JumpStart by Robb Armstrong for May 29, 2022

I remember when my parents would guilt trip me into going to summer camp by complaining about how they never got to go.

Nice close-up of Joe’s face in the next to last panel!

I guess, my summer was like Joe’s. Summer meant sleeping late, swimming and fishing, eating watermelon, visiting the cousins, and learning about the world, or getting into trouble. As my mom was a school teacher, she was there to make sure I didn’t stray too far.

The 10-day Scout camp I went to is $350.

Is that realistic?? $3500 per child??

I’m from California and I never went. It seems to me that it is more of an eastern thing to do?

Beautiful strip.

Midwestern too. I went to week-long church and Scout camps and then a longer camp farther away in my early teens. If $3500 is a reasonable estimate, maybe it reflects both the location and the length of camp.

Um, no. Take short trips to Delaware Water Gap, Fort Bedford (Bedford County is chock full of fun and historical stuff), Valley Forge, Longwood Gardens, Cape May, NJ., crabbing in the Chesapeake, church camp, and much more. Plus you are making family memories.

“…Pay for what?”

It is called “anchoring” like when the used car salesman restates your price range (“$5000… up to how much.” Me: “Um, up to $5000, like I said.”)

Given the choice of 7 grand or swimming lessons and lunch, which will they pick? BTW, “neither” is an acceptable answer, should they realize that.

Leaving aside the sheer number of relatives in that family, you need to compare it to the price of daycare for the 2 school kids (I’m guessing one of the grandparents watches the toddlers since both Joe and Marcy work). As ridiculous as that price is, $3500 for a month isn’t terrible.

I went to a Jewish day camp two summers. We had good times there.

I use to go to camp for two weeks every summer, I have no idea how much it cost. It was 1955 to 1964. Fun camp in the Big Bend area of Texas near Alpine.

My cousin did that and it was a camp for artists and musicians.

I am not an outdoor person. I am not an athletic person. I am a stay in the house and read or do embroidery person (and these pandemic days as husband keeps finding "we have to go out and do this or shop for that) – “remember you made me go out when you complain the house needs cleaning” person.

We are 18th century reenactors. When we go to an event I am wearing clothing except for my head (though have a cap on) and lower arms. I still have to wear sun lotion as I am light skinned and burn easily and a “bug band” as bugs love me. I have walked out of our house (in normal clothes) without the bug band to get into our car and in the 10 feet to the car can have 15 bug bites as I forgot the band.

I learned to swim at the YMCA too. I was a small boy about 5. It was the best investment my parents ever made.

We’re at summer camp season already?Do the kids ever get bored going to the same summer camp every year?