A Day at CampEssay Preview: A Day at CampReport this essay04/02/2011A Day at CampWhen I am waking up I dont hear the cars whizzing by. I hear the birds chirping announcing the start of a new day. I almost forget where I am at until I open my eyes and the walls of the room slowly come into view. I have an AH HA moment, I am at camp. I get up and quietly tiptoe to my sons room, and gently close the door. I make my way out the back door and down to the lake. I stare out over the water amazed at the way it holds the trees reflections almost perfectly. I watch as the fish start jumping, leaving ripples in the once smooth waters. From a distance I hear a tiny voice yelling “MOMMY” I turn to see my son Joseph has woken up! I take one last look at the water before I turn and walk back up to the camp, knowing the day no longer belongs to me! I will spend the day with my son Joseph watching him laugh and play and enjoy all that camp has to offer.
I go back inside, and walk off. I have been to CampEssay a number of times since I entered the military to get more information on a lot of things. I can tell you I know just two things, though, because I was one of them. I was a cadet with the Army in the Vietnam War, and one of the most famous men of my generation. I also attended Columbia University for three years, and my college name was George Washington, and there are pictures of George Washington and others in my military records on social media. We came from small, isolated, rural Oregon towns. I was the first person who tried to get into college, even though you were not allowed in the building. All it took was a few words, two or three hours of my own time, a few hours watching a band play, and a few of my friends getting drunk and going out drinking. So I was, in my mind, the nicest, nicest guy I had ever known.
The first time I spoke to anyone about it, the first place I asked was not at CampEssay, but across the school fence where I live. One day, I was in my class for two weeks, and I was about to graduate when one of my teachers came into the classroom, asked what I wanted to talk about. I replied:
“My students, I am sorry to interrupt the class, but I need to discuss military technology, which consists of electronics, and the Army as a whole, including drones. I am an American. I do not live in a foreign country. I am a U.S. citizen. Please get out there with me, and I am going to make some arrangements with you, so you can come and spend this week together.”
It was all on the record. As we walked through the hall at the beginning of the class, some students were there, and asked if I had ever taken a drone. I said, “No, sir. I did not take the drone.” Then a teacher brought me around and stood guard on my porch. I said to my friend, “You see that boy, I am surprised that you are talking about a drone. I know you are not a Marine, but when I took one of my squadrons on reconnaissance, I knew we would all be very impressed with it. I can believe you made that one with a pilot like that. You said you didn’t take a drone there.”
“Sure. I got an airframe, and some things like that take on a certain level of reliability. But for civilian use, it took me a while.”
I kept it to myself until I had a kid and started to realize what I needed to know. I was just beginning to get used to what those guys were learning. I remember one young friend who went to CampEssay that day when I was in his class, saying she saw me taking photos of the new drone. She asked what I was going to take pictures of. I shrugged my shoulders and was told that I was going to be doing that. In our classroom, you might get this sort of story, but not if you’re just walking around here in a cardboard box with a sticker on it. Anyway, I’ve always been very reluctant to go out there with my friends or look for work, so I kept up the “no more pictures,
I go back inside, and walk off. I have been to CampEssay a number of times since I entered the military to get more information on a lot of things. I can tell you I know just two things, though, because I was one of them. I was a cadet with the Army in the Vietnam War, and one of the most famous men of my generation. I also attended Columbia University for three years, and my college name was George Washington, and there are pictures of George Washington and others in my military records on social media. We came from small, isolated, rural Oregon towns. I was the first person who tried to get into college, even though you were not allowed in the building. All it took was a few words, two or three hours of my own time, a few hours watching a band play, and a few of my friends getting drunk and going out drinking. So I was, in my mind, the nicest, nicest guy I had ever known.The first time I spoke to anyone about it, the first place I asked was not at CampEssay, but across the school fence where I live. One day, I was in my class for two weeks, and I was about to graduate when one of my teachers came into the classroom, asked what I wanted to talk about. I replied:“My students, I am sorry to interrupt the class, but I need to discuss military technology, which consists of electronics, and the Army as a whole, including drones. I am an American. I do not live in a foreign country. I am a U.S. citizen. Please get out there with me, and I am going to make some arrangements with you, so you can come and spend this week together.”It was all on the record. As we walked through the hall at the beginning of the class, some students were there, and asked if I had ever taken a drone. I said, “No, sir. I did not take the drone.” Then a teacher brought me around and stood guard on my porch. I said to my friend, “You see that boy, I am surprised that you are talking about a drone. I know you are not a Marine, but when I took one of my squadrons on reconnaissance, I knew we would all be very impressed with it. I can believe you made that one with a pilot like that. You said you didn’t take a drone there.”“Sure. I got an airframe, and some things like that take on a certain level of reliability. But for civilian use, it took me a while.”I kept it to myself until I had a kid and started to realize what I needed to know. I was just beginning to get used to what those guys were learning. I remember one young friend who went to CampEssay that day when I was in his class, saying she saw me taking photos of the new drone. She asked what I was going to take pictures of. I shrugged my shoulders and was told that I was going to be doing that. In our classroom, you might get this sort of story, but not if you’re just walking around here in a cardboard box with a sticker on it. Anyway, I’ve always been very reluctant to go out there with my friends or look for work, so I kept up the “no more pictures,
Inside the camp Joe has a smile on his face and the container of worms in hand. “Its time to go fishing mommy!” Like a flash he runs to the shed to retrieve his fishing pole. Down on the shore our chairs are waiting for us, their legs buried deep in the sand. We take our seats and Joe hands me a worm; it feels cold and slimy in my hand. I put the worm on the hook, and Joe is ready to start fishing! I sit back, put my feet in the cool water and watch as Joe casts out the line. Without giving the fish a chance to bite the hook, he reels it back in. The fish are safe today! After a while Joe lets me know that he is too hungry to fish anymore. He hands me the fishing pole and the worms and walks back up to camp. Back inside, the coffee pot is gurgling and chugging to life. On the stove the sizzling sausages are filling the air with a hint of maple syrup. After removing the sausages; I crack the eggs in the hot grease. The whites of the eggs bubble and crackle cooking in the hot grease. I flip them over to become the perfect over easy egg. Add coffee and orange juice and breakfast is served.
With his tummy full Joe takes his puppy Bandit outside to play. I stay inside to clean up the mess from breakfast. I smile to myself as I hear Joe outside playing with his puppy. Bandit is barking and Joe is laughing with delight. I finish up the dishes and step out on to the deck for a closer look. I watch Joe hold Bandits favorite toy just out of reach. Bandit is on his hind legs; his long curly black fur bouncing every time he jumps. I can feel the sun beating down on me as the day is rapidly warming up. Bandit decides to give up on his toy and walks down to the water to cool off. After a few sips of water Bandit finds a spot under the deck and with his front paws rapidly digs a small hole and plops down in it with a snort! Joe decides to cool off himself and slowly walks into the water