Campfires And Color Wars

A summer at camp wouldn't be complete without a good ole fashioned Color War (aka Maccabiah Games, Yom Sport, or Special Day...). Whatever you want to call it, everyone left it all on the field for the green, the red, the yellow, and the blue. Author Stacy Davidowitz joins Micah and Sara to recount her days at Tyler Hill Camp and talk about her newest book in the Camp Rolling Hills series, "Breakout", which takes place during Color War. Plus we discuss great Color War fakeouts and breakouts, how Paris Hilton played a role one summer, and we learn why Micah's camp nickname was Skipper. Enjoy!

Austin-based filmmakers Micah Barber and Tony Faia didn’t go to camp together, but they did make a movie about a young boy who escapes from his lonely summer camp in the magical “Into the Who Knows”. In our conversation with them, we hear stories from Micah’s days at band camp (where he played the french horn) and from Tony’s days at boy scout camp (where everyone showered with their swim trunks on). We reminisce about the magic of camp nights, lament the lack of romantic opportunities for 11-year olds, argue about what it means to be on the “top tier” at camp, and discover (through Wikipedia!) the adventures of snipe-hunting. Plus, we hear a story about a raccoon that doesn’t end quite the way we think it will.

On this week’s episode, we talk to Mike Sacks - author, comedy writer, and host of the podcast, “Doin’ it with Mike” - about his summers at Camp Airy and Camp Seafarer in the 80s. Despite his tough exterior, Mike turns out to be quite the sentimental camp philosopher. Like most of our guests, camp had a big impact on how he sees the world and shares what we all know to be true: “Camp time is like living through amber.” Poetic, right? An accomplished writer, Mike shares that the most precious and meaningful writing of his life hasn’t been his New York Times articles, but the love letters he and his girlfriend wrote back and forth the summer before his freshman year of high school. In fact, he still gets verklempt every time he hears Journey on the radio because Steve Perry’s voice brings him back right back to that summer of long-distance love. Mike also shares a great story about an extreme case of homesickness that set upon him the very moment he waved goodbye to his parents and how even the most experie

Some of us live for camp, dreaming and wishing that we could spend our entire life in the place we truly call “home.” But would you actually ever *buy* one? Well, this week’s guest, Joe Mendes did just that. When Camp Roosevelt-Firebird came available to buy in 2015, Joe finally realized his decades-old dream of helping kids learn, grow, and develop in ways they did not think possible! This year will be his second summer as owner/director and he tells us about the trials and tribulations of re-building a camp from the ground up. We talk about local hires, camp as a “business”, and how he wishes that his bunkmates told stories about him that had to do with something other than poop. Micah and Sara also muse about whether or not they would want to own a camp and how to *really* observe Passover. Chag Sameach!

This episode is the second part of our interview with Michael and Sarah Marks, two great storytellers who had us cringing in disbelief at some of the stories they shared about both the pranks they pulled and the pranks that were pulled on them. Turns out, Sarah LOVED having her underwear run up the flagpole... and she almost convinces Sara that pranks are a sign of affection. You’ll also hear about Sarah’s first camp kiss (it's the absolute best) and how having your dad at camp can definitely ruin your last-night-of-camp mojo. Michael tells an amazing story about flirting while holding a snake and he confirms that boys are really just mostly gross when there are no girls around. Micah also shares prank stories from his camp memory, including a butt cheek situation, how no one dared prank his dad, and how he and his friends thought that wearing white sheets would definitely make a bunch of girls think he and his friends were ghosts.

If you’ve ever peed on a plastic wrap toilet, found crickets in your sleeping bag, or raided a camp kitchen, you’ll appreciate this week’s April Fool’s-themed episode about pranks and the campers & counselors who pull them. We talk to Camp Sierra Vista lifer, Sarah Marks, and her radio-producer, bird-call expert husband (and literal Boy Scout), Michael Marks, about escalating prank wars, shower shenanigans, dining hall antics, and the general mayhem created when the summer camp season starts. The conversation was so much fun we’ll be bringing it to you in two parts...look for Part 2 on April 1st (no joke!). You’ll also hear a brief history of pranks at Sara’s camp, including a dramatic reading of a soon-to-famous poem entitled “I Know Nothing”, which was written by a guy who Sara is pretty sure knows quite a lot.

Poet and writer Abigail Welhouse joins Sara and Micah to discuss her experiences growing up and working at a horseback riding camp for girls, plus we discuss why being a summer camp counselor is the best paying job you can find as a teenager.

Sara and Micah talk to Aaron Greene, a longtime camp veteran with a penchant for posting memes on Instagram with the #campconfessions hashtag. What confessions do we discuss? Take a listen and find out!

Have you ever fallen in love at camp? Did you ever wish you were one half of a cool camp couple? On this very special Valentine’s Day-themed episode, two camp couples take Sara and Micah through how they lasted past the dog days of summer, tied the knot, and started a family of little campers-to-be of their own.

Brooklyn-based storyteller Courtney Antonioli joins Micah and Sara to talk about her summer as Director of an all-girls arts & empowerment summer camp. She shares stories about a frozen t-shirt contest gone terribly wrong, her girls' crush on a geriatric campus security guard, and how making "adult choices" sometimes means choosing to eat ice cream for breakfast. We also ponder the question, "Can you be too old for camp?", wonder how some girls "bleed cute", and try to figure out just how many pads and tampons a pre-teen girl needs to bring to camp.

Writer of the blog Summer Camp Culture Matt Ralph joins Micah and Sara to discuss their favorite representations of summer camp in movies and TV. Wet Hot rules!

Host of the Unorthodox Podcast Mark Oppenheimer joins Micah and Sara to discuss the joys of being naked at summer camp.

Leah Tennen and Mike Klotz join Micah to discuss the life of the camp director's kids, the frustrations and the perks, and the unique perspective of the summer that comes with it.

There's something about summer camp that brings out the performer in everyone. Micah is joined by guest host "Michael" Ziggy Danziger and actor/playwright Jon Ross to discuss the relationship between theater and camp and relive some of the best - and worst - camp performances.

What's better, being a camper or being a counselor? Judy and Micah are joined by Austin schoolteacher Sara Ballon to discuss the pros and cons of each, with a special appearance by Judy's long-time camp friend Dan Hart.

Longtime Jacobs Camp director (and Micah's father) Macy Hart joins to try to make sense of the U.S. presidential election and give the advice he used to give campers and counselors faced with difficult circumstances.

Micah is joined by Longwood University professor Jeff Halliday to discuss his time growing up at Boy Scout camp and how having a father as a scoutmaster is like having a father as a camp director.

Micah is joined by professional chef Sara Molinaro to discuss all the ins and outs of summer camp food, how it's changed over the years, and just what exactly is in bug juice.

Writer and author Nathan Rabin joins Judy and Micah to discuss being homesick, what it's like to feel like an outsider at camp, and his new book about the 2016 election and the Insane Clown Posse.

Writer and author Lang Whitaker joins Judy and Micah to discuss his time at church camp in Anniston, AL, and educates them on the similarities and differences to the camps they grew up at.