been marinated in a lemon rosemary mix, green beans with lemon pepepr, and fresh angel hair pasta with butter and parmesean cheese.

Well, I need to do some work for my online class. I'm enjoying learning about gifted education and feel like this really is where I need to be... while it may be very hard at first. We'll see - they are supposed to call about interviews in July.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Update on Life











Well we are two days into Camp II now (the mdidle school camp) and I am sitting here getting some office work done while the kids are off canoeing. I have been faithful about keeping up the camp blog and yesterday spent time editing some video footage Hank took and adding in titles and music to the beginning and end. We're trying to get some video so that we can have a promotional video for camp - something that we keep hearing we're going to get from various sources but never actually see. I'm learning about iMovie as I go so there isn't anything profoundly great yet but we'll get there.

I got to spend this weekend with my family since my parents came up to pick up Jacob and Ezra from camp and take them to orientation. I helped Jacob and Ezra with their advising worksheet, and remembered how much fun I have doing academic advising. I like that it is a puzzle to figure out. I hate puzzles but I love this one.
In other news, Jake is going to be starting a Master's of Science in Pharmacology program in July. It is an 11 month program where he will be taking courses from UT-Health Science Center in Memphis to work towards his eventual goal of med school. He is going to have to study a lot and it will be hard on us to not have his job salary but he is really excited about it and it is a great step towards his goal.

With my brothers going off to orientation, I thought I'd reflect on them a bit. The pictures for today are four of my brothers and me. Two are from CGM 2006, my last year as a counselor on staff, and two are from this year - three years later. In the first two pictures, they were rising sophomores in high school and I was a rising senior in college. I hadn't decided to be a teacher yet and was still trying to figure out what in the world I was going to do with a history and political science degree. Right after camp, I actually interned in the admissions office and realized that a huge university was not where I wanted to work. Jacob and Ezra were just getting into the swing of high school - they were still playing regularly with their band, the sludge monkeys, and Jacob was starting to work more seriously on vocal music. Now I'm married and they are going off to college. This summer everyone couldn't get over how much they were like adults instead of kids. They really are - whether I want them to be or not!

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Living the CGM life.











Well these past days have been busy as usual for us here at camp. I'm getting used to the camp schedule and am really enjoying our staff a lot. The grounds here are beautiful and I can't wait until next week when we start taking advantage of the mountain more and do hikes, swim, etc.








We've had Pre Camp here this weekend, which has been a blast. Pre Camp is the rising first through third grade kids with a parent and is an introduction to Camp Gailor Maxon. It has been great teaching them the traditions, singing songs, and running around with them. They are so adorable but do have a TON of energy so I am worn out.



I got my summer courses for gifted certification sort of worked out - I am registered and have my code to get in the online system for the class but couldn't get the online system to work correctly. I'll have to try again Monday. Class starts Monday but I emailed the professors and let the know of the issue. I ordered one of the books I need (80$ - ouch!) but don't know what the other one is yet. I know that it will be worth it to have this certification, though.




Our internet here has been horrible and it has been really hard to get much done online. I have some pictures on my computer I want to share but can't yet because the only internet that works currently is the wireless and it is password protected but no one can remember the password so only the one computer with it programmed in gets the internet. Super. I do have some pictures I took today. It was gorgeous up here and made for a beautiful day. There are several church families here like the Mathes family, the Leopard boys, and the Seltzers and I've loved spending time with them. It is so neat to share my love for CGM with these families, many of who have ties to either CGM or Dubose.




The pictures above are...




1) The t-shirt I designed for this summer.

2) The Pre Camp group picture


3) The archways to the Downstairs Chapel

4) The front of Claiborne Hall, the main building for Dubose Conference Center.

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Camp


Well, I've been at camp for 5 days now. Things are going very well but I don't think I've ever been this busy! I'm Assistant Director so I am doing a lot of behind the scenes work as well as running around with the team. I've tried to focus a lot on leadership development and teamwork because those two things lead to a smooth summer. In addition, we've been doing a lot of education for the staff too - tonight we talked about age development levels in children. We also did a poloroid panic through Wal-mart. Goodness! I made it and the clues were funny..at least I think so:)

I had to get a thicker cover and so on our Wal-mart run the other day (notice a trend? It is pretty much all you can do shopping wise on the mountain) I got a bedding set which proved helpful since I have two beds made here, one in Cabin 5 and one in Cabin 4 (depending on whether I'm needed in the adult cabin or not. I'm not sleeping there alone so I'll be in Cabin 5 when no other adult volunteers are there). It is so cute - I'm adding a pic for you!

Also if you are interested in following our escapades at camp, check out the blog I'm keeping for camp. We're going to update it daily so that camp alum and parents can see what we are up to. It is...

http://campgailormaxon.blogspot.com

Update: added the pic of my cute organic cotton bedding.

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
 
Site Design By Designer Blogs