My Friend, Ride (And My Counselor- Old Man)

TIP: Are you in the process of being forced to do something against ur will? here's a tip on how 2 weasel out of it. Simply look around the group of people ur in (if ur not in a group of people then too bad) and find the guy who is even more less willing 2 do what ur forced 2 do. then say: "I'll do this only if he/she does". Then, every1's attention will turn to the subject of ur sentance, and off of u. if all goes well, the terrified victim will not give into them, and neither 1 of u will hav 2 do this. this is very good at getting pressure off of u, if ur not so good at arguing.
For example: "I shall only eat these mushrooms if Bramble eats his".
" I shall only wear a dress if Lizic wears 1 too" (i like this 1!)

as u know, i wuz recently away. i went 2 a really cool place- but im not gonna advertise on that. at the place all the kids could do camps at their stay. They didn't hav 2, but its funner when they did. i wuz in a group called "Noch Squad" whatevr that means. i basically did a lot of cool adventure stuff in addition to swimming evry day and eating lunch. like high ropes, for example. high ropes is when u twirl around, walk around, bounce around, go upside-down, etc. 15-50 ft. in the air. that wuz fun, but takes a lot of nerve at points, even if u r on a harness and rope.
at one point there wuz a "leap of faith". it wuz basically a tree, with a platform about 50 feet in the air. aftr struggling 2 climb up the tree, u would step onto the platform and...jump off. now this wuz hard 4 some people bcause doing this wuz strictly against nature, against instinct, against you.
i didn't feel like doing this at first, but i eventually had little choice. this wuz because 1 of the girls in my group (my friend, who i will call Ride, because she always wore a thick, black, sweatshirt even on days when its 80 degrees out! anyway, her sweatshirt always said "ride".) really didn't want to go on the leap of faith, so using the strategy in the TIP above, she went "I'll only go if she comes too." and of course, she meant me.
so then when the camp counselor who's official name is Pete, but i shall call Old Man (as all the other campers called him) started persuading me 2 do it, the rest of Noch Squad kicked in. After a while, i wuz getting a headache from the noise so i decided to go. it wusn't easy, but i went. i felt rather good after doing it though, but i don't think i'll go on it again. X-P
then when Ride went on it, she chickened out b4 she even reached the platform- before she wuz even a half way up the tree. i didn't envy her though, Old Man gave her a tuff time aftr that because she had always seemed so confident and sure of herself in everything, b4 this. "What happened to the rough tough cream puff?" he asked. "You can't hang w/ the big dogs in the evening but sleep w/ the puppies in the morn." i thought that though, both of his statements made sense, it wuz still very weird. and Ride didn't change her mind.

howevr, i am in no position 2 call her coward. as when i took the 'catwalk' (a thin, slippery log 15 ft in the air that u hav 2 walk across) i chickened out as soon as i wuz up on it. i didn't giv Old Man any time 2 persuade me 2 take it though, because i jumped off b4 he got the chance. that's another good tip. if u chicken out mid-way, destroy ur chances of doing the terrible thing, so nobody can bug u after and try 2 make u do it ovr again.

don't get me wrong, i don't like cowards or chickens. but sometimes u hav 2 admit there's a certain line btwn "bravery" and "stupidity" that i am careful not to cross. so if i don't feel like doing something, then i don't do it (unless there's a real reason y i should). in the last case i did it for Ride. and, i don't regret it. the only thing i wish i did wuz push Ride in the pool, getting her back 4 not repaying what she owed me. o well. ;)