A Real Camp Update.

So I figured it was time to give you a real update about camp. It has been 2 weeks since first session began. It’s 1:30 am Sunday and now seems as good a time as any to finally get all of this stuff down and plus Jake has earned it and I am chilling out to Widespread Panic from the New Years show. (One the top 5 nights of my life)

Pre Camp:
I spent the early part of June moving from Savannah to camp. I spent a few days in both Virginia and New Jersey before dropping into camp. I needed to unload my gypsy wagon into the formally known “Kaczynski Kabin” now renamed the “Decompression Chamber”

So how is camp? There is no easy answer to that question this summer. While on the whole camp is great there is a strange vibe this summer and no one can quite put his or her finger on exactly why. It is as if you can see storm clouds but you are not sure if the are headed your way but you are somewhat concerned just in case. I also think expectations from last year were high and very hard to live up to. On the flip side is we still have 5 weeks to go. Of course most things are the same like the food, the weather, the conversations, the core of camp, which is nice. The drives so far this summer have been OK, the good ones start next week. What makes a good drive, that’s easy, any trip that goes north of camp into the heart of the Adirondack State Park, short or long. I have a trip next week to Lake Placid, while a 2 and a half hour one-way drive, is filled with great scenery along the way so it makes it worth the drive. The bad trips are the one when I go south and have to go into Old Forge and deal with the tourist traffic, which is a pain.

The weather has been great since the fifth day of camp. The first four where nothing but grey rainy days, it reminded me of Seattle. I weather before camp was too good to be true on a few days, low humidity and highs around 73, perfect picture weather. I have some shots that I am going to put up when I get the chance. Most of them are panoramas so I have to find the best way to display them on the web. I have one that I am thinking about trying to sell in the local area, it is the one taken from Bald Mountain. I also got a few great shot while in Vermont. I did miss, but I can still see in my head, as what would be one of my finest shots had I had my camera with me. I was in Portsmouth NH and the mist over the river on the Maine side was glowing from the streetlights on the far dock. Imagine my alleyway shot from Savannah and turn it on its side is the closest I could explain it. I will return to that spot and get the shot this fall, it will not bee hard to recreate, well the weather has to recreate it and since my mystical powers do not seem to effect the weather, at least on a large scale. And no global warming is not all my fault.

So far this summer my “Dr. Phil” sessions with a few of the counselors are higher this year than last. Part of it may be because some of last year’s counselors had winter problems stored up waiting foe me when I got here. But I still think that is my main function at camp. I know at least one person who is having a much better time at camp after a few nights just hanging out and talking. Communication is a wonderful thing; try it some time, especially if you are married. Oh by the way, being single still sucks less than being married, but everything is perception.

I found a great place for North Carolina (vinegar based) BBQ (pulled pork) about 40 minutes north of camp in Blue Mountain Lake. It is worth the drive and the risk of a bout with the gout for this BBQ. The owner is a guy named Willie from Raleigh, NC who moved up here two years ago and he and partner purchased a restaurant with some existing weekend rental cabins. He works out of a chuck wagon while they get the place finished up for the winter season. More of my trips bring me right by him so not stopping will be a challenge. I was on my way back today from Willies with Mark (camp’s jr. mr. fixit) when we spotted a young black bear in the road. I was able to get some shot of him, which should be up soon.

I have begun to form a plan for where I am going after camp and right now the quick answer is I am moving to the North East Kingdom in Vermont for the winter. I know what you may be thinking. You hate the cold, why live all the way up there? Again the short answer is it will give me time to find a place to build my cabin. I am looking for a small plot with lake access of a small boston whaler or a few acres with a great view. I will then put up a place no bigger than 16 x 20 and off grid. This will also give me some time to complete the movie I am working on. I will not give very much away at this point but I am knee deep in story ideas and character development. I hope to have it finished before Christmas so I can start principle photography on it right after camp gets out next summer. I will tell you it is the first of the trilogy I have planned. The base story is there for all three movies with an interesting metaphysical twist that if all three movies get made should work out well. It is a camp movie but you should have figured that out by now. I do have the first 5 minutes done and I believe the opening is going to be great. I may talk more about it later but for right now that should be enough. Oh yeah, I want Kevin Smith to direct it.

Finally I have decided to release the long lost blog from last summer, it is below, enjoy.