Day 7-Final Campfire

Our final blog comes to you from Louie Hehman.

It’s hard to believe that it’s been an entire year since I served my tenure as blogmaster for Troop 820 on our weeklong expedition to West Virginia. But what a year it has been! During that time, I’ve managed to survive Senior Year – best year of my life – of high school, prepared for college, completed my Eagle Scout Project, and prepared for my upcoming Eagle Board of Review (next Tuesday, July 27). Hopefully all will go well, and in a very short time I will be officially an Eagle Scout. But those events will unfold with time. For now, I focus upon my present situation and our current trip.

I am currently riding back towards home in Mr. Graff’s van (a.k.a. The Bus), and have been specifically asked to handle last night’s events. As is traditional with Boy Scout Troop 820, our final night on the Summer Trip begins with the annual Burrito Pigout. Burritos prepared by Dr. Cummings were seemingly swallowed up by ravenous Scouts and leaders. Josh managed to down five on his own. Now there’s a real man.

After the scrumptious burritos, it was time to begin the famous Naming Ceremony. The nicknames for this year were chosen by yours truly, in conjunction with my fellow Senior Scouts, Matthew Stark and Josh Graff. We first introduced ourselves and our nicknames:

Louie: Trailmix
Matthew: Carebear
Josh: Stick

We then introduced the Scouts to their new nicknames:

Hank: Guppy
Colin: Pretty Boy
Jake: Grace
Hunter: Robin
Luke: Bugbite
Matt: Lumberjack
Will: Mini-Me
Ethan: Rabbit
Travis: Sleeping Beauty
Geoffrey: Gameboy

After a good laugh was had by all, the real fun began as we acquainted the adults with their new nicknames:

Mr. Stark: Gator
Mr. Zimmerman: Mr. Clean
Mr. Hehman: Nurse
Mr. Miles: Robo-Cop
Mr. Rolfson: Chuckles
Mr. Graff and Mr. Seibt: Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dum (we let them decide who was who)
Dr. Cummings: Fluffy

And with that, we began the long-standing tradition which has stood as the culmination of every summer trip since before I joined the troop: skit night. Beginning with Will and company in “The Soup Sketch,” everyone had something to contribute to what is possibly the most successful skit night we’ve had since Land Between the Lakes in 2007. Josh brought us through the much-celebrated “Ugliest Man in the World” (joke’s on you, Chuckles!), a skit which we have performed in such exotic locations as Alaska and Canada. Dr. C then performed an extremely memorable rendition of the infamous Wally Starciak Magic Show, featuring his own circus music, disappearing limbs, and a mustache that put Mr. Stark and Mr. Miles to shame.

Following a sketch by Hank and Jake (acting together and President Obama), and another by Matt (searching for his “string,” which turned out to be Silly String), we began our movie quotes section. Every year, the members of Troop 820 have dazzled one another with their memorable recitations of their favorite lines from their favorite films. Even without Steve Mairose’s much-loved Caddyshack impression, this part was arguably the most successful of the night. Among the most memorable were: Mr. Seibt’s Darth Vader (“Luke, I am your father”), Mr. Hehman’s Blazing Saddles (“More beans?”), Geoffrey’s Lord of the Rings, Josh’s Forrest Gump, Luke and Will’s Willy Wonka (“Oompa Loompa…”), my own impression of Alan from The Hangover (“This isn’t the real Caesar’s palace, is it?”), and Travis’s wide array of various impersonations. With that, we closed the night with a recitation of Monty Python’s “Lumberjack Song.” Hilarious? Most definitely. Appropriate? Somewhat. Applicable? My lips are sealed.

We woke up this morning to the sound of coyotes howling (talk about a rude awakening) at around 6:30. Despite the howls, Matthew and I still had to wake up a few of the Scouts, or, rather, the majority of them. We pulled out of camp around 8:30 and have been on the road ever since. We’ll soon be home, but the memories we’ve made will remain. Thanks to all the family and friends back at home who have followed our adventures. Until next year!

Keep it real,
Louie