Hey, Camp Folks! 

Thanks for joining us once again for today’s post in which we’ll discover another Adage Origin where I deep dive all those popular phrases and sayings that everyone knows, but seldom understand why they mean what they mean. They’re so built in to our language that we may not even realize we’re using them. Today’s term we’re looking at is ‘Soap Opera’. 

Soap Opera—a decidedly odd phrase—refers to a long-running radio or television serial which is often regarded as melodramas with ensemble casts. It’s an odd phrase, because it doesn’t seem to describe whatsoever what it’s referring to. 

Soap Opera may sound like a fitting name, but that’s likely just because we’re so used to it by now that we don’t really question its strangeness. It’s not like these hyper-serialized programs are ever about soap, right? And where does the opera come into play? 

For now, let’s set the soap part aside and just concentrate on the opera part. The word opera comes from the Latin ‘opus’ which simply means work or composition. Italian operas, notorious for being a big, loud production lent the term to be applied to other genres as something of an insult. 

No Horsin’ Around
Preceding Soap Operas were Horse Operas. A Horse Opera was referring to the vintage Western programs like ‘Red Ryder’ and ‘The Lone Ranger’. The term opera was initially intended as a putdown of the clichéd and corny plot devices of serial Westerns, however the term was happily accepted by fans of the genre. 

Based in Space
Before Soap Operas, there were Horse Operas. After Soap Operas, there were Space Operas. ‘Star Wars’ being a prime example, was eventually categorized as a Space Opera with a long, serialized plot set, of course, in the distant reaches of outer space with lots of effects and fanfare. 

The Scope of Soap
So where does soap come into the picture? Well, back when the first Soap Operas premiered, it was revolutionary to daytime television. Daytime advertisements would frequently try selling soap during the commercials that played throughout early Soap Operas. 

Who knew the term Soap Opera spawned a variation for its science fiction cousin and that Soap Opera itself was already a variation from Horse Opera?! Interesting stuff! A strange term, nevertheless, it seems the phrase isn’t going anywhere. And who knows what other opera variations will come about in times to come. As always, thanks for reading Camp Fans. Happy Camping! 

- John

Hey, Powerful People! 

We pride ourselves in offering the best in child-friendly camping gear so it’s no wonder that a leading brand in lighting gear such as MPOWERD is available here at Everything Summer Camp. This brand combines brilliant quality with a design that’s easy for kids to use. On top of that, they’re conscious of the impact they have on the environment! Always fans of sustainable methods, we knew MPOWERD was an obvious fit for our collection of flashlights and other lighting sources in our camping gear selection. 

Take a gander at the lighting options we have from MPOWERD: 

Solar String Lights + Mobile Charger
It might be a stretch to say MPOWERD hung the moon, but what they did do is make it so you can hang these warm Solar Lights that they've strung together. With 10 points that shine 2 LEDs each along an 18ft cord which winds up into a compact unit, Luci Solar String Lights pack 100 Lumens. This Light String Unit is ready for mobile charging capabilities and gives you 50 hours from a single charge. 

MPOWERD Luci Connect Inflatable Solar Light + Mobile Charger
The Luci Connect is the first smart light to be released from the MPOWERD brand that can be paired with your phone! Enabled for use by app with no WiFi necessary, your phone can turn the light on and off, create light from unlimited color options, select preset colors, control brightness, categorize colors, set schedules, and show you the battery level. Waterproof and lightweight, yet virtually indestructible, the Luci Connect is ready for whatever your adventures bring! 

MPOWERD Build Your Own Luci: Solar Light Kit
The BYOL (Build-Your-Own-Luci) Solar Light Kit from MPOWERD comes with three modular disks, a transparent cover, two USB cables, a booklet of activities, and a whole bunch of LEDs. Start by simply connecting the solar panel and battery disks by the USB cables. The customizable LED lightboard will light up! 

Get a better look at these incredibly practical products by clicking right here and order the lighting sources you’ll want along for your nightly navigation throughout your camping experience! Stay bright and, as always, thanks for reading! 

- John

Hey, Camp Folks!  

Staying hard at work with a myriad of personalized products waiting for a design to be embroidered on them, Mellina works in our Graphics Department. Well acquainted with our embroidery machines, Mellina has her area well-organized with stocked products and has the machines constantly plugging away on the next ordered design. But that’s enough work talk!  

More than work, today is about what Mellina would do if she got to go to summer camp right now as an adult. She gave me a well-rounded rundown of her favorite activities that she’d try, striking a decent balance between adventure and artistic skill. 

Mellina hasn’t had any experience in the activities she picked, which is why she picked them. She wanted to do something she’s never tried before. Check out the schedule she would make for herself:  

Stained Glass
A colorful first pick, Mellina has always been drawn to and intrigued by the look of Stained Glass. Mellina enjoys being crafty and so something with as much of a process to it as Stained Glass seems right up her alley. “It would be cool to make something,” she told me. “I like making stuff.” Indeed! Making stuff is what summer camp is all about! 

Ropes Course
While she’s never executed a ropes course before, but it sounds like a real thrill to her. She would love the opportunity with an elaborate course to truly challenge herself and find out what she’s capable of! 

Snorkeling
Snorkeling is an experience that Mellina would love to have. She said she’d love to see such a foreign world that exists down there. That and she’d simply love to do something she’s never tried before. 

Pottery
Pottery too was one that Mellina’s always had interest in and wanted to try. She’s simply never had the chance before. But it would definitely be found on her list of camp fun!  

Do you love any of the same camp activities as Mellina? Did you get to enjoy any of these essential summer camp experiences this summer? Comment below to let us know. And, as always, thanks for reading. Happy camping!  

- John

Hey, Camp Folks!

Our website is our home. We invite our customers in to browse around and enjoy any time spent in our store; naturally, we want the place looking nice. And we’re always improving. Our photography is one of the best means of showing you the camping gear we offer in its natural habitat—summer camp! To do this, we work together with Kamp Kenwood, a local camp that’s just a 20-minute drive from our workplace in Boyd, Wisconsin.

Kamp Kenwood is a gorgeous camp that sits alongside Lake Wissota. We brought a couple of photographers out there and a bunch of summer camp-age children to recreate the summer camp scene. Let’s take a look behind the scenes of the Everything Summer Camp 2022 photo shoot!

The Directors
We’ve done photo shoots a handful of times—the last time being in 2017 and this season we decided it was time for a fresher look. This photo shoot was at least a month in the making with all the planning involved. Our Graphic Artist Amy, the Shipping Manager Anita, Vice President Mark, and myself worked together to brainstorm all the different shots we wanted and

Anita and Amy went up and down the aisles picking out product that we wanted to bring along, ironed out all the apparel we brought, and got trunks packed and boxed up. All in all it was about a week-long process to think of everything and get it all packed up!

The Photographers
Davin and Imani were our two photographers. Davin is the brother of our Marketplace Manager Drew and Imani has been summer help for a handful of years at Everything Summer Camp. Imani has been developing her passion in photography since she can recall.

Davin told me he bought his first camera about a decade ago to capture sports photography when his brother’s started playing sports. He’s been slowly building his collection of photography equipment with some rather intimidating apparatuses with him for proper lighting techniques as well as a slew of lenses.

Drew shot a number of videos himself including an attempt to do one of our C&N Amazon livestreams off-site for the first time. Unfortunately, it couldn’t work from the remote area we were in. But they still shot a video so everyone could get a good look around at Kamp Kenwood. Check it out below. 

The Models
Amy, our Graphic Artist, had the final say on the models that we used. We had eleven, excited kids who were great at taking part in fun for the day. It got hot out there—especially for the shots around the campfire—but the kids were troopers!

We had Quinn and Raegan, our Sales Director Matt’s kids. Everyone else found us through our Facebook request. There was Amy and Shylo—sisters who often enjoy modeling for photo shoots in local parks. Another group of siblings came: Pressley, Max, and Delaney. And there was Chloe, Izaiah, Marcus, and Easton.

Our time out there was strenuous, hard work, but—thanks to everybody’s help and cooperation—we had a lot of fun out there! How could we not in such a beautiful, natural location A big thanks to Kamp Kenwood! And, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Camp Fans!

Throughout September so far, I’ve been announcing the winners to our annual ‘Share Your Camp Story’ Contest. And, today, the time has come to reveal our grand prize winner for this year’s edition. Find out right here and right now—the winner of our $300 gift certificate is….

Amelia H.!

Yaaaayyy, Amelia!!! Congratulations. You’re our grand prize winner!!! Amelia wrote in to tell us about her experience at Camp Longhorn. Read her account of the fun camp stay right here on today’s Blog post:

“Camp was super fun. My favorite activity was the blob because it was so much fun and ended up being amazing. I was scared to do it at first, but all my new camp friends told me it was just like a giant marshmallow and that’s what gave me the courage to jump on and do it! I loved making new friends. Whenever I first got to camp, I was so nervous and now that I know everyone there, I will never, ever be nervous again. I loved the cook at camp -his real name is Barney Baker! Now I know what my mom meant when she told me he was the best cook in the whole world (she also went to my camp)! Now I also know why my mom used to say she wants her ashes spread out over Camp Longhorn and its Church Mountain and Inks Lake - it really IS the best place on earth. We all call it heaven on earth and now I REALLY know why we do! One of the most important mottos at my camp is “Everybody is Somebody at Camp Longhorn” and that is REALLY true, too! They make sure every person feels special at their very special place. I just love it and can’t wait to go back next summer.”

Thanks for this great submission, Amelia! We’re so glad to hear how much you loved your time at Longhorn. Way to go putting your fear behind you and jumping on the blob. It certainly looks a little intimidating but lots of fun too! It’s great to hear what a special place Camp Longhorn is to you. Have fun in the years to come!

For anyone else interested in Camp Longhorn, you can check it out right here. That concludes our big prize winners, but stay tuned each week when we publish a couple of our participants’ submissions so you can catch all the great submissions we received this year. As always, thanks for reading.

- John