My Aching Back!

Today was our first scheduled "clean up" day at camp. So fun and exciting to actually be back at the camp and to see some of my friends from last summer. Sadly, a lot of the staff has moved on....their college years are over and they have to get "real" jobs. It just makes me feel even older! Luckily for us, the camp is able to get a landscaper in to do a lot of the heavy raking. There was still lots to do though. While most of the kids went and did even more raking, I opened up my Art room. In Hebrew it's "UMUNUT". Pronounced oominooot. But I say "I'm a nut". It fits. As always, the art room needed some serious sweeping. We get little furry visitors all winter long who leave their "deposits" everywhere, as well as many, many chewed up acorns. The room is lined with shelves which all have to be swept. It took me about two hours to sweep them off then sweep off the floor. I finished just in time for lunch, but didn't finish my first slice of pizza before families started arriving for open house and we began giving tours. I ended out taking about four families around. We saw the waterfront, the boat house, the nurse's office, the Moadon (Rec Hall), the Art room, playground, tennis courts, basketball courts, dodgeball court and ball field. Also the bathrooms and bunks. It's a day camp, so they don't sleep in the bunks...they just change in them and leave their stuff there. It was fun to talk to new families and see the excitement on the kids' faces when they saw the camp and I talked about all the fun they would have. When the families were all gone, it was time to put in the docks...the most dreaded duty at camp simply because they weigh a ton. They're in sections, and each section needs to be carried down the beach and into the water. Usually I avoid this task, since I"m the "old lady" of the camp and there are usually many fine strapping young people to do the job. But this year, all our strapping young people have been replaced by .....shall we say.....less robust people (think 98 pound weakling). So this year I decided to help and finally realized just how horribly out of shape I am. I helped with two and literally thought I was having a heart attack. I gave in and went back up on the beach and raked the leaves that were left after all the young folk had moved each section of dock. Sigh.......... We finished just as it started raining. As soon as I got home I got in a hot tub of water and took some Ibuprofen. But I know I'll be moaning and groaning getting out of bed tomorrow morning.