Mossy Cottage Knits

Yes, this is definitely hinky as heck. Was the camp counselor supervising the skinny dip the same one as the one giving y'all the scrub-down? I'd be very suspicious about that particular counselor.

Nope, Lola. It was all different counselors, all female (the camps WERE segregated by gender). What was curious was that returning campers thought this was all normal, which is probably what made me think it was normal, too. Heck, I was *nine*; what did I know?

There really was never anything sexual about any of it; it was just all odd.

What? Was this Embarrassment Camp? I've never heard of such craziness. You should be glad you're not sitting in a corner eating your own hair. I hope those people have changed their ways since then. Sheesh.

While I can't account for the constipation fascination, I've seen kids that age at camp and it probably took that kind of brush down to get them clean again. Maybe the skinny dipping was a covert attempt to get you clean too. Soak it a bit before trying to scrub it.

I remember dropping my brother off at camp one summer and everytime we drove by for the next two weeks we saw him playing with his friends wearing the exact same clothes we had dropped him off in.

We may have had to burn the clothes off of him in the end.

Girl Scout camp was much less strange, and for that I am thankful.

hmmm. As a person who adored camp (and I mean ADORED!) I find all of that hinky. The worst thing we had to do was strip and stand in line to shower before we went swimming (everyday swimming) The modest were terrified that they would be seen naked.. but since were were all girls (and all the same age.. no counselors really except to load you in and load you out when done) They finally got over it. 2 stalls. no curtains.. just jump in, clean up, jump out. NEXT!

also I have a thought... DC. I have a friend who donated a scarf to the box Martha mailed who lives in DC. She knit it there.. but it was mailed from Philly.. Hmmmm. prolly not though since she didn't mail hers alone.. it went in the big ole pile from the KR retreat.

hugs!! have a great weekend.

I know you said you moved around a lot - was this camp somewhere other than the US, or should I watch where I send MHP this summer? :)

Our camp, we didn't shower for a whole week, ate nothying but dessert for dinner, and rode horses all day long. I think there was some religion in there too. Somewhere.

OH!!! I just realized that I will be in NEVADA for a week in the middle of June. (eBay Live, I'm there to represent for my company.) I will make a hat and mail it from Las Vegas, so you can check Nevada off your list!

Sorry, I would have said something sooner, but it took a while for all the facts to meet up together in my head.

P.S. What organization ran that crazy inappropriate camp you went to?

Kentucky! A friend in Kentucky has agreed to knit at least one thing and mail it to arrive at F.I.R.E. by July 1st!

Woo-hooooo!!

WHAT THE HELL CAMP DID YOU GO TO? Sorry to shout, but I'da been up there with torches and pitchforks if my kid had come home with stories like that. If you tell me where it is/was, I might just go burn it down NOW.
And now, after that rant, I am speechless, and shaking my head. And I thought it was weird to be a kid in the 80s. (Sadly, I actually had to use my calculator to figger out the equation "37 years ago makes the year...wha?" It's Friday and it's been a LOOOOOOOoooong week.)

where the heck was that! good golly.

But that body scrubbing, I went to the Olympus Spa once and paid good money to have someone scrub me like that. I never felt so exfoliated in my life.

We made lanyard zipper pulls. Makes for a severe lack-o-story 37 years later.

My mom is *still* that way about bowel movements! When my kids used to stay at her house she would ask them if they had "gone" yet that day; they learned (perhaps, um, more quickly than you, dear Ryan?) to simply lie and say "Yes" no matter what.

I can remember her keeping track of my brother and me growing up, too... maybe it's a generational thing?

But I gotta tell you: ANY ONE of those three stories would make for the oddest camp story I've ever heard! All three together is ... pretty creepy.

I'm glad you're not sitting in a corner eating your own hair. You're not, are you? Ryan? RYAN!?!?!?!?

Wow . . . I know I've been pushing for Canada but I am very impressed with the progression of the United States! Why are you having so much trouble with Nevada? I know some knitters there . . . I ran into some on a business trip there. I'm going to email one of them for you. Actually, to tell you the truth . . .even though I've called myself the ambassador for Canada . . . I think I've influenced more Americans . . . LOL, figures. :)

Wyoming! I'm 95% certain I've got Wyoming covered!

I think that's it, though ... I'm out of long distance buddies.

(Taking my hair out of my mouth...)

In answer to everyone's #1 question, I won't name names, but this was actually an upscale, private camp in New Jersey. We did all the usual stuff, too, like riding and made lanyard zipper pulls (Marylee) and went overnight camping in tee-pees (typo: tee-poos. Very telling.) that we had put up ourselves. But what does it say about this experience that what I really REMEMBER is the scrub brush and the Milk of Magnesia and the forced skinny dipping? Maybe it's just me; I dunno.

Anj: I can't quite tell but from your comment but was the scarf KNIT in D.C. or just mailed from D.C.? Depending on your answer, we might be onto something here...

Holy crap. That is just freaking scary. I went to camp in NJ (that burned down a couple years later) and mine was nothing like that. WTF were those counselors thinking?!?

I'm going to have camp nightmares tonight.

I was sent to bible camp for a few summers when I was ~10-12 but it was a HORSE bible camp (Miracle Ranch in Kitsap County, WA). I figured the daily bible discussion was a small price to pay for being able to ride horses and swim in the lake. I loved every minute of it that didn't involve opening a bible.

Hey Ryan, if you want to sound really in the know, call it "PEI" instead of "Prince Edward Island" - a lot of Canadians often forget it has a real name, lol.

And that was one totally freakish camp! I hope it isn't still running like that...

Ya know, for being a stalker, I read your post with my jaw on the floor. I was absolutely flabbergasted at the way that camp was run. And I STALK PEOPLE. If it's creepy to me, it is seriously creepy. I want my binkie now. *shudder*

You can mark off Kentucky - I have two hats already ready to go, and will try for a few more.

Kate in Western KY

Dang I'm glad I was a poor kid from the country - I got to ride my friends horses, ride my bike to the beach, walk thru the woods, all without scrub brush exfoliating (although I am sure my mother thought about it more than once)or forced skinny dipping (I never went skinny dipping because of all the fish - which I know where there even with my bathing suit on - LOL but that is what my brain came up with and I still won't swim at night for the same reason - I know I know I am just weird)

ROFL.

Your post about camp reminded me of a story that my uncle told me once. When he was a boy scout, my grandfather, an old fashioned family practice MD, was the leader. Every morning he would make the scouts line up and handed out the prunes. Two prunes per scout, every day. He'd then ask if they'd each had a "BM." If not, then you'd get the prune JUICE too.

What was it with that generation and proper intestinal function?

I don't know if it'll count, but my hat (or two) will be knit mostly in DC. I work in DC and travel to and fro on a commuter bus, but I live in MD. The hat was cast on in DC and has been knit on the bus - crossing the MD state line, I'm sure... and I can sure as heck MAIL it from D.C. But if I have to do all the knitting just while I am physically in DC, I may not make the Deadline! :)

Ya left out Saskatchewan! It's coloured in though, so I guess that's ok. I know there are tons of knitters in Newfoundland... I'm betting you'll get something from there, too!

My god. Where the hell did you go to camp? Are you sure it wasn't prison or some sort of reform school? Makes all my camp horrors seem positively sunny.

Boy Hidey you know how to make a girl grateful for never having been to camp.

Nope. Never have I ever had that joy.

Nope. I joined the Army instead. Heh. I do have stories about tick checks and digging holes however. Perhaps another day?

I went to Meg Swansen's wonderful Knitting Camp and there were NO stiff scrub brushes, NO BM checks and NO cold forced skinny dipping. But, there was wonderful knitting, jokes, good humor and other obsessed knitters. Also, Meg's sister's restaurant has great food--and she doesn't ask about your bowels afterwards.

Do you have anything from Saskatchewan, Canada?

Having only just heard of your project from the Yarn Harlot, I don't have anything specific knit. But I'm sure I could make a hat or scarf by whatever deadline you need. Washington, D.C. goes without representation on too many things (pesky little things like budget autonomy and national voting rights) for me not to step up to fill a void here...

Hi, I'm new here. But I wanted to let you know that you could count me in for a hat or scarf from Oklahoma. I don't want anyone to think we don't care! :0)