By Chris Strevel
Captain’s Blog, Stardate Winter 2013. We are preparing to embark on a magical journey to a place in the galaxy unlike any that we have ever visited . . . a place known as Tate’s Day Camp, City of Knoxville, State of Tennessee, Planet Earth.
Since the year 1982, our sensors have been picking up strange and unique sounds coming from 52 acres located on the Road of Cedar Bluff – water swirling and splashing, voices cheering and singing, unbelievable laughter, and the distinctive little voice of a yet unidentified animal species yelling, “Oooochie Waa Waa Yaaa Baby!”
Prepared by our science officer, we have loaded our backpacks with the recommended supplies: swim suit, towel, sunscreen, water bottle, and a lunchbox full of rations. Reports suggest that the inhabitants are friendly; however, we are also packing our Z-252 Super Soaker Water Squirters just in case we encounter any trouble.
Our recreation officer says that he looks most forward to something called a Zip Line. Apparently when you secure your harness to the main cable via the tether connected to the carriage, you can propel yourself from the top of the climbing tower traveling 100 yards to earth while reaching quantum speeds that border on the threshold of entering a time warp.
We are taking along a squadron of new cadets for training purposes. Ancient manuscripts describe the primary activities of this camp civilization as being the elite training ground to learn teamwork, develop new skills, and gain self confidence. Some will participate in swim lessons, arts and crafts, archery, boating, and nature study. Others will hone their abilities by choosing group initiatives, the climbing tower, marksmanship, and tree climbing. And for a few . . . they will face the arena of new games, originally designed to sharpen the minds of the primordial ninjas. Games called Blitz, Sniper, Castles, and Happy.
Our ship is now boarding and will depart soon with an arrival date of May 28, 2013. We will remain on assignment until the earth clock of August 2, 6:00 PM. Come and join us for 10 weeks of exploration as we discover all that Tate’s Day Camp has to offer. The journey is just beginning! Captain out.