I should have wrote this a week ago, but I was tired from Band Camp. It was awesome!

I'm a freshman now, so this was my first year going to Band Camp. The NCH Marching Band headed to Hannon's Camp America, which was near Oxford. The bus ride took about an hour to get there. All the freshmen had to carry the upperclassmen's baggage and equipment. People brought TVs, microwaves, portable air conditioners, portable DVD players, 15- gallon coolers, and mini fridges. During one of the practices, I was pushed down and had to wear women's sunglasses. Later on, I earned their respect.

I thought the food was going to be bad, but it was delicious! Breakfast, lunch, and dinner were great. The freshman had to clean up after the mess. However, the showers weren't so clean.

This was the schedule: Magic Carpet> 7-7:45 Breakfast> 8-8:45 Marching Practice> 9-12:00 Lunch> 12:00 Sectionals> 1-3:00 Free Time> 3-6:00 Dinner> 6:00 Marching Practice> 7-9:00

These were the special events: Monday- Getting to know everybody and announcements Tuesday- Learning to march and watching videos and pictures of last year's band camp Wednesday- Fireworks Thursday- Cookout, karaoke, time capsule reading at bonfire, and dance competition Friday- Pictures, show, and awards

Day 1- My friend, Chris, was disappointed after he heard the news about no hazing (he wanted to be hazed). This was mostly a day of rest, not including the rehearsals. I stayed up the whole night. If you were caught sleeping by one of the counselors, you were sent to bed.

Day 2- I was almost late for Magic Carpet that morning. I received a warning, and I blamed myself. The Magic Carpet helps you learn how to march. There are dowels underneath a carpet and are 22 and 1/2 inches apart ( that's how far each step should take). You have step on each dowel without looking down; it takes time and practice. I learned how to mark time, march in different ways, and other movements. I'm a drummer who had to carry a marching drum, cymbals (an extra 20 lbs.), and a tambourine. It was quite a rough day. I slept like a zombie for about half an hour before watching some movies at 2 a.m. in the morning. The DVD player had to be turned off because of a storm, and I was sent to bed.

Day 3- This was the first day of sectionals. Our drum instructor was helping us on our special drum halftime piece (Dublin Dance). The whole band got in a few formations for pregame and halftime. Inflatables were set up, and everyone had fun. There were races, jousting, and wrestling. I was called a "brick wall" because I couldn't fall down during wrestling.

Day 4- I got the hang of marching and playing drums at the same time. Karaoke was amazing. At 2 a.m., I was in the dance competition and won! However, I couldn't make up a final dance and left disappointed. It was like you know you're going to win the slam dunk contest, but your last dunk sucked. While the others played Manhunt, I went to sleep, knowing that I didn't have to go to Magic Carpet because the bamd did well at rehearsal.

Day 5- Our pictures were taken, and people were just goofing around. The NCH Band played what they would do in the Friday Night Lights. I won the Most Improved Freshman Award. Other awards were the Sunburn Award, Cincinnati Bell Award (if your phone was taken way), Mr. and Mrs. Band Camp, and the Best Singer Award. The bus was about 35 minutes late, and I fell asleep on the way back. However, I did see the equipment van pull over from some trouble.

I learned many things from this experience. I became more open to ideas and listened to the upperclassmen without complaining about it. I have to be prepared, aware, and ready for the future.