Love working with the kids, struggling with everything else
Am I trippin or this camp got me ready to clock out for good? 😭
So boom. I recently started working at a summer camp and the kids are not the problem at all. Matter of fact, they the main reason I’m still there. The kids funny, sweet, and honestly I enjoy working with them. I already work with kids during the school year, so being around children ain’t nothing new to me.
But baby… these adults? That’s a different story. 🥴
First off, they got this strict phone policy where everybody supposed to put their phone in a box in the office and they do phone counts throughout the day. Cool, whatever. I understand not wanting counselors on their phones around kids.
But here’s the part that got me scratching my head…
How y’all fussing at people for not keeping up with time when half the clocks don’t work? 😭
I done seen counselors asking kids with watches what time it is because the clocks either broken or nowhere to be found.
Then on top of that, some staff members got their phones and be scrolling social media. Maybe they got permission, maybe they don’t. I don’t know. But from where I’m sitting, it look like one set of rules for some people and another set for everybody else.
And let’s talk about where they want us to leave our phones.
The office where the phones be at is by parent drop-off and pick-up. That door stay unlocked and folks constantly coming in and out. Maybe it’s just me, but I’m not too comfortable leaving my whole life sitting in an unlocked room. Banking apps, school information, emails, personal stuff… nah.
Then they say we get a 30-minute lunch.
Now maybe it’s just me, but by the time somebody relieve you, you walk where you gotta go, sit down, eat, and get back, it definitely don’t feel like no full 30 minutes. I’m 21 so I’ll survive, but some of these counselors fresh out of high school and it don’t seem right.
Speaking of fresh out of high school, I don’t have no issue with the younger counselors. A lot of them just graduated and about to head off to college. I remember being in that position. If they need hours for books, tuition, dorm stuff, whatever, baby they can have them hours.
Because truth be told, I don’t even need this job like that.
I’m still getting paid through my school district. I only took this job because I didn’t get selected for summer school this year. The district did first come, first serve and I wasn’t picked. So I said cool, let me find something productive to do, work with some kids, and stay busy over the summer.
Now since I got hired, summer classes done popped up, my school district sending out stuff, mandatory meetings coming up, trainings coming up, and possibly other opportunities through my actual job.
My school district and my education coming first every single time. 🤷🏽♀️
Another thing that been getting on my nerves is how some staff talk to the kids. Not everybody, but enough people for me to notice. Some of them act irritated when a child asks a simple question. Baby, they’re kids. That’s literally what they do.
Then yesterday after a field trip it was pouring down raining. We finally get back, I’m sitting next to one of the campers joking around, minding my business, and one of the workers decides to THROW a bottle of hand sanitizer instead of calling the girl’s name or walking it over.
That sanitizer hit me.
She apologized, but I’m sitting there like girl… why are we throwing stuff across a room full of kids? 😭
And don’t get me started on the staff cliques.
I mostly stay to myself, do my job, observe people, and go home. There are probably three staff members I genuinely like working with. The rest? Meh.
A couple people be looking at me crazy like I did them something and I don’t even know them people. 😂
At this point I ain’t even worried about hours. If somebody else wants the hours, baby give them the hours. Put me on one day a week and I’d be perfectly fine.
I’m starting to think this just ain’t the place for me. I love the kids, but between summer classes, my actual job, family responsibilities, and everything else I got going on, I’m seriously considering finishing out June and enjoying the rest of my summer.