camp adventure day 3

Day 3: The First Explosion

Sunday June 9th, 2013

I woke up at about 9:00, which is quite late for a camp day.
Since camp hadn't actually started yet, that was okay. It was
nice to have a lazy morning, especially knowing that things would
get crazy later.

Amy and I went to the nearest town for lunch. We had many choices
for where to eat. I decided on Friendly's. It was like a blast
from the past.

Anyone from Kent who is my age or older has fond memories of
Friendly's. It was a major part of downtown Kent for people of
all ages. I still mourn the loss of my favorite family restaurant
and ice cream place.

My Coke came in a plastic cup with "COKE" in raised letters. I
liked that. My grilled cheese sandwich and french fries were
perfect. For dessert, I had my favorite ice cream -- butter
crunch. Only Friendly's sells that flavor of ice cream. I last
had it in August of 1997. I was in ice cream heaven.

There was good news back at camp. First, my online friends Janice
and Peyton would be my roommates, along with Janice's guide dog,
Destiny. Second, my other SSP was Tiara. I was surprised and
excited about that. I met Tiara my first year at camp. I request
her as an SSP every year, but she always works with someone else.

Amy and Tiara were the perfect match. Both are Irish red-heads
with pale skin and freckles. Plus, they each have my odd sense of
humor. I knew it was going to be a very good week with those two
at my side.

It was nice and sunny, so I decided to sit outside and read as
campers began to arrive. I was still hooked on that book, in the
middle of the climax scene. I also wanted to get away from the
retreat center. It's always chaos as campers show up.

I had a Dr. Pepper with me. Amy told me that Scott had arrived
and was headed to check-in. At that moment, I opened my Dr.
Pepper, and it exploded on me and my Deaf-Blind Communicator.
Luckily, the leather cover was shut over the device.

This was funny because only the week before, I made some smart
remark online, and Scott threatened to shake a can of Dr. Pepper
and mail it to me. So, there we were at camp and the moment he
shows up, my Dr. Pepper explodes. It had to be his fault. And
that was only the first explosion.

I finally went inside to brave the chaos so I could say hello to
my friends. We chatted for awhile. That's all there is to do when
camp first starts.

At dinner, I sat by Scott. I actually have pictures to prove
this, including some of him threatening to pour Dr. Pepper over
my head. But that's not how I know I sat next to him. We actually
sat together for every meal. It's not often you find someone who
is as weird, messed-up and insane as you are.

Next, I went for a motorcycle ride. My helmet had all kinds of
obscene stickers on it. The hardest part was getting on the bike.
I wasn't graceful, but I got on. That's all that matters.

I loved it when the biker said, "You can hold onto anything you
want." Heh.. heh... In my mind, he was one hot dude underneath
all that black leather. Oh yeah, I enjoyed the ride, too.

Then it was time for my least favorite activity -- The welcome
and rules meeting. Been there, done that. Yes, I know we need to
hold the lever down on the toilet for at least five seconds.

I went back to my room after the meeting because I was tired and
still wanted to finish that book. (I had to stop earlier right
before the murderer was named.) Tiara showed me how to get to the
bathroom without having to let go of the wall. It was a longer
way but worked great. I felt much more secure and was able to do
all my morning and night-time bathroom stuff on my own.

I felt bad for Peyton and Janice. They went to bed while I was
still reading. Then I had to take a shower. I was trying so hard
to be quiet, which only made me louder. When I came back from the
bathroom, I tripped over the trash can in our room to loudly
announce my return. Ooops....