Hey Harry ol’ buddy, ol’ pal…

Probably still best known for his breakthrough role as Harry Dunne in 1994 comedy classic ‘Dumb and Dumber’, Jeff Daniels has shown over the course of his career that he goes beyond comedy. Heck! He goes beyond acting as a musician and a playwright as well. We talked about Jeff a handful of years ago and disclosed his attendance at Bruin Lake Boy Scout Camp when he was young as well as his path to stardom.

That last post, however, only scratched the surface about this guy so let’s dig a bit deeper on Mr. Jeff Daniels today!

Mayor Daniels
Jeff grew up in the small town of Chelsea, Michigan. His father was an owner of the Chelsea Lumber Company and an active member of the community. He even went for mayor and was elected! When Jeff was just six years old, Robert Daniels became the mayor of the town in 1961!

Jeff heard a lot from his agents that he should not take the role of Harry in ‘Dumb and Dumber’ because doing a “dumb comedy” would ruin his career as a dramatic actor. He got paid $50,000 for his part in the film and it also launched him into stardom, so Jeff likely doesn’t have any regrets about doing the film (although his co-star Jim Carrey made $7 million just for being the bigger star at the time).

Marry Me!
Jeff and his wife have been sweeties since their high school days back in the 70’s and, by 1979, they got married. It’s been about 35 years now since Jeff left Hollywood with his wife Kathleen and the two moved back to their small town life in Chelsea, Michigan. They have a family with two boys and a daughter. Jeff was happy for his time in the spotlight but doesn’t look back much as he is very happy with his family life.

Family is what life is all about! It’s great to see an old Hollywood star embrace his family life as much as Jeff has. A true master of his craft, Jeff still takes acting roles from time to time on TV or on the stage and keeps busy with his own writing and musical projects. Thanks for sharing your gift, Jeff! Who knows—maybe he’ll become mayor one day! As, always, thanks for reading, Camp Fans!

- John

Hey, Sketch Artists!

A powerful tool—the pencil—can create a visual masterpiece when directed by the skilled and developed hand. While a number of accessories with varying quality can be used, Drawing is one summer camp activity that really doesn’t take too many tools beyond a pencil and some paper. 

Much like the history of Painting, Drawing goes back to our time as cave dwellers when our ancient ancestors first discovered the ability to create images by dragging certain images across the cave walls. And voila—Drawing was invented!

Lots of people find themselves *ahem* DRAWN to Visual Art and Drawing in particular for its ability to express thoughts and feelings that we would otherwise have difficulty communicating. What else is there to appreciate about Drawing?

Creating your marks of Contour Line helps people to really pay attention to the object being drawn and see the shape and the detail of the object in a whole new way. You’ll find little tricks, like finding the halfway point of a line to more accurately record it or compare distance from one point to another to keep the proportion appropriate. You may be amazed to discover how much detail you push to your peripheral on a daily basis. 

Whether you’re drawing off a live model, copying an existing piece of visual art, or going off your own imagination, Drawing encourages slow, deliberate motion. It’s therapeutic. As a child I would draw to help relieve migraine headaches! Not to mention, a blank page—turned masterpiece makes for a nice boost in confidence for any artist as they view their finished work! Quite therapizing, indeed.  

Knowing exactly what mark to make, where to make it, and how much pressure to apply as you move your hand across the paper is as beneficial as any video game when it comes to developing your hand-eye coordination. Strengthen your hand-eye coordination and try your hand to draw something today!

Due to its simplicity in set up and accessories, you should be able to find Drawing offered at pretty much any summer camp you check out. If you already have a camp in mind, you can check with them about they’re Drawing program by calling them up. Enjoy And, as always, thanks for reading, Camp Fans!

- John

Hey, Nalgene Lovers!

In this day and age, it’s pretty common for everybody to have their own water bottle, but that wasn’t always the case. And folks seeking the rugged, camping lifestyle didn’t know much better than to burn aluminum cans and bury their glass bottles in the wilderness and other recreational areas. But by the 1970’s, conservationists had begun to spread the word that such means of disposal were not cool with the environment. Campers and thrill seekers needed a solution.

The Nalge brand (named after the creator’s wife’s initials NLG) was started way back in 1949. They produced plastics that were originally intended for use in the laboratory. They constructed containers like bottles, jars, test tubes, graduated cylinders, and Petri dishes. These products were lighter than glass and sure not shatter if dropped so they were far superior to glass.

Scientists of the company who also had an interest in the outdoors slowly realized what a convenience these products would be for their outdoor use. That or it was the Nalge Company president who discovered his son’s Boy Scout troop was using Nalge laboratory containers for camping (though that may just be company lore).

However it came to be, these plastic laboratory equipment had found another purpose. For some time, hikers and alike who were in the know about Nalgene would contact suppliers of lab equipment or perhaps found access to these products in workplaces of their own.

But by the 1970’s, Nalgene had repackaged their plastic products and marketed their items to the wilderness-loving subculture that was delighted to get their answer to their camping disposal conundrum. Of course, it only makes sense that you can find the classic 32 oz Nalgene Wide Mouth Water Bottle available right here on the Everything Summer Camp online shop. Stay hydrated and be nice to the Great Outdoors! And, as always, thanks for reading, Camp Fans!

- John

Hey, Camp Folks!

Here on the Everything Summer Camp Blog, I like to give the awesome summer camps that we work with a little time for each one to shine in the summer camp spotlight that we’re shining! Today, get a glimpse of a great girls camp featured right here, right now! Today, we’re shining our summer camp spotlight over to the state of Tennessee where we find Camp Riva-Lake.

Since 1922, Camp Riva-Lake has welcomed young ladies to the first plateau of the Cumberland Mountains in a quiet cove on Tims Ford Lake in Winchester, Tennessee. Encircled by a wealth of natural resources, this gorgeous summer camp is within minutes of some of the area's most beautiful sites for outdoor adventure (including the Elk River and Foster Falls).

While at Camp Riva-Lake, kids have fun in the water with activities like Sailing, Canoeing, and daily trips to the lake for Swimming and other fun. And on land, they’re busy building their skills in Archery, Basketball, Crafts, Dance, Tennis, and Horse-back riding every other day (weather providing).

Designed for a good time, the Riva-Lake campgrounds include Horseback Riding facilities, Tennis Courts, a multi-use Activity Court, Sports Fields, a Playhouse for indoor activities and a private cove with a one-of-a-kind floating pool and boating docks Campgrounds include.

The cabins are cozy and built within close proximity to each other in order to establish a sense of being based in a community for the campers. Campers live in cabins with one or two counselors and are supervised by the counselors. The bathhouses are conveniently close to the cabins so there’s just a short distance for trips to the shower or bathroom trips at night.

Riva-Lake strives to maintain a low camper-to-counselor ratio to give the campers more individual one-on-one attention geared toward each camper gets everyone feeling more comfortable and part of a tight-knit community in a very short span of time.

Camp Riva-Lake may very well be a great summer camp experience for you. Look into it for your next summer camp stay by clicking here to check out their website and, as always, thanks for reading, Summer Campers!

- John

Hey, Sports Fans!

Today is the culmination of the 2019 football season in which we’ll see the season’s leaders of the AFC and NFC go head-to-head. Today is Super Bowl Sunday. And, for this year—Super Bowl LIV, we have the San Francisco Forty-Niners going up against the Kansas City Chiefs. Can you feel the excitement in the air? This is ought to be a good game! Neither team has held the NFL Championship for decades!

The last time the Forty-Niners went to the Super Bowl was only seven years ago in 2013. They went up against the Baltimore Ravens and they didn’t get the victory. You have to go back 25 years to 1995 for the last time San Francisco won the Championship over the San Diego Chargers with the second-highest Super Bowl score in history—49 to 26. Tonight will be the sixth time the Forty-Niners are playing in the Super Bowl.

This is only the third time that Kansas City is playing in the Super Bowl. You have to go back a lot longer for the last time they went to the Super Bowl. It was 50 years ago back in 1970. But they actually won it the last time they played for the Championship (unlike San Fran), playing against the Minnesota Vikings! The Chiefs only other time in the Super Bowl was in the very first one in 1967 when they went up against our home team, the Green Bay Packers. Of course, they didn’t win that one.

You can read more about the original Super Bowl from a previous Blog post by clicking right here. Enjoy the game tonight, Everybody. And, as always, thanks for reading, Camp Fans!

- John