Camp Pranks

[SR540Beaver 116]

I guess everyone else is right about pranks turning kids into friends, thickening their skin and turning them into men. Here are a few of the real pranks I remember from summer camp.

 

Feeding a guy some chocolate without revealing it was really Ex-Lax. Everyone got a kick out of him laying naked from the waist down under a sheet so he could run to the bathroom. What a hoot!

 

A day or two later the same kids emptied a can of bug spray into the Ex-Lax'ed kid's pillow case to see if he'd notice the smell. It was funny knowing he couldn't use his pillow the rest of the week.

 

Then there was the kid who got jumped taking a nap and had Nair rubbed all over his body by a bunch of guys. Shaving cream fights were fairly common. No one told him it was Nair instead of shaving cream. What a scream it was when he went to shower it off and his body hair came off!

 

I recall the look on another kids face when he found out a couple of days later that one of the guys peed in his shampoo bottle.

 

Yep, those were the days. Fun was had by all.....well, most everyone.

[OldGreyEagle 5]

Now Beaver, I really think you are going overboard on this and you need to take a breath and relax.

 

I have been rethinking my stance on pranking and I may have to modifier it. A thread in the Cub Scout section deals with dull Boy Scout meetings from a Cub Scout perspective. I think when Cubs visit a Boy Scout Troop, the first thing that needs to happen is they all need to be sent out on a scavanger hunt. You know, bring back 50 feet of shoreline, the left handed smokeshifter, etc. Nothing will make the boys more welcome and part of the group than having the older boys yelling, laughing and pointing at them for being so naive, now that builds a team!

[Beavah 205]

Here are a few of the real pranks I remember from summer camp... [followed by several in bad taste]

 

Yah, yeh know...

 

If you're really gettin' kids who are doing pranks in bad taste, or nasty, or whatever, I think you have to take a good close look at what in your program is not working. That kind of thing only happens when the unit program is failing to achieve our goals of character and citizenship in important ways.

 

The problem isn't the "prank". That's the symptom, eh?

[evmori 11]

If ya can't tell the difference between pranks that are not harmful & those that are ya should turn in you loops & quit. Making someone drink something harmful is not a prank. Having someone look for 50 feet of left handed shoreline is. And there is no slippery slope.

 

Ed Mori

1 Peter 4:10

[packsaddle 753]

In my first real paying job, bagging groceries for Colonial Stores (out of the business now, no thanks to me), one day we were stocking the shelves. My job was to unload boxes and bring them out where the skilled labor was putting the items on the shelves. One late-middleaged lady who I think might have been used as the model for 'Selma' in 'The Simpsons' was upset as I arrived. There wasn't enough room for everything I had brought. She shouted at me, "Quick, go ask the manager for the shelf stretcher!"

I hustled on off to find the manager who said he was pretty sure the guy in the meat section had it. After I made the rounds through nearly every experienced person in the store and was beginning to get frustrated, I reported back to 'Selma'. She started to vent and then couldn't hold back the laughter. I then noticed echos of laughter from all directions in the store. About an hour later I figured out that I had been HAD. It was embarrassing but I knew that at least I was liked enough to be worth the effort.

 

At the end of the day, my mild dyslexia had its way as well. We were closing down and preparing to lock up when someone mentioned the prank. I laughed and joked about how confused I was going all over the place trying to get a box stretcher for 'Selma'. Everyone got silent. 'Selma' started to blush. Then I realized what I had said and I started to blush. And then the produce guy lost it. And then the rest of us. Sweeeeet!

Selma, for some reason, was a lot friendlier after that, h'mmmm, can't figure it out.

[anarchist 10]

 

A slippery slope...humm, think there is a pank in there somewhere?

 

Folks...pranks, jokes, humor, they are not meant to "toughen" up kids...though heaven knows some of them need that...or "hammer" on them...though some need that also! I think a good prank helps a kid...like the scout in the snipe hunt...learn to laugh at himself...if you take this stuff too seriously...life becomes a real drag...and if we can't see the benefit of laughing at ourselves from time to time...of being "had" in good fun...it's time to stop beating this dead horse...and go back to making and eating mud pies...and crying ourselves to sleep. Lifes way too short.

 

Anarchist

[evmori 11]

pack,

 

Same thing happened to me working in a steel mill. Only it was the steel stretcher. Classic!

 

Ed Mori

1 Peter 4:10

[OldGreyEagle 5]

Unless I missed a post, I was the kid in the Snipe Hunt and it certainly didn't help me (elsewise why would we be discussing this?) All it did was teach me not to beleive or trust the boy leaders in the Troop. If you want to take that chance that's up to you.

 

On a different note, we have the thread on Camp Skits open, so far I have posted 3 skits, and John-in-KC has added one. Are there no more playwrights out there?

[Beavah 205]

Unless I missed a post, I was the kid in the Snipe Hunt and it certainly didn't help me (elsewise why would we be discussing this?)

 

Yah, I think da thread got started just to share good, funny camp pranks, eh? You're the one who brought up your bad experience. It is interestin', though, that people are much more willing to share fun pranks than fun skits. I think that reflects the relative impact on the boys as well.

 

Of course, I've seen plenty of abusive, off-color, and inappropriate skits in my day. Maybe skits should be disallowed as well.

 

Inappropriate skits and inappropriate pranks are just symptoms of poor unit culture and program. If yeh find such things, don't waste time on the pranks or skits beyond what you need to. Fix your program. Ask yourself why da kids are doing that - how are you set up so that they're not learnin' those lessons of character and judgment as they're coming up?

 

 

 

[evmori 11]

On a different note, we have the thread on Camp Skits open, so far I have posted 3 skits, and John-in-KC has added one. Are there no more playwrights out there?

 

Yeah but I don't want to offend anyone.

 

Ed Mori

1 Peter 4:10

[SSScout 1615]

"Aye, it be an arrrrt form, not just guide lines."

 

Beware the "Revenge Prank"...Oh, I'm gonna get that guy. He can't embarrass me like that. Just you wait... This can lead to a series of one-up-manship pranks that usually end in a really bad scene. The first prank should be enough (Shelf Stretchers? boy!)

 

Beware the "Prank to Impress".... Listen up guys, here's what we'll do to that other camp.... These usually end up being the ones in """Bad Taste"""

 

Beware the "Proxy Prank".... The young member that wants SO BAD to be INCLUDED that he will risk too much of his safety and self esteem in executing someone else's plans. See also the "Double Prank" as illustrated in the movie "The Sting". Who really was responsible for the bed on the pavilion roof???

 

Beware the "Chemistry Class Prank"... The replacement of certain usual liquids with other questionable liquids, or edibles with inedibles (rubber chocolates? Is choking possible?). Think those through REAL thoroughly. Now ammonium tri-iodide is a good project...

 

And don't forget to keep the Scoutmaster antennae raised and attuned (what? they didn't pass those out in your WB?),(See Ray Ralston) so your early warning system can be activated.

 

Ever glue a quarter to the floor?

 

'Course, Allen Funt might be the one to ask for advice...

 

And Spin And Marty, as I remember, had some real classics.

 

 

"Life is like a box of chocolates... You never know what you might get."

 

YiS

[FScouter 24]

"...it's time to stop beating this dead horse..."

 

Why is it every time one of us objects to being the butt of this "prank" practice, someone else pipes up to defend it and offer even more techniques? I find it rather sick.

[SR540Beaver 116]

Symptoms of a bad program? Not really. The pranks I listed happened at church camp of all places by good kids who came from good homes and were extremely active in the youth group. We had the best show in town and attracted kids from every school on our side of town. The problem was they were kids growing towards adulthood and sometimes let temptation exceed there sense of right and wrong. Trust me, they knew what they were doing was wrong since they always had a lookout to make sure an adult wasn't approaching. In each instance, the target was one of the kids who was not part of the in-crowd or popular. In other words, the weak and vulnerable were targeted by the cool or popular kids. Did these kids prank each other? No. They pranked the dorks, geeks, fatties, etc. They were just boys being boys even though they were Christians at church camp and got lots of laughs out of it. Yes, they got in trouble.....after the fact. Boys are boys. They do know right from wrong. That does not always ensure that they will make wise or ethical choices.

 

I know that there are some here who thinks the old Beav is some sort of cop, sitting around with a sour look on his face and dying for a chance to bust a kid and make his scouting experience miserable. Not true by a long shot. Beav loves to laugh, has a wicked sense of humor and loves a good joke. He also is pretty darn lenient with the boys. I'm all for a good prank that can be pulled in the light of day. What I am against is kids getting caught up in the moment and trying to one up each other and taking a mile instead of an inch. You fill a bucket one drop at a time.

 

We as leaders are here primarily to teach boys leadership and how to make ethical choices in an outdoor setting......hopefully while having fun at the game with a purpose. We are also here for safety concerns. The one "fix" I could see to my old church youth program would have been that all pranks had to pass the youth minister's sniff test. Same in scouting. Back in November, we had a new scout snipe hunt sponsored by senior leadership. Actually, just about the whole troop joined in as well as our visiting Venturing Crew. The SM was told about the hunt and he pulled the senior leadership to the side and laid out the ground rules to insure that it would be a fun and memorable event for everyone involved. It was.

 

I think we all actually agree on the topic to a degree. I know very few people without a sense of humor or who don't like to laugh....even at themselves. It is the degree and the intent of the prank being pulled that is in question. Even older teens sometimes let their passions run wild and make bad choices and prank people for the wrong reason or use poor judgement in who their target is. Sometimes it is intentional and sometimes it isn't. Trust is earned in fire skills, map and compass, shelter choice, etc. It is no different with pranks. It should always be done by the boys with a watchful eye from the adults entrusted with the boys safety.

 

So to all you scouters out there, go for it if you want to reverse everything in my tent while I'm away from camp. I'll get a kick out of it too and probably get you back. Soak my sleeping bag on a winter night and you might get a split lip. My hide is only so thick.

[OldGreyEagle 5]

So it would be better for me to watch a list of camp pranks and not contribute my experience? I tell my story so in the future when possibly youth are reading these pages they know that not all pranks are resounding successes and what the potential risks are.

 

As far as Camp Skits, I don't how many "repeaters" you have seen, I was trying to provide a resource for new ideas, something to spark creativity. And as you can tell, I am quite affronted by being told I have no sense of humor and need to take myself less seriously. It's ok, I will get over it (although my therapist inexplicably was seen at the boat show looking to upgrade another 4 feet(This message has been edited by OldGreyEagle)

[evmori 11]

Why is it every time one of us objects to being the butt of this "prank" practice, someone else pipes up to defend it and offer even more techniques? I find it rather sick.

 

I don't think it's the objecting so much as it is the "just because we don't like it no one should" attitude.

 

Just my opinion.

 

Ed Mori

1 Peter 4;10