This year, like most years I have been able to since I was 5, I returned to the Lair of the Bear Camp Blue, the Cal Berkeley Alumni family camp in the Sierra's that I love. I love being with people who have known me for years, up in the mountains, just enjoying life. Here is the story of my 2006 Camp Blue Week 7 Adventure.
Saturday: Heading up to the Lair
Saturday morning I woke up early and I drove up to Pinecrest Lake. Pinecrest is in the Sierra's off Route 108, pretty much in between Lake Tahoe and Yosemite. After a brief stop at Target for a chair and some sundries, I went directly to the lake to take a swim. It was 112F in the Valley, and while 20 degrees cooler in the mountains it was still hot. After a swim and an Its It, I drove over to the Camp Blue Check in to check into the Lair.
After checking in, I went to my cabin - Tent 9, unloaded the car, and then parked the car by the tennis courts, just like my dad used to do. Tent 9 is up in the hill of Camp Blue, one of my favorite sites at Blue. Nearby, I ran into one of my neighbors, Bill and Kathy Godwin, who were at Camp from Utah. It was good to see them again, and hear updates on their sons.
For the afternoon, I went for a swim at the pool, then had some impromptu cocktails, before heading over to dinner. Saturday night is turkey dinner - yummy. That night was the opening campfire, and it made me happy to hear the staff dance out to "Saturday Night, Saturday Night, the weekend starts on Saturday night. Summer's Here and summer’s Gone, Mountain Air is Full of Song, so come on everybody and Sing along, Hooray, Saturday Night!!" We were introduced to the staff and the new manager of the camp - Mike White. The best skit of the evening was the toasts to Mike White - and how wonderful and powerful he is Chuck Norris Style (Substitute Mike White for Chuck Norris in all the quotes). That night, I read a little in the lodge before returning to the tent and sleep.
Sunday: A day of Rest
Sunday, fittingly, was a day of rest. It was still fairly warm out, so after breakfast, I hung out by the pool and read. I started on a series of Amelia Peabody mysteries and just enjoyed the day. Lunch was the traditional BBQ, and I ate outside on the new deck.
In the afternoon, it was time for the annual pool party - with the staff doing crazy dives, a belly flop contest (I came in around 4th), and then the camper staff InterTube Water Polo contest. This year I was the only girl to compete at all, but it was fun, and nice to be wet in the heat.
Before dinner, the Brown's and Kliszewski's hosted their annual Margarita party, and I caught up with several old friends, before we all headed over to dinner. That evening was a lecture by the head doctor for the Raiders who talked about Magic and Medicine and their links over time (this actually was substantiated by my Amelia Peabody mysteries!). I went to bed early, so as to be ready for the Monday morning hike!Monday: A Hike and Amanda Arrives
I woke up early, opened up the cabin, and looked out at the trees. It is so peaceful, early in the morning, with only birds and squirrels to keep you company. I headed to the dining hall to eat a bit and pack a lunch for the official 3/4 day hike to Camp and Bear Lake. Ellen Green joined me on the hike. It was a great hike for a hot day, shady on the way in, a swim in the lake, and then a downhill walk back to the cars. I do love swimming in the high mountain lakes. 
After my return, I spent some time by the pool, and then Amanda and Carter arrived! They settled into the tent, then we went to a Cocktail hour at Tent 14. All our parents old friends got to see Amanda and Carter, before we headed into dinner, Carter's first Lair meal. After dinner, it was time for Disco Bingo, where when someone gets a "Disco" a song starts playing and everyone dances! Costumes, dancing, and prizes for a Bingo, it is always a fun time. After Disco Bingo, we got Carter his first Lair Burger at the Lodge, before playing some hearts with Rich Green, and then heading off to bed.
Tuesday: Art, Softball, and Swimming
After a tough wake up to make it to the dining hall for breakfast, we headed to the pool for Water Aerobics. The pool was warm and filled with 20 people as we treaded water and stretched. It turns out water aerobics is a lot of fun.
After this we headed to the pottery area to make our pots - I made some small ones on the wheel, while Amanda and Carter made larger ones.
It was then time for lunch. After lunch I headed over to the Gold Softball field for the Camper/Staff softball game. It was a good warm-up for the Gold game, even though we lost.
After the game we returned to camp and headed down to the famous Long Island Ice Tea Party with the Castanada's. Many of the people at cocktail hour asked about my friends Ken & Julia, who had come with me the last few years. They were unable to make it this year, but I expect they will be back in the future.
After dinner it was the 6 on 6 volleyball tourneyment. I played on the Brodsky team, since my normal team, the Umedas (Ian, Kim, Martin...from the exciting Indian Wedding) were not at camp this year. We did not win, but it was still nice to play some volleyball, and always cool when people come up afterwords and complement you. The rest of the evening was quiet, as we were tired from the full day of sports and activity at the Lair.
Wednesday: The Lake
We had a very slow start to the morning, missing hot breakfast and only going for continental breakfast. After eating, we headed down to the art grove and glazed our pots. Ready for firing, we put them on the shelf, and then headed out to the lake.
The walk to the lake took us through Gold, and then through the forest service campgrounds. Once at the lake, we rented a motor boat for 2 hours and then proceeded to adventure on the lake. This adventure began with me crashing into the dock, just after starting the boat, as I was not particularly skilled. Carter took over, and soon we were out near the dam. We all jumped out of the boat and swam around, enjoying the sun and cool water. Climbing into the boat was not particularly easy, but after several tries we all made it in. 
We then explored the far east shore of the lake, a place we had not really ever managed to make it to in the paddle boats of our youth. I then took over steering and we headed back to the dam, finding branch at the side of the lake to hook into, so we could go swimming again. After this, we headed to the cliffs, and Carter jumped off the rocks. We brought the boat back, got some food, and then headed back to the lair.We spent the time before dinner drinking with Bill and his daughter in Tent 10. It was fun to share stories with our neighbor and hang out by our tent. After drinks I headed out to dinner with the Broadsky family. I remember where their children were babies, but now they are big. It was nice to catch up with David on how he is doing. Wednesday night was the night of the Blue Review, and Carter needed to see at least one show at the stage. The little kids singing was a lot of fun, and some of the other talents were also enjoyable. After the show we walked up to the Vista lodge for the "Adult Dance." While not a lot of dancing took place, it was a wonderful walk to just look up and enjoy the stars.
Thursday: Tennis and Lounging by the Pool
After Breakfast it was the women's Blue vs. Gold volleyball game. We had a lot of fun, even if we did not win. After the game, Amanda and Carter headed home. It was sad to see them go.I spent the rest of the morning playing tennis. First doubles with the ladies, which was good - we all won a serve and lost a serve in a very well matched game. After lunch, I returned to the courts to practice with Rich Green. It was like camp of old, when I would play with my dad, hitting the balls around and getting mild instruction.
After Dinner, Ellen, Rich and I headed down to the creek. The creek was Amanda's favorite place at the lair. We saw lots of bugs and other critters. After our walk it was time for the "Hoot!" All the classics were done, 7 Old Ladies, the Rooster, a Round, and then several great songs by a staff that could really sing. They were a really good group.Friday: Softball, a tweaked ankle, and the Farewell Show
In a small change in schedule, the women's blue versus gold match was in the morning. I walked over to Gold and got ready for our big game. It started off slow, with me at 1st, not a lot of great hitting, and some missed plays in the field. At the top of the 5th (the last inning), things were looking grim. We were down 2-7 and Gold was up. I was moved to Third, and with a series of great plays by the shortstop and pitcher, we were able to get 3 easy outs. Then we were up at bat. We gathered for an inspiring cheer, and then the bottom of the lineup began. Slowly the hits kept coming, until finally, Kristin came up to bat before me. She hit a HOME RUN, driving home everyone on base and tying the score 7-7! I was next, and have a solid base hit. Then Chizzy came up to bat, and hit a grounder to the right side of the field. I rounded second, and while the base coach at third told me to stay, I decided to head home and managed to confuse the gold players and score the winning run! It was very exciting. Later Rosemary and Jerry Brown, said that my father was looking over me and he must have inspired the play. One of the nice things about the Lair is how many people remember my father, and tell me stories of how he was and what they enjoyed about him. I do not often get these reminders in my daily life, and this is probably one of the reasons the lair is so special to me. Unfortunately I also managed to tweak my ankle.
After lunch, I did practice my tennis serve with Rich Green, before the ankle started to bother me. I went to the nurse and she said it was an odd sprain in that it was the inside of my right ankle, not the outside. With only a little swelling, it didn't seem too bad. The rest of the afternoon was spent by the pool, reading the last of my Amelia Peabody mysteries. Before dinner, I watched Rich's tennis match, and then joined him and Ellen for dinner (tri-tip). 
After dinner, it was time for the Final Show! This year the theme was "Stanfordization" and with great songs, lots of cool jokes, the standard dissing of Stanford, but also a message about how the commercial things and making money are not what the lair is about, it is about the people and the memories. It seems the staff is not so keen on some of the "improvements" and donation requests. It was then off to the lodge for my last lair burger and Its It of the week, before heading to sleep.Saturday: Saying Goodbye and Driving Home.
The week at the lair was over. It was so nice to see everyone again, and feel part of the mountain spirit. I said goodbye to people, packed up the car, and headed home. 51 weeks before the next Week 7!More Pictures from the Lair of the Golden Bear!
