Hey, Camp Kids!

Today is a day of thanks and recognition. Do you know what today is? It’s National Custodial Worker Day—a day dedicated to the respect and gratitude of those who take on the custodial and janitorial responsibilities of workplaces, schools buildings, and—yes—facilities at summer camps.

Custodians devote their efforts to maintaining a clean, safe, and healthy environment for us to live in. Keeping entire office buildings, school buildings, and other buildings in custodial care is no easy feat; it takes lots of time, energy, know-how, and patience. Thank goodness for the kind and constant services of our custodians.

To properly express your appreciation of your custodian’s cleaning and maintenances at the building you spend the day in, I compiled a short list of thoughtful ways to show your thanks.

•    The first, most obvious way to show your appreciation of your custodian’s services is to thank them face-to-face. Simply tell them how great of a job they do and how grateful you are of the role they play in keeping your environment clean and safe.

•    Secondly, try to keep the mess you make to a minimum. While you should do this every day, today especially, you should try and keep the areas you occupy as clean as you found them. Some people take on the attitude that it’s the job of the custodian to clean up the mess you make. This is not so. Buildings where people go to work, attend school, etc. constantly require custodial attention. They don’t need extra work from you.

•    Third, get them a card. Sure, a ‘thank you’ is nice in person, but a card really goes the extra mile. Cards are an easy way to incorporate everybody with signatures from everyone in your class.

Be sure to show your thanks to your custodian today and wish them a Happy Custodial Worker Day! Thanks for reading.

- John

Hey, Happy Hikers!

Summer’s on its way out, but it’s not over yet! Make the best of the rest and enjoy the outdoors as much as you can! I’ve been offering ideas for outdoor activities in the month of September—last Monday, I pointed out that it’s perfect campfire weather and the Monday before that I suggested apple-picking.

Idea #3: Going on a Hike. Nothing hits the spot like an adventurous constitutional amongst the fading foliage. So strap on your trail shoes, get out there, and breathe in the crisp, autumnal air.

There are lots of things you can do to make a hike a really good time. We have a slew of hiking gear here at Everything Summer Camp to help you enjoy your outing to its max. From hiking boots to water bottles, backpacks, and Hydration packs, we’ve got everything you need.

Another thing to keep in mind for your hike is your company. I like to share hikes with a good friend or two. The more the merrier! So round up a good group and hit the trail together.

It’s smart to bring a snack along too. Apples and bananas are nice, easy treats that require no real prep work, yet they’re very satisfying. If you know you’ll be out for a longer time, pack a sandwich and trail mix too. Picnicking is fun out in the woods or a park just off the trail.

As the summer season comes to an end, the green disappears from the leaves and they fall to the ground. At least, that’s what happens here in northern Wisconsin. It’s fun to spot cool-looking leaves and collect the ones you really like.

Hiking gets your blood pumping and makes you feel good. Prepare your own journey and get the most out of your hikes. Thanks for reading, Hikers.

- John

Hey, Summer Lovers!

It’s hard to watch the summer season go by, but it’s important to remember that, for the time, it’s still here. Sure, school’s back in session and the days are getting shorter, but it’s not technically fall until September 23. And, until then, it remains summer. So make the best of the rest and get out and enjoy the beautiful weather of the great outdoors. The weather’s perfect this time of the season!

Everything Summer Camp will be helping you out with some great ideas for outdoor activities, not just today, but for the next three Mondays in September.

Idea #1: Apple-Picking. This is always one of my favorite end-of-summer activities. There’s nothing like taking a trip out to an apple orchard and filling your bushel with apples that were picked straight off the branch, touched by nobody but you. Doesn’t that sound good?

I have so many fond memories from when I was a child, walking through the seemingly endless aisles of apple trees with my family, climbing ladders to reach the perfect apple, running with my cousins because my dad and uncle scared us pretending to be bears…

It’s pretty hard NOT to have a fun time when you’re out apple-picking! After all, the picking process is its own reward in itself. All the delicious apples that you’ve picked along the way are a bonus for the days to come.

Luckily, there’s no such thing as picking too many apples. An apple a day keeps the doctor away, but aside from an awesome snack, there are lots of things you can make to enjoy your hand-picked apples. Make apple sauce, apple cider, apple juice, apple crisp, apple pancakes, apple pie, CARAMELED APPLES!…

There’s really no downside to apple-picking! I know I’m planning a picking trip in the near future, how ‘bout you? Till next time, readers.

- John

Hey, Sports Fans!

Are you ready for some FOOTBALL?!!! We sure are here at Everything Summer Camp! It’s finally September—when the weather approaches the fall season and turns ripe, providing us with cooler temperatures and relief from the merciless summer heat. It’s perfect outside and it all means one thing’s for certain—football’s back! This time of year, in golden, autumn weather like this, it’s only right to watch some football on TV and play a game of 500 with your friends during halftime.

That’s what a Sunday afternoon in autumn is all about! The 2014 NFL, regular season kickoff, however, is not launching on a Sunday. Instead, it’s TONIGHT with the Green Bay Packers facing off against the current Super Bowl champions, the Seattle Seahawks at CenturyLink Field in Washington. The game starts at 7:30pm Central/Standard Time.

As Wisconsinites, here at Everything Summer Camp, our team is Green Bay. I think we’re a little nervous about starting out the season against the reigning champs, but we’re a good-lookin’ team who definitely could make this year the year we reclaim the championship and bring it back to Lambeau!

Football is football whether you’re a Packer fan, a fan of the Seahawks or if you root for any of the other 30 teams that make up the NFL. No matter who’s playing, it’s just good to see that it’s back!

So celebrate along in America’s most popular sport and join in the fandom that grows more and more every year. Football appeals to a lot of people which is good because the more people you watch it with, the more fun it is! (That’s partially why it’s so cool to actually go see a game at a stadium with a thousand other fans.) Throw a party and enjoy tonight’s game with all your football friends.

Thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Camp Fans!

You know what? Unfortunately, everybody’s human. And since we’re only human, some of us, from time to time, end up making poor decisions. Stealing, though completely unethical and hurtful to the person who’s being stolen from, is a rather popular crime. Thing is, you typically don’t need to be a master thief in order to pull off these sort of crimes.

They’re called Crimes of Opportunity and they can happen most frequently when you’re living in a communal setting like at a boarding school or a college campus. See, when untrustworthy people walk past your room, your door is wide open, and no one’s inside, it makes it easy for them to spot that cool new video game you recently bought or that expensive purse that everyone just HAS to have—and why? Because the opportunity was there.

Don’t give them the opportunity.

Bring your C&N Footlocker to school to lock up your valuables tight. Whether you go with, the C&N big, bad strongbox—The Graduate—(our biggest footlocker), The Slim Footlocker case which fits under most beds, or any of our other sizes in between, the rugged construction of all C&N Footlockers is sure to keep your valuables safe, out of sight, and locked away.

All C&N Footlockers are constructed with 3/8″, solid Aspen plywood and the outside is covered with a scratch-resistant, lead-free steel, then finished with zinc-plated hardware. The spacious insides are lined with DuraWrap, a water and odor resistant, virtually tear-proof paper liner.

You can use its surface as an extra nightstand in your room, as a sit-down bench, or a stand-on ladder. Its many uses will certainly come in handy around your room. Keep your valuables locked away in a C&N Footlocker while you’re at school and don’t allow yourself to become the victim of a crime of opportunity.

Thanks for reading.

- John