Hey, Camp Fans!

There’s such an abundance of phrases and old sayings that are so woven into our everyday speech that, often enough, we won’t even realize it when we’re using them. These sayings are more specifically referred to as idioms or adages. Today’s featured saying is ‘Stick Out like a Sore Thumb’. When we say describe something as sticking out like a sore thumb, we mean that it is clearly out of place with the rest of its surroundings.

A similar saying that conveys the same message will refers to something showing up ‘Like a mustard spot in a coal mine’ as a bright yellow color is easy to detect against the black of coal. A bright yellow on black makes sense that it would really stand out. But what’s this business about a sore thumb? I never thought of a sore thumb as something particularly noteworthy.

So how did it find its place in such a commonly-used expression? Let’s start digging for the origin of today’s adage:

Folks have been using this phrase since at least the 1500s, but probably much further back than that. The saying does indeed come from the experience of a literal sore thumb and when your opposable digit has sustained some sort of injury, the bandage wrapped around your thumb tends to stick out—calling attention to itself like a flying being flown.

Really, you could probably say the same thing about any limb in a cast or significant bandaging, but for whatever reason, it was a ‘sore thumb’ that stuck. Well wishes to all of you that you’ll keep your thumbs and other limbs from requiring bandages, sticking out themselves, and forcing a thumbs up or hitchhiking gesture. I hope you don’t stick out. And, as always, thanks for reading, Camp Fans!

- John

Hey, Springtime Fans!

It’s easy to see that Spring is in full swing as we now sit on the other side of Easter Sunday. As the world comes back to life for all of us who have seen our way through another cold and snow-filled winter, today is National Dandelion Day. The birds are chirping, the grass is greener, and those cute, little yellow ‘flowers’ start poking up in droves once the weather is right! 

It’s no secret that dandelions are a weed. There’s lots of folks who go through plenty of effort and/or expense to entirely eradicate these cute and sunny symbols of spring from their lawn. Others will rejoice to see them back and pick them just for their own display and enjoyment. Not only do they look nice (in the eyes of the right beholder), but they offer some great health benefits to people as well.

Of course, should you happen to find some growing in an otherwise pristine yard, it likely means that they fought past the chemical that was sprayed, in which case you don’t want to consume it. But wild dandelions on untreated land yield great effects.

All parts of the dandelion are valuable. The leaves, stem, and head are all an awesome and edible source of potassium. Potassium is an electrolyte as well as a mineral—one that naturally stimulates your heartbeat. Potassium is beneficial in aiding your kidneys as they filter out toxins and improve your blood flow. Check out a few different ways to eat this yellow weed. 

Dandelion Tea
Also found in traditionally packaged tea bags at most grocery stores, Dandelion Tea is easy to make at home too. Just pick your weeds, clean them, lightly roast them (optional), and stick them in a disposable tea bag or tea infuser. 

Dandelion Salad
Even easier than making tea is throwing dandelion pieces into a fresh garden salad. Mix the leaves in with some lettuce or spinach and other leafy greens of your choice along with other vegetables and dandelion stems and heads!

Dandelion Sandwich
Put them between two pieces of bread as well! Dandelion leaves, stems, and heads are delicious on a piece of bread with butter or maybe some avocado spread across it.

Dandelions are a treat to eat as they only come around once a year and—best of all—they’re free! Unless your family sprays the lawn, chances are you’ll have a dandelion or two poking up in your yard pretty soon if not already! Pick them as they pop up and put any one of these weedy menu items to the test! Enjoy the spring weather, Everybody. And, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Booklovers!

Today is Children’s Book Day, made to honor all the youth books out there, written for kids and preteens. While summer camp is brimming with activities that are a blast and tons of fun games to play, there’s also the opportunity for downtime where you can just take in your surroundings and enjoy reading a good book.

Between our selection of the Choose Your Own Adventure Books and the very nearly complete series of the Camp Confidential books, we have some pretty awesome title available here at Everything Summer Camp that are perfect for campers to take along for their stay!

Choose Your Own Adventure
The only books where the reader decides how the story goes, the classic Choose Your Own Adventure series introduces us to strange worlds of science fiction, fantasy, and adventure. These interactive tales tell a story a number of times over so the story goes differently based on the choices the reader makes. Then, ‘reread’ the book and make other choices to see the plotline change and end up entirely different.

Choose Your Own Adventure books have been proven to aid kid’s growth through experiential learning. Click here to learn more.

Camp Confidential
You're bound to chew through the books in the Camp Confidential Series like bubblegum! These tales of summer camp are all written by Melissa J. Morgan. With a sizable selection of the books from her ongoing series, catch the all the drama, gossip, and fun times that go on at Camp Lakeview as well as Camp Walla Walla! Check out all the titles we offer by clicking here.

Mad Libs
They’re not exactly books, but they ARE awesome for kids. Short little stories with key words left out, Mad Libs aid kids in learning their parts-of-speech in a hilarious way. These stories request that you fill in the ________ to turn simple tales into hysterical riots. Mad Libs were created one fateful night back in 1953 and have been cracking us up ever since. Have a gander at our selection and click right here.

The Rest
Not to shortchange any of our other available books—if we carry them, it’s because we see the value in them. It’s just the others don’t quite qualify as Childrens Books (Mad Libs were already a bit of a stretch). But Activity Books are a great means of quality downtime whether you’re with anybody or by yourself.

We also offer The Summer Camp Handbook—a treasure trove of awesome advice in all departments of all things summer camp, brought to you by summer camp experts Chris Thurber and Jon Malinowski. There’s also a great guide to survival skills available right here.

And don’t forget to put your pen to some paper yourself with our great Journals as well as our fun Stationery including camp-themed mailing items like Greeting Cards and Postcards.

Enjoy Children’s Book Day with a review of some of your favorites. Maybe you’re currently in the middle of one of these books you got from us right here at Everything Summer Camp. Hope you’re loving it! Happy Children’s Book Day, Readers. And, as always, thanks for reading.

- John

Hey, Fools!

…APRIL Fools, that is. And who hasn’t been fooled good at some point or another? We all know WE have at Everything Summer Camp—and I mean, literally, HERE at Everything Summer Camp. With a number of pranksters in the office and an even greater number of those seeking revenge, April Firsts around here seem to escalate every year. Allow me to walk you down a few blocks of memory lane…

For some people, pranks are just part of their personality. For them, it is a must-scratch itch—an unrelenting urge that courses through them like the blood through their veins.

Enter: Matthew Stephen DeMuth—Sales Manager and natural born-prankster.

Looking to cause some fuss one spring, Matt downloaded a Prank Dialer app for his phone. Using this app, Matt was able to make it appear as though people from his phone’s list of Contacts were calling one another. He had Sara call Mark and Mark call Ed, then Ed call Ryan and Ryan call…well, you get the picture.

This prank spanned quite a bit longer than just April First. Matt even went through the trouble of including himself in the prank dials to elude suspicion.

But, despite his efforts, being the desperate pranker that he is, people started to suspect Matt anyway which forced him to take it even further. Having wisely excluded Brian from any of the prank calls, Matt was in a position to frame the mild-mannered Operations Manager. Unfortunately for Matt, nobody bought it.

And, double-unfortunately for Matt, people hadn’t forgotten about his tricks one year later. Taking a note from the office pranks between Jim and Dwight in the hit show, ‘The Office’, Mark and Sara worked together to obtain Matt’s phone and toss it above the ceiling tiles. Then, as Jim did in the show, Mark and Sara proceeded to call Matt’s phone…frequently, which surely drove the much-deserving DeMuth quite crazy. 

In other years, Ed—the president of Everything Summer Camp—has dirtied his hands with the best of them in April Fools past. In fact, he’s become rather notorious around the office, actually, for his diabolical pranks and clever deceit. Several years before Matt pulled one over on everyone with his Prank Dialer app, Ed got everybody all at once as well.

Having installed fake security cameras in the break room, Ed created a cacophonous rise out of everybody at lunchtime when they saw the cameras and expressed their unfavorable opinions. The prank was pretty much forced to be revealed very quickly before a mob started.

Ed topped himself in a following year when he disclosed to everybody that the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) released a new law concerning proximity safety. He then explained that OSHA deems our trunk factory to operate too close to the adjoining offices and all office employees must now wear mandatory safety goggles.
April Fools.
Gotcha!

Check out some of the fun we've had on April Fools past when you click right here.

Hey, Camp Fans!

As a camping gear store directed at families with kids heading to summer camp, we’re thrilled to have formed such awesome relationships with a whopping 300 camps across the nation. We can’t help ourselves but to sing their praises every now and again. Today let’s shine our summer camp spotlight down south to nearly the most northeastern tip of Georgia in Clayton—just outside Mountain City.Appropriately named with the Blue Ridge Mountains in the backyard, here we find Camp Blue Ridge. Boasting a playground to the tune of 250 acres, Camp Blue Ridge offers its campers the abundant beauty of the woodsy land around them along with the complimentary cabins and other facilities that give campers the opportunity to have the time of their lives!

One thing that’s certain—there’s always something to do at Blue Ridge! Jam-packed with skill-developing activities, there you can try your hand at Archery, Arts & Crafts, Baseball, Basketball, Boating, Boxing, Canoeing, Cheerleading, Chess, Climbing, Fitness & Weights, Dance, Digital Photography, DJ Mixing, Drama, Drums, Electronic Music, Production, Fishing, Football, Gaga, Golf, Guitar, Gymnastics, Jump Rope, Kayaking, Lacrosse, Laser Tag, Martial Arts, Mountain Biking, Outdoor Skills, Paddle Boating, Paintball, Pilates, Ping Pong, Rocketry, Ropes Course, Rugby, Skate Park, Soccer, Softball, Stretching, Tennis, Tumbling, Ultimate Frisbee, Virtual Reality, Vocal training, Volleyball, Wrestling, Yoga, and more!

And, with a heated pool and two lakes, you can enjoy wild waterfront fun too with activities like Banana Boat, the Blob, Knee Boarding, Slip n’ Slide, a Swing, Swimming, Wake Boarding, Waterskiing, Whitewater Rafter, and more!

You couldn’t be bored if you tried, but there’s tons of opportunity for downtime too. Time to reflect on the all the fun you’re having! And you can do it in your air-conditioned cabins, which Camp Blue Ridge is very happy to now offer to all the boys and girls that come to stay at this awesome overnight camp! Give them a closer look and click here to check out their website. And, as always, thanks for reading.

- John