tminus 16 (AAAAA!) days until Camp Harris hits Lakeview!!

Today, Sessions D-G went to Lakeview for set up. tminus 1 day until FC12 happens and 16 (AAAAAAAA!) days until Session F Blue Camp Harris hits Lakeview.

Coincidence? I think not.

Mason and I couldn’t be more excited for the 113 of you to arrive. We’ve been waiting/planning/loving you before we met you since November. We hope these four days at Lakeview serve as a springboard into your college experience and serve to solidify you choosing to attend Texas A&M.

Welcome to the Aggie Family!

I keep thinking about what was going through my mind when I was in your shoes 3 short summers ago. Anxious. Excited. Nervous. Do they really go all out for the mixers? Excited. How many yells do I really know? Anxious. Did I remember a toothbrush? Anxious.  Excited. Excited. Excited.

So excited for each and every one of you. There are so many opportunities all around you, all you have to do is decide to take one.

My greatest hope for you all is that you take camp for all it’s worth and make this experience your own- for it to be everything you want/imagined/dreamed. You have a Namesake, 2 Co-Chairs, and 24 wonderful counselors behind you already. This is YOUR college experience- make the most of it!

Thanks & Gig ‘Em!

The Copeland Banner for Camp Harris

Work Day One Recap

Work Day One began at the WONDERFUL Koppe Bridge at 6:00 on Friday. Only...Whitney and Mason were FORTY minutes late (CM?) so it really didn't begin until 6:40. While we were waiting, Meghan informed us that she would be moving back to Texas from KenSUCKY permanently (yay). Then...we all hopped in line before the people at the birthday party could begin eating. Most people got burgers (Jen had some unwelcome mustard on hers) or chicken strips...except for Adam, who got a heart attack in a hot dog--chili, cheese, jalapenos, and onions.  Needless to say we nommed hard. 

After dinner we headed straight to Jen's house. There we were pleasantly surprised with our AMAZING tanks and a list of our lakeview jobs and skits. Zach is a one man wolf pack, Jonathan and Nick H are rumor Adele, (Fairy is no longer allowed by D-staff) and Mason and I are getting married. Alex ate corn by the bowl, and we dove right into writing scripts and tracing banners. The projector was more than a little temperamental, but Adam whipped it into shape with some bubble wrap and a pack of water bottles. Rack City is an awesome pandora station (thanks Alex!). Ashik learned how to spell RUN. We all look about a thousand pictures on Meghan's Mac (see facebook) and then we video taped our own version of "I'll Be" (your crying shoulderrrrr) for the blog. Whitney sure knows how to sinnggg. 

We arrived at Wehner at 7:30 (Nick L. and I got there before D-staff...NOT OKAY). While waiting to go inside we found out Aubrey has some almost pretty sweet basketball skillzz and that Nick L has a thing for blow........pops. During the first presentation of the day we learned the ins and outs of dealing with underage kids who have been abused. We had to take a test on it and get a 100 or take it again. Our camp is smart. (Except for Mason who missed one...typical) Once we got into our camp room we played the stand up sit down game and talked more about community of respect and our low-emotion defining moments. We finished REALLY early so we started talking/bantering/bickering about official camp shirt. Our D-staffer Zach (?) (HE IS ACTUALLY COOL) came and hung out with us while this was going on, and the longer he stayed in the room the more raunchy the ideas got. New brainstorming included a cow and a fruit bowl, "we just blue your mind" with an illustration of an exploding brain, and Gerald's face on EVERYTHING. Luckily Meghan took it seriously and designed a bad ass shirt based on how I met your mother with hash tags on the back (who doesnt love hash tags??) and the discussion ended. To end our day in Wehner we watched Crew rap about themselves to Fresh Prince of Bellaire and we all split up for lunch. Nematodes and Halley Berry anyone? 

We painted banners in Duncan at 2:30 with a ton of other camps. Rachel arrived from Girl State with a raspy voice. Mason got a mustache. James grew a full beard, and then five o'clock shadow. The Texas banner people are perfectionists. (Which is why it looks so perfect). Basically we just worked SUPER HARD for 4 hours and got a lot done. It was awesome. 

Then we all went to dinner at Chicken Oil. Our table looked like 8th grade dance (girls on one half, boys on the other). Nick H ordered his food as "Big Nick" (take that Linder). And he told a pretty clever joke about Snoop, poop, and Dr. Dre. :) We found out that I have Mason whipped already.

Back to Jens house for more working (slaving away) on SKIT SCRIPTS ONLY! Here we learned that James has a hot mom (look her up). And while Mason and Whitney were upstairs listening to defining moments, Christmas came early as all of us gathered in the projector room and watched Jessica Robinson (a girl from Jenn's HS) dance on a guy who didnt know what to do with his hands. PANTY FIX!! Emotions were running high after many many hours of HARD WORK (and stress) so we all called it quits to eat some Blue Bell and watch the Sitter--a "funny" movie about a 20 something average looking guy who is going no where in life and his adventures babysitting some weird kids. The first scene was kinda graphic, but the overall message of the movie was warm and .........UNREALISTIC. I laughed a few times, so I guess it was worth it. Then we all went home to sleep. 

Sunday: Potbelly. Paint. Mason got sick, but also has a pretty sweet retainer. Murphy joined us. Hes precious. 

A Few Pic-Chas From Your Favorite Camp

The ladies on Rev Night! (the night where we found out we were a family :'))  

DP Numero Uno!

Kickballll!

Partner Rev Night! (the night we found our purrrfect partners!)

Lookin clean in our white tees

Daytrip at Lake Conroe!

Harris Lovin' at Workday 1!

We'll Be

Precious baby angels, this is why I love our camp.

A Small Checklist

Chairs are creeps. 

Brochair (Mason) had texted me at 12:30 in the morning to check my door. After a minor freak out from my roommate when I ventured outside, I found a small note with four little boxes to be filled:

Adam, 

•  Rock your tests tomorrow.
• Dress Up
• Rev Night
• Meet New Best Friends

The first box was the hardest. But after I stumbled out of my Organic Chemistry test I had just a small amount of strength in reserve: Check.

Later, I managed to focus my inner old man, and put together a fine ensemble of pleated shorts and stuffed Hawaiian shirt along with fancy shoes and much too tall socks. Dress up like I was Elderly?: Check.

My excitement was barely contained when I hopped out of my car and started on my way to Rudder for Rev night. I managed to meet up with one of the freshmen from my previous camp after I got my name tag ( I might add it was properly colored, #foreshadowing). She started squealing and giggling and going all sorts of crazy, and  that behavior is infectious you know, so of course being the impressionable person I am I entered Rudder Auditorium; squealing, giggling, and going all sorts of crazy. I applauded the speaker, cheered on Cheeto, and maybe cried a bit during the video. Yeah, this stuff gets me emotional.  Rev Night: Check.

I received my session, and color. Session F, Blue! A later session, just what I wanted to experience! Guys and girls were separated, and during brotime I already felt a part of something great. Unnamed camp Session F Blue was definitely looking up! And when the guys and girls were reunited, things just got even better! Our camp was probably the most ballin' thing to happen to this campus, and we had only been together for five minutes or so! Then... they announced are namesake...

Gerald. 

Harris.

Ok, I didn't faint like I thought I was going to. But to describe what was going through my head at that moment, well:

"OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOOOOOOOMGa;kdjk;dwanmdnmzndmnaskmdnskabdhaugdjasfnzlkjfz,./mf/d."

Pretty much sums it up. Best. Day. Ever. Best camp ever. Best group of 24 people ever. Forealz!

And then we met our chairs, Whitney and Mason, and our perfect camp was complete. It's a rare thing to see a group of near 24 strangers come together; rarer still to see everything just click. And it happened that night. Session F Blue Camp Harris, the best camp of all time! There was only one more thing to do at this point, so I grabbed my pen:

 "Meet New Best Friends: Check!"

Never had a love like this.

When I first laid eyes on the other 23 counselors that were huddled up in the furthest corner of the auditorium, I was like:

........

These.guys.are.AWESOME! I immediately knew, that this camp was going to be legen...wait for it...dary!

Not to mention our fantastic co-chairs, who only added to the pure awesomeness that was already mounting. I had never seen co-chairs this excited about their counselors. From their beaming smiles, and star-crossed eyes, I knew that our camp was in good hands.

Even though we hardly know each other, we all hit it off instantly. The initial awkwardness was long gone, and everyone was getting along, as though we all had been friends for years. Normally, it takes me a while to warm up to people. But that night was different. I had never spoken so much to a group of people that I had just met. It was as though I had known them for a very long time.

This was meant to be. This is only the beginning, yet I already know that this bond Camp Harris shares will last for a long time. I simply cannot begin to express how much I love each and every one of you!

You've got a friend in me! :)