Camp Blog

Have you ever made a commercial before?

Well, if you answered no then you haven’t been to Camp Simcha!

Steven Spielberg’s third cousin once removed stopped by to film each division’s commercial himself and was quoted as saying, “Wow, this group contains naturals!”

We couldn’t agree more. In the off season, Camp Simcha signed 103 kids and teenagers to multi year commercial contracts. The campers receive loads of fun and prizes in return (and this is without mentioning the millions of dollars they receive as a signing bonus).

Jonah, who starred on Hannah Montana as an extra, played the role of the Librarian in a recent commercial. “It was absolutely positively awesome,” Jonah said, “commercial making for all!” he continued.

Today is Super Bowl Sunday so commercials are a necessity. No ifs, ands, or buts.

So… the big question is:

What Were They Advertising?

Weeellll, you’ll just have to return here later if you REALLY wanna find out…

Booya!

…and rest we did.

Spirits were lifted, skits were performed, bingo was bingoed(?) and one and all enjoyed the Sabbath, along with its delicious meals prepared by Chef Reuvain and his unbelievable crew.

…Did anyone realize that that was a run-on sentence?…

Prayers, food, activities and sleep; sounds like the world to come if you ask me.

This was all followed by music and dancing following the Sabbath which was followed by game room activities, movie room attending and plain old Camp Simcha bench bantor.

Tomorrow is Super Bowl Sunday… We don’t want to give too much away but rumor has it that the commercials cost 3.5 million dollars…

…Yeah, we’re loaded like that….

It’s a bird… It’s a plane… It’s Superman…

Neither!

It’s a helicopter!

The campers today were treated to a special ride around camp; from above that is. Camp Simcha’s Aviation School is one of the top aviation schools in the country, ranking higher than Harvard, Yale and even Touro College’s flying programs. The kids watched as bunks looked like mere lego pieces from hundreds of feet above the ground, the staff members appeared as simple ants while the trees turned into tiny bushes.

Just ask Nathan from Alaska***

“That was so cool! Let’s do it again!” -Nathan from Alaska

*** = First Name and Place of Origin were altered to protect the identity of Joe from Monroe**.

** = Joe from Monroe is really someone else.

Here is an actual picture of a real helicopter:

Photo – Courtesy of Camp Chaya Sara

Sky Rider!

Camp Simcha currently has 387 people with their mouths open in awe as they exit the gym after watching the absolutely amazing Sky Riders. The Sky Riders (the NBA’s top trampoline act for over 15 years, featuring Guinness World Record holder Ken Kovach and his international group of trampoline champions) have been entertaining for years and we were their fortunate next victims.

Words can only do so much; a picture may speak a thousand words…

…but videos? Ha, they are the greatest.

Here’s a small sample of their work:

WARNING: HOLD YOUR JAW UP TO KEEP IT FROM DROPPING LIKE A SACK OF BRICKS

[Image Here]

Begun!

Yes, Arrival Day has lived up to its name (yet, again) as arrivees came in by the dozen (totaling 275) yesterday. Water was flung, smiles were formed and the sun shone brightly.

Is it shone? Or shined? Okay, we’ll have to look that up. Check back on that.

Kids and teenagers ran through the game rooms and activity centers like kids runnings through game rooms and activity centers (and candy shops, I guess) officially inaugurating Camp Simcha Boys 2009.

Here is a (not so) live shot of today’s sunrise off White Road next to Camp Simcha:

[Image here]

…check back later today for more updates and free money…okay, only more updates…

Let me introduce you to a very good friend of mine… Meet the brownie bar. This charming fellow is one of the staples of the Camp Simcha Special Canteen. With its fantastically fudgy filling, delectable drizzling of chocolate and soft cookie outside, the brownie bar is irresistible. But let me tell you of a little trick I learned here at CSS that makes the brownie bar experience something you will never forget. First, gently open the package, making sure that none of the precious cookie substance crumbles. Then, carefully place the brownie bar in the microwave. Nuke this baby for 30 seconds, and this inconspicuous little pastry will transform into a creation of G-d. (Even though every thing is a creation of G-d, this is an extra special one, reserved specifically for the campers of Camp Simcha Special and for the Malachim when they get hungry.) Anyway, Yossi Koff being his usual sweet self, and kicking me off the computer. G2G, Later…

By Jake (and his camper, Tzviki)

Hi metal man here, I have been in camp for 9 years now and the color war this year was definitely the greatest ever. It was amazing how they did different color war fake outs. It really made people think that there will not be color war this year. The first fake out made me think there was actually a person missing. Then the whole thing blew out of proportion with all the emergency vehicles following each other and going straight to the spot where the “uproar man” was on top of the roof. Then at the beginning of the Simcha Special Super Bowl interview where Reuven said that if the kitchen staff lost there would not be any more food and they lost. Then when the division heads got arrested for messing with the food in the kitchen because the whole camp was cheering for the kitchen staff. Everyone thought at that point it was color war but the Police Sergeant said himself it was a fake out. So even the people that have been in camp for years thought that there was not going to be color war. Then we had a Rebbe come and give Tisch and he gave out fortune cookies to people to make brachot on. When people cracked the cookie open there was a piece of paper that said color war breakout people where shocked! COLOR WAR IS HERE

In the pantheon of great rivalries: the Romans and Greeks, Coke and Pepsi, Stern’s and Klein’s, one stands alone in its ferocity and divisiveness. Passions have been stirring for years among those laying-in-wait behind exam room and kitchen doors. One claims experience and agility, the other brute force and strategy. Today Simcha Special saw the culmination of this epic in a day of spirited competition both on and off the field. Fans got a preview of the action inside, as waiters tried for new heights in goalpost jumping and both camper and counselor got liberal with face paint.
Casting calls were held all around camp to extol the virtues of Tylenol PM, Budweiser ( via some colorful explorations of facial anatomy) and the new Shidduchim mega site, BNB.com ( which got its first four million hits after it served as proof that even a frog and a woman with a bad hair day, crazy as it may seem, can find their basheret.). This was only part of the spectacle that encircled game night. After an open-air feast that made small of even the most legendary of tailgate parties, all in camp, their hands still caked with barbecue sauce and helping to gulp vitamin waters by the case load, marched with pride and determination to the social hall where the air hung thick with breathless anticipation and the medical staff got the upper hand as the crowd favorite.
Led by the always-theatrical “Nurse Pewee,” the staff brought back the seventies and the tears with a rendition of YMCA, and the camp anthem, that had the floor creaking with the weight of hundreds losing their voices. NBC, the sports news leader, had all the details: we went inside the training grounds, on the field and into the announcer’s booth, as Rav Wiggles set up a match for the ages. The “million-a-minute” TV spots added to the glitz and laughs. In the end, the crowd’s encouragement (or, more directly, love of food) was not enough to win the kitchen staff the title of Sunday night champs. However deep in their hearts, they knew that oftentimes rivalry and brotherhood go hand in hand, and all left the arena alive with the spirit of competition and Simcha Sports glory.

T.B.

Shabbos
Tefillos rang through the skies and the collective hope of those privileged to know the kavanah and love of all Yiddishkeit that makes the cries for a different, better reality more fervent here than most any other place in the world. The skies graduated from a milky twilight blue to the inky purple hues of evening. The candles flickered with a delicate and yet certain presence that signaled the slowed, savor-the-moment pace of Shabbos, as did the marvelously spiced chicken, soups and sweet challas that graced the crisp table linens.
The atmosphere may have, in any other part of the world called for solemnity, but Simcha wasn’t having it. “ Shabbos Koidesh” could barely be discerned from within the thundering chorus of claps, cheers, and bodies that towered over chairs and created the circus that is such a trademark of the Simcha family.
Blondini’s surprise visit to camp allowed us the privilege of hearing a Dvar Torah like no other and Rabbi Scholar led the late night tisch that affirmed yet again the unimaginable
selflessness that permeates every corner of this campus. The cholent, though peppery, could not compare to the fire of R’ Scholar’s impassioned tone and to be sure, there was more than one set of tears flowing. ( To be continued)…
T.P.

Day 2
They’re potatoes cut into tiny slices, put any topping on it and its instantly popular. This is how they were originated. The original potato chip recipe was created by Chef George Crum at Moon’s Lake House near Saratoga Springs, New York, on August 24, 1853. Fed up with a customer who continued to send his fried potatoes back complaining that they were too thick and soggy, Crum decided to slice the potatoes so thin that they could not be eaten with a fork. As they could not be fried normally in a pan, he decided to stir-fry the potato slices. Against Crum’s expectation, the guest was ecstatic about the new chips and they soon became a regular item on the lodge’s menu and became a world favorite! I was thinking about It, and ruffles would soooo win in a fight between lays & ruffles. You see ruffles aren’t regular potato chips they are manufactured in a way that makes them thicker. Lays on the other hand are just thin, wimpy, and way to salty if you ask me.
So, ruffles would totally beat lays in a fight. Any day, any time just the name the place.
-Jake Plaut
And avi silver