The World Is Comin’ to a Start
Welcome to the Camp Winnarainbow Blog! This feed is dedicated to providing daily updates on various Camp happenings with a special focus on camper quotations. DISCLAIMER: For matters of an urgent or serious nature, please contact the Camp office directly. This blog desk is not equipped to handle official business. Besides that, feel free to request article topics or special reports. Happy reading! —J. Payseno, Editor
MERCH TABLE circa 3:17pm—Families are beginning to trickle over Streeter Creek into the makeshift welcome area where sandwich boards point people into various registration lines. The Puppet Grove has become a paperwork check-in station while the Chess Grove doubles as a CWR merchandise storefront. A gentle breeze causes display T-shirts to sway on hangers dangled from a large shade structure. A grey sedan slinks through the crowd, apparently carrying a certain nonagenarian clown who has come to play his part in the collective welcome effort.
Here at the merch table, I am shirking the commerce tasks at hand in favor of collecting a few quotations for the first blog post of the 2026 season.
“Friends & Family Camp made me realize that children are better behaved than adults,” points out Art Instructor Maya Kittredge-Martinez, referring to Camps new all-ages pre-season program. “For our day off we saw Disclosure Day, which was…good? It was kind of hilarious at the end because the CGI was so terrible.”
On the adjacent picnic table Operations Manager Angel Herrera contemplatively strums a Mexican-made black and white Stratocaster. Kitchen Manager Mary Jane Stamper stops on her way to poke her head through a pair of sweatpants on display. “Here’s Johnny!” she menaces before hurrying back to burger night prep.
“Disclosure Day was more funny than anything,” assesses Herrera. “I’d give it one thumb-up. It can’t compare with Camp, that’s for sure. You can’t compare if you don’t compete.”
A dad and his three kids approach to inquire about sizes. Maya steps over to the backstock bins and parses through piles of branded garments. Angel has switched to tapping on a tiny djembe.
“I came here as a camper in the 90’s,” says Trevor from San Francisco. “I’m glad my kids are campers now. It’s the community, it’s the eucalyptus, it’s the magic—it’s all beautiful things to hold and savor.”
“We expect this session to be the best one yet, as always!” exclaims Executive Director Ginger Jackson-Gleich while rolling by in the Camp golf cart.
“I saw The Death of Robin Hood on my day off,” reports Gravy Boat Jasper Jackson-Gleich. The brother of Ginger, Jasper has been tasked with ferrying Wavy and Jahanara around campus this summer, hence the title. “I liked the casting but the cinematography was grotesque and the script was overwrought. Zero thumbs up.”
Sensing a movie theme emerging, I resolve to solicit reviews of more titles.
From the bridge a counselor announces to everyone in particular that the Berkeley shuttle bus has arrived. A few free hands muster themselves over the bridge to help unload baggage in the parking lot. A line forms at the merch table as more and more families arrive.
“Friends & Family Camp was so fun!” says Marie from Oakland. “I wish we could stay for longer, but our kid is excited for Session A. Just so you know, he brought a harmonica, so be warned.”
“I just saw The Mandalorian & Grogu,” says Iggy, 11, Maroon Tipi. “The plot was really good—even better than the Minecraft movie!”
“Traffic was crazy,” reports Aerials Instructor Shakon. “The vibes on the bus were surprisingly good. With this new ‘no phones’ rule kids were actually talking to each other. I guess the screen withdrawal hasn’t kicked in yet. Or maybe I’m just that good at being the bus counselor.”
“Toy Story 5 was better than Toy Story 4,” claims Teen Staff Orion. “It actually expanded on a character that wasn’t Woody or Buzz—Jessie. We get to learn more about her backstory and her fear of abandonment. In the end she learns that nothing is permanent, but memories last forever. Two thumbs up.”
“I randomly saw The Babysitters Club recently,” confesses Marina from San Anselmo. “Four out of four stars. In the movie they actually run a summer camp. It’s more chaotic than Camp Winnarainbow—if you can imagine such a thing. I wish we had come to Friends & Family. We’re already planning for next year.”
“There’s a magic once you arrive,” adds Nina from Fairfax. “It pulls you in.”
“My nervous system totally relaxes when I get here,” says Sara, also from Fairfax. “The environment, the people, it feels like a really beautiful and positive place. It’s vibrant and peaceful at the same time.”
“I saw Backrooms,” says Former Dance Instructor Karma Engel. “My favorite part wasn’t even about the movie. Marcos arrived like twenty minutes late and when he sat down he leaned so far back that it broke the chair like this,” she says while physically demonstrating.
“That theater is so small you can hear the soda machine,” adds Herrera.
“I thought Disclosure Day rocked,” says Clowning Instructor Riley Soloner. “I feel lucky to live in an era where we can still get a classic Spielbergian sci-fi adventure. It was similar to Arrival, but with more action. Under the flashy action sequences it was ultimately a human story about the power of empathy, which dovetails nicely with Camp. There’s this trope where you think the world is coming to an end, but it’s really coming to a start. And I think that is very much in the spirit of Camp.”
Stay hydrated,
—J. Payseno, Editor
