BIG GEEK vs. little geek

I was talking to Renee and she was wondering about my band camp adventures. You read right, band camp. If you’ve seen American Pie then you know what I’m talking about. I lived through the “one time in band camp…” and I’ll tell you it’s exactly like that.

Part I
Band geeks do really go to band camp because they like music. The exploits and lessons one learns at band camp makes the experience have a lasting imprint on ones memories. Band camp is by all means full of elitists, stratified from the ultra-cool geeks (which meant they were older) to the bottom feeder-geeks (socially inept newbie). I like to think I was somewhere in the middle…I mean come on my spectacles were taped together, does that not scream geek, by the way I still tape my glasses together when they break. I also lived in the rehearsal halls, until I realized there was a whole different world happening in the court yards, dorms, and dance parties.
Band Camp was usually held in summer at this Lutheran College that was completely void of students. The college was used by schools from all areas around the state.
If you can imagine a college completely open to socially depraved fifteen/seventeen year olds, then you can get an idea of the madness that issued. It was three weeks of pranks, sneaking into the girls’ dorm, and did I mention a crash course in making-out.
Let me tell you the girls are just as bad as the guys. I saw some of the cruel pranks done by girls to other girls. There was this on time at band camp when this group of girls made this other girl give her flute a blow-job. When she was done they called her all kinds of names. Apparently, she was too much of a slut to be in their group. Of course when events of this nature transpire, they are not of a private nature, but held in some weird tribunal in front of as many people as possible.
The chaperones must have been somewhere else smoking pot, because I don’t remember ever seeing one unless there was a concert. This brings me to the Friday night dance party, aka make-out city. I remember attending these dances and looking over the dance floor at a sea of people glued to each other, there was definitely no room for Jesus.
It was around this time when I learned, band camp was not just for learning techniques on your instrument but also learning the techniques of wet sloppy kissing.
This was only the beginning, it was my first year at band camp and I was learning that you could take your instrument seriously during practice hours, but when one was done it was time to turn into the unsuspected bolt from the sky.

More later
-M

LISTENING TO:
R.E.M
Album:
UP

RENTAL REVIEW:
Sanjuro by Akira Kurosawa
A world-weary samurai, what more could one ask for. I believe some of Kurosawa’s grittier shots are in this film.

A+ = I was lost in the murky delight of Kurosawa’s vision.