What I did this summer (Part 1)

What a summer.... seriously.

From the very first day of summer (well, actually the second: June 22), things have just gone from strange to stranger. Good, bad, ugly... I've had it all. And the summer isn't even close to being over. Oy vej!! I'll try to recap the major points (can't call the all "highlights" cause some of them are definitely low points) without getting into all the gory details.

Summer camp with the Upper School kids.

The good: Spending time with the kids. I feel that I finally formed more of a relationship with some of them. Unfortunately, that is largely due to the principle of "the enemy of my enemy is my friend." Also, my friend Anna, was at camp too which made it somewhat more bearable.
The bad: Camp was horribly unorganized. I didn't know what was going on half of the time which meant I was pretty ineffective as a teacher. This was exacerbated by:
The UGLY: A particular person in a position of authority abused his position and made camp nearly unbearable for myself, Anna, and the children. It was nasty. In all honesty, the fact I did not quit my job on the spot was largely due to having no money on my phone thus rendering it impossible to call a cab.

Two of the girls caving

5a boys

My feelings after only HALF of the 6+km hike (it was actually more like bushwhacking)

Anna and I roasting marshmallow-like objects. Note the looks of absolute joy on our faces.

Did you know that pancakes are an essential part of an American BBQ?
Neither did I.


Regardless, Anna makes a mean pancake! Some of the Year 7 kids by the campfire

Year 7 kids after the "dance off"

Year 5 and 6 kids during the "dance off"

I documented the feelings of all the kids and some of the staff at camp after all the crap that happened. Here are some of the best pictures --




And... my personal favorite:

(I am not OBJECTIVELY opposed to jackasses at camp:
this one was actually quite cute!)