Happy Best Friends Day, Besties!

Best friends are great. You might hope to spend nearly every waking hour of these long summer days together. You’ll have plenty of time for that, but what about when the time comes for your summer camp stay? Maybe your friend isn’t going to camp or maybe you’ll be attending different camps.

Of course having your best friend join you for camp would be a blast! You’d create so many memories of summer camp fun—a season sure to go down in the books as one of the best summers for the pair of you! Maybe some year you’ll be able to make that happen, but sometimes it can be a good thing to spend a little time away from your friend.

Don’t Shortchange your Camp Experience
Camp gives kids the opportunity to be themselves. At camp, kids have the space to discover more about who they are and the freedom to be even more of their authentic selves. Attending camp with your best friend would likely hinder the opportunity to rediscover yourself. For this reason, many kids prefer to attend a camp without a friend from home. Learn more about attending camp with a friend from this Blog post from camp expert Dr. Chris Thurber.

Growing Together, Separately
Though some of you may feel as though your best friend is a long lost identical twin, you are still your own individual personalities. Allow each other space to grow on your own too! Just because your interests may differ from your best friend’s doesn’t mean you two aren’t great friends! Sometimes friends need to grow apart a little bit in order to keep growing together!

Fond Farewells Forge Fonder Hellos
Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder. Think of all the fun memories your best friend will have to tell you and how much you will have for them when you finally see each other again! You’ll likely find your relationship is renewed and feels stronger than it was before! Be sure to be a good friend and really listen to all the things your friend wants to fill you in on!

Be thankful for your best friend today. Let them know how much they mean to you today and, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Camp Fans!

Lace up your boots and go hit a local trail. If you’re passionate about hiking, biking, bird watching, geo-caching, horseback riding, or other trail-oriented activities, there’s bound to be a nearby trail for you to enjoy today! No matter what kind of outing you have planned, it feels good simply immersing yourself in the scenic landscape of the natural world.

Here are some great reasons to enjoy, share, and appreciate National Trails Day today—check ‘em out:

Your Own Backyard
Most people live within driving distance of cool trails that are just waiting to be discovered and explored by you. Park trails offer us a chance to escape the bustling city life for a while without traveling too far to experience the peaceful existence of the natural world and enjoy the fresh air of the wilderness.

Togetherness on the Trails
Most trails are maintained by means of volunteer labor, so if you have interest in helping out—don’t hesitate! Check out the American Hiking Society’s website right here to look into volunteer opportunities for yourself. You can also look into events being held in celebration of National Trails Day or hosting an event yourself to take charge and bring your community together.

Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing
Delivering an aspect of physical exertion that treadmills and exercise bikes cannot, trails incorporate beautiful winding turns that feature new landscapes and provide a treat for your eyes. Trails provide an abundance of mental health benefits as well; the air you breathe in is much crisper and brings a fresh supply of oxygen to your brain, resulting in a happier you.

Shop our site for an excellent pair of Trail Shoes and find a trail in your neck of the woods! You can check out the video below to learn about the American Hiking Society and, as always, thanks for reading.

- John

Hey, Linguists!

You know, what’s interesting about language is its natural lean to adopt common phrases and expressions that eventually get so sewn into the fabric of our everyday speech that we use them without even realizing it. For example, ‘Don’t Lose Your Head’ originated from lumberjacks losing their axeheads as they got loose and flew off. You can read more about that right here. But for today’s Blog post we’re going to keep it up.

Today we’re examining the origin of the phrase ‘Keep it Up’. This one really surprises me. I would have assumed this was just a natural shorthand for ‘keep up the good work’. You tell someone this as encouragement for them to continue doing something. Or it’s a sarcastic warning a parent might use with a child who’s trying their patience, ‘keep it up’.

I expected the ‘it’ in ‘Keep it Up’ was simply referring to the job at hand, however, the origin of this saying is too literal for it to be so general. The ‘It’ refers to the shuttlecock of Badminton. 

This phrase began in the 17^th Century and it’s no coincidence that Badminton was being popularized in England at just the same time. The object of the sport is to keep a feathered ball or ‘shuttlecock’ from hitting the ground. Spectators of this intriguing sport would start to cheer on the players during a series of intense volleys back and forth by calling out, “Keep it up! Keep it up!”

You can learn more about Badminton from a recent Blog post I wrote when you click right here.

I wish you all the encouragement you may need to keep up the good work you’ve been doing and don’t drop the…shuttlecock. Hope you enjoyed learning the origin of this old phrase today. And, as always, thanks for reading, Camp Fans!

- John

Hey, Boot Boys and Girls!

These boots are made for walking. It’s not just a catchy line in a song; it’s a fact. Boots were designed for walking through snow, shallow water, and mud while keeping your feet clean, dry, and protected. The closely stitched design of leather, rubber, and canvas (or other similar materials) keeps it so everything on the outside STAYS on the outside.

Some boots, like a hiker, have tongue and laces like your everyday tennis shoe. Other boots, like rain boots, don’t have those different parts because they seal everything out. And yet, other kinds of boots, like a winter boot, may have insulation to provide you with warmth. We’ll explore this more in a minute.

With so many styles, purposes, and functions, how did such a versatile invention get started? Well, boots evolved as new conditions were encountered. For example, people didn’t need winter boots until they started expanding their territories into colder climates. So what was the original boot? When was it made and for what purpose?

Began in Pieces
Because of depictions in cave paintings that geologists date back to about 15,000 years ago, it’s suggested that boots are at least that old. Other, historical evidence shows us that early boots were made of separate coverings: a two-piece—one piece to cover the foot and another piece for the lower leg. It was about 3000 years ago now that we see the two coverings welded together as the single unit of footwear we know today. 

Cold Feet
Back that long ago, it was common for people to just walk around barefoot for everyday activities. A trip across longer distances would maybe get sandals or wooden shoes. Boots were for journeys across rough terrain, hunting, and sports. Boots were a natural need for nomadic cultures. People traveled from Asia to China to India to Russia and pushed into colder lands. Alaskan Eskimos began wearing animal parts, lining the inside with fur as early means of insulation.

War Boots
Militaries throughout the years and all over the world supplied their soldiers with the proper footwear for battle: boots! In fact, they’re responsible for developing a number of different styles such as boots that featured thick soles and turnover tops, designed to protect soldiers on horseback. Thigh-high boots were worn by Hessian soldiers of the American Revolutionary War which brought a big influence on the iconic cowboy boots of the American West cattlemen. For commanding officers in more recent years, boots have become more of a symbol of rank as opposed to any practical purposes.

Be sure to check out the boots we have available here at everyone’s favorite online store for kids camping gear, Everything Summer Camp. Appreciate it every time you strap on your boots that you can go muck it up or trudge through hills of snow while keeping your feet perfectly comfortable. Until next time, Camp Folks! And, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Green Thumbs!

Or, in today’s case, maybe more of a brown thumb…every successful garden starts with rich, black, healthy dirt. Today is a salute to making your own soil! Today is Learn About Composting Day! Did you know that you can make your own soil? All you have to do is keep all your organic trash! It’s normal to lots and lots of people to throw their egg shells, fingernails, coffee grounds, orange peels, vegetable scraps, and so on out with the rest of their garbage on ‘pick-up’ day.

But if you throw these natural items away into a different space together—a compost pile—and let time work away at the properties of all those things, it will eventually transform into rich, dark soil. It’s trash, so it’s sure to get stinky; you’ll want to keep your pile far enough away from your house, or in a sealed container in your basement or garage.

So what’s included in compostable items? A LOT! More than I have time to mention here on the Blog. Just anything that is organic. Organic items simply refers to products (food and otherwise) without any added chemicals or artificial agents. Of course vegetable scraps and yard trimmings are natural. Candy wrappers and batteries are not.

You may be surprised at all the different things you can compost, however. Like I stated before, the list is extensive! Things like newspaper, cardboard, paper towel, brown paper bags, etc. 

Also, everyone can compost! In order to do a lot, you probably want a designated spot in your yard. But if you don’t have a yard, you may still be able to work something out where you keep your compost inside a enclosed plastic bin that you keep in a garage or basement or an apartment solarium perhaps…. Make your own soil from compost just for the fun of doing it! And you can use it for windowsill and other houseplants that you have around. They’ll love the quality soil!

This means of recycling is interesting and makes you feel good about reducing and reusing. It’s incredibly easy. And, everyone can compost! Try out composting for yourself and Happy Learn About Composting Day. As always, thanks for reading!

- John