(Author Note: This is the fifteenth episode in a series. The characters and situations were introduced in the story:
Camp Torowa Falls 1: Wet Sheets Lead to Sore Rumps.
Read that episode first! Then read episodes 2 through 14 before reading this one!)

Nobody from Fox Cabin actually saw the Bears return from their camping trip. But reports they heard later stated that the Bear's tails were definitely between their legs. At least Roland had survived the trip, which brought considerable relief to Corey, who had been quite worried about his friend.

It was weird. It seemed like a day and a half cooped up in leaking tents in a rain storm had taken all the starch out of the Bears. They didn't even try very hard to regain their Cabin Frisbee before dinner on Thursday evening. It was like they were resigned to being spanked by the Foxes the next day.

Corey smelled a rat. Jerry, Eric and Alan agreed with him. "They're up to something devious, that's for sure!" said Eric, as they all walked the Bear Cabin Frisbee back to Fox Cabin.

"But what could it be?" asked Kyle. He seemed back to his usual self after having been out of sorts much of the day. Corey had trouble believing how much Kyle was participating with their plans, even after the Squirrel Cabin Frisbee had been safely recovered. He even played blackjack with them the other day. Corey had a suspicion that Kyle's parents were in for shock when they got their eldest son back home.

"I think they're playing possum," said Corey. "They want to throw us off our guard, or even break up the alliance against them."

"They only have one more shot at getting it back," said Alan. "After lunch tomorrow."

"They only have to be successful once," said Eric. "We have to be successful each and every time."

"Then we'll just have to see to it that we are successful!" said Paulie. The little guy was participating a lot more too, particularly since Corey told Paulie that he would be spanking Joey Cramer on Friday if they held on to Bear Cabin's Frisbee.

The Fox Cabin campers checked with the four "allied" cabins after dinner and got some bad news. Only Coyote Cabin would be taking the field with them the next day. It didn't even seem to be the Bear's doing. The other three Patrol Leaders seemed to think that the Bears deserved at least one reasonable shot at recovering their Frisbee. Nobody objected to the Coyotes staying in it since several of their guys (including their Patrol Leader) had been attacked by the Bears.

The best Corey was able to get was a promise from Derek Trone of Squirrel Cabin and Pete Harris of Wolf Cabin that their guys would stand by and join in - but only if the Bears started playing dirty again.

"Looks like we're all just gonna have to be on our toes tomorrow," said Corey, as they walked back to the cabin after the regular Thursday night prayer meeting.

"We will be!" said Jerry confidently.

"I hope so," said Corey. "Speaking of which, what's wrong with Kyle? He seemed really distracted today." In fact Kyle had rushed out of the hall immediately after the prayer meeting ended. That was really out of character for Kyle, who usually stuck around - sucking up to Boss Lemmon.

"I don't know," said Jerry.

"I do," said Eric. He was grinning like the cat who just swallowed the canary.

"Well?" said Corey finally. "You're obviously dying to tell us, so spit it out!"

"Kyle lost something today," said Eric.

"Great," said Alan, eventually. "Do we have to play twenty questions now?"

"Alright," said Eric, slightly annoyed. "Come over here and I'll tell you." Eric led the other three boys off the path into the woods, which were quite dark. It was only a couple of nights away from the New Moon.

"I hope we're not gonna need our secret decoder rings for this," said Jerry in a bored voice. "Cause I left mine back at the cabin."

"Har de har har," said Eric. "You guys remember that book Kyle has been writing in all the time since he got here?"

"How could we not?" said Corey. "Jerry guessed that God was making Kyle write lines."

"Did he?" said Alan, chuckling. "That's a good one."

"Thanks," said Jerry.

"Would you like to know what it really is?" said Eric.

"Not really, or I would have asked Kyle," said Jerry. "But I just bet you're gonna tell us anyway."

"It's a diary!" said Eric, triumphantly.

"Yeah, right," said Corey. Jerry and Alan also gave vent to expressions of disbelief at this news.

"Seriously!" said Eric. "It's a diary. And I read it today."

"Eric," said Alan patiently, "boys don't keep diaries. Only girls keep diaries."

"Who says?" said Eric.

"My mom, for one," said Corey. "My sister Becky just started keeping a diary, and Mom said that only girls keep diaries."

"That movie's called 'The Diary of Anne Frank'," said Alan, "Not 'The Diary of Frank Anne'".

"That's right," said Corey, chuckling. "How about 'The Diary of Frank Anne Stein'?" Jerry and Alan broke up laughing at that and were joined by Corey.

"Now you're just being silly," said Eric, annoyed. "Do you guys wanna hear what Kyle has to say about you, or not?"

"I'm sure he worships the ground I walk on," said Corey, sarcastically.

"Yeah, right," said Eric. "He thinks we're all heathens and bullies, and that you're the worst one."

"Well, duuuuuuhhh," said Corey. He was glad it was dark so his friends couldn't see him blushing. He had been disturbed by the fact that Kyle apparently saw him as a bully - a fact now confirmed by the diary. Corey was even more disturbed by the fact that there might be some valid reasons for Kyle seeing him that way.

"Did you think Kyle socked Corey in the nose because he wanted to marry him?" said Jerry.

"No," said Eric. "Kyle socked Corey deliberately so he'd get punished."

"So Corey would get punished?" said Alan.

"Well, yeah," said Eric. "But also so Kyle himself would be punished."

"He got himself strapped by Boss Lemmon on purpose?" said Corey.

"I don't think he was expecting to get strapped," said Eric. "It seems like he was just expecting Jeff to paddle him."

"Why the hell would he want Jeff to paddle him?" said Jerry.

"It appears to be related to Proverbs 22:15: 'Foolishness is bound in the heart of the child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.'"

"We've all heard that one," said Jerry. "So?"

"So Kyle takes it seriously," said Eric. "Although he seems to feel like he has 'wickedness' in his heart, rather than 'foolishness'."

"So he tries to get himself punished deliberately," said Corey. "So what?"

"Yeah," said Jerry. "Why should we care?"

"Forget it!" said Eric. "You guys obviously aren't interested."

"Guess not," said Corey.

"I am curious about one thing, Eric," said Alan. "I can understand wanting to peek in that book and see what Kyle was writing. But why read the whole diary? It had to be boring as hell!"

"Yeah, it was," said Eric. "But I was just so curious as to his viewpoint about the stuff that happened this summer."

"It didn't have anything about when he was still at home?" said Alan.

"Nope," said Eric. "Apparently Kyle's uncle gave it to him so he could keep a record of what happened in camp this summer."

"Were there any major surprises in it?" said Jerry.

"No, except that Kyle doesn't know how to use 'their' properly," said Eric.

"What?" said Jerry.

"He uses the wrong form of 'their'," said Eric. "He uses T-H-E-R-E when he should use T-H-E-I-R."

"Ooooo," said Jerry. "We oughta hang him for that."

"Definitely a hanging offense," said Corey.

"Never mind!" said Eric, in a huff. "Let's just get back to the cabin."

"We'd be there already if you hadn't pulled us aside," said Alan.

Corey thought about the whole bully thing as they walked back to the cabin. Yes, he'd done one or two things that could be considered bullying. But Corey liked to think that helping the Squirrels get their Frisbee back had to make up for at least some of that. Corey promised himself to be nicer to the little'uns in the future. At least a little nicer.

Friday dawned clear, and just a bit cool for mid-August. The last full day of the summer camping session was upon them at last, and the Fox Cabin campers were rarin' to go.

As he walked back to the cabin from taking his shower it occurred to Corey that it had been a while since he had been paddled in the morning for "bedwetting." Perhaps he was getting over that phase at last. Of course he was indulging in that other "perfectly natural function" (according to Alan's dad) whenever possible, so that may have something to do with it.

Speaking of which, Corey was sorry he wouldn't be seeing Anna Belling at the final community picnic on Saturday. The Reverend Belling and his wife would be there, of course, to meet the camper's families. But Anna told him last Sunday that she was leaving for home on Wednesday. She would be flying to Europe for a vacation with her parents before school started again.

The morning passed fairly quickly and uneventfully. It was almost like the calm before a storm.

Lunch by the lake was really strange; everybody, campers and counselors alike, seemed to be on edge. No junior cabin had ever successfully captured and then held the Cabin Frisbee of a senior cabin. It wasn't going to be one on one, but it still was gonna be tense.

After lunch Corey gave his team (the Foxes and Coyotes) a brief pep talk before they set up. "Look, guys. The absolute worst that can happen is that the Bears get their Frisbee back. But they will still have to deal with the humiliation of having lost their Frisbee to us in the first place. So don't be nervous. The pressure is all on the Bears. There is no pressure on us at all. Let's do it!"

The Bears were still pretending to be depressed as they got started, but most of them were better frisbee players than actors. It was clear that they were really ready to give it their best shot. Roland Bell was the Bears' best frisbee player (possibly the best in the whole camp), so Jerry and Corey had decided they had to keep the Bear Cabin Frisbee out of his hands. "We shouldn't let their best player beat us," said Jerry.

The Wolves and Squirrels were standing nearby, and these potential reinforcements had the desired effect - the Bears resisted any tempatation they may have had to play dirty, at least for a while. It really came down to about 12 players on the Fox/Coyote team vs the 10 Bears, with the remaining 8 Fox/Coyote players being deployed around the perimeter to try and tackle, trip or otherwise impede the progress of any Bear who might actually grab the Frisbee in play.

The critical moment came when Corey had thrown the Frisbee around Roland, intending to bank it to Phil on the far side of the playing area. Joey Cramer came out nowhere to grab the Frisbee and tried to make a break for Bear Cabin. Two seconds later it was Joey's turn to be surprised when Paulie Jenkins launched himself at Joey's legs, tripping him and sprawling both boys on the grass.

Joey cocked his hand and threw the Frisbee, with Steve Windom as his intended target. The final surpise of the moment came when Alan snatched the Frisbee out of the air and flipped it casually to Josh Freeman, one of the Coyotes in the game. Joey shoved Paulie as they got up - sending the smaller boy skidding on the grass to land flat on his back.

A whistle blew, and Brian Masters, the Elk Cabin counselor, announced "If there is one more incident of unnecessary roughness the session will be over!" Derek Trone led his Squirrels into the fray in response to Joey's action, although they were mainly deployed as extra perimeter blockers.

Play continued for several more minutes, but the Bears never took control of the Frisbee again. They came close a few times, and Eric had to make a great save that surprised even him when Roland nearly managed to snag the Frisbee, despite the team's best efforts to keep it away from him. As time ran out, the Bears appeared to be getting desperate. They were trying too hard, and couldn't get the job done. Marty Herman tried to protest about the session ending too soon, but it was almost time for the first afternoon activity period so the playing session had to end, with Fox Cabin still in possession of the Bear Cabin Frisbee.

The Fox Cabin campers were jubilant as they took the Bear Cabin Frisbee back to their cabin. The Bears would have to visit them there after the final activity period that afternoon, and more Camp Torowa Falls history would be made.

Corey felt great that afternoon, but he couldn't believe how excited Paulie was. The miniscule 11-year-old kid had actually thrown himself at the legs of a running teenager and brought him down. Apparently Paulie really wanted his shot at spanking Joey. Corey couldn't blame him.

Despite their excitement, or perhaps because of it, the Fox Cabin crew felt that the afternoon activities took forever to get through. Eventually Corey found himself standing on the porch of Fox Cabin with Jeff, waiting to greet their guests, while the rest of the Fox campers remained inside. He had been through this the previous year, but not as Patrol Leader.

Corey was amazed at the sight of the more than fifty people who had gathered near the front of Fox Cabin to watch (and hear) the disgrace of the Bears. The Coyotes were there, of course, as were all the campers and counselors from Squirrel Cabin, Muskrat Cabin, and Wolf Cabin. Even a few senior campers were there, as were a handfull of Asscons. The Bears had irritated a lot of people that summer, and they were about to pay the price in a very public, humiliating way.

"Here they come," said Corey in low tones as he spotted Marty Herman leading his campers down the path from Bear Cabin.

"I see 'em," said Jeff, also in low tones. He turned and made the announcement to the campers inside the cabin, "Fox Cabin, attention!" The nine boys quickly moved to the foot of their beds and came to attention.

As the Bear Cabin group approached, Corey could see that Marty Herman looked to be in as bad a mood as his campers. It looked like he was taking the whole thing as a personal humiliation, despite the fact that Jeff wouldn't be putting Marty over his knee. There's an interesting thought... Snap out of it, dummy! You have a job to do.

Pete Carlisle, the Bear Cabin Patrol Leader, led the line of campers following Marty, and Roland was bringing up the rear. Roland was still being treated as an outcast. At least that problem would end the next day.

"Hey, Jeff," said Marty Herman as he climbed the four steps to the porch.

"Hey, Marty," said Jeff. The two counselors shook hands.

"My boys are here to get their Frisbee back," said Marty. Everybody within five miles already knew this, of course, but the formalities had to be observed.

"Very well," said Jeff. "Patrol Leaders, proceed." Jeff and Marty stood aside on the porch, next to the doorway. Their participation would be reduced to the role of witnesses from here on out provided there was no trouble.

Pete Carlisle walked up the steps and shook hands with Corey, who said, "Pete, you're with Jerry Farnham." Pete glared at Corey for a moment - he had obviously expected to be spanked by his fellow Patrol Leader - then nodded and walked inside Fox Cabin, where he stood next to Jerry, who was standing at the foot of his bed.

Steve Windom was the next Bear in line. Corey said, "Steve Windom, you're with Kyle Garlin." Steve, his face a thundercloud of suppressed rage, walked over to join Kyle at the foot of the smaller boy's bed.

Joey Graham was next, and he regarded Corey with a look of pure hatred. "Joey, you're with Paul Jenkins," said Corey. He deliberately used the informal version of Joey's name and the formal version of Paulie's. Even if Corey couldn't spank the big jerk himself, at least he could insult him a bit.

Next was Brian Walker, the bully who liked to kick guys in the balls. "Brian Walker, you're with Willie Strand," said Corey. That was a personal favor for Dave Drury, who apparently agreed with Roland when it came to humiliation. D.D. had wanted Brian spanked by the smallest available Fox.

"Noah Chapman, you're with Eric Linsey." Might as well let the Fox Cabin brain spank the Bear Cabin brain.

"Vince Palmer, you're with Alan Dunson." Like Roland, Vince wasn't really a bully. He just had the bad luck to be in a cabin loaded with bullies that summer. Them's the breaks.

"Rob Anderson, you're with Lionel Harper." Rob was a garden variety bully. Let Lionel practice his "knock, knock" jokes on him for a while.

"Eddie Gray, you're with Tony Lansing." Corey would have preferred to have Eddie spank Tony, but he knew that wouldn't be allowed.

"George Healy, you're with Phil Lundon." After a month, Corey still wasn't sure what to make of Phil. Let's see how well he spanks bullies.

"Roland, you're with me," said Corey. He led his friend into Fox Cabin, and they walked past the pairs of boys standing at the foot of nine of the ten beds.

They approached the chair that had been placed at the rear of the cabin, outside the door to Jeff's private room. Corey sat down on the chair and silently beckoned Roland with a wave. Roland, who was taller than Corey, draped himself across Corey's lap without hesitation.

Corey placed his left hand on Roland's back to steady him, then looked up. Twenty guys were watching the scene - nine pairs of boys standing by the beds that lined the room, and the two counselors, who had moved into the doorway of the cabin. Corey knew that more than fifty people outside would be straining to listen for the sounds of the Bears being spanked.

Corey raised his right hand and brought it down firmly on the seat of Roland's khaki shorts. Roland had said that he didn't care if Corey hit twice as hard as Paulie would have. Corey didn't know about that, but he did spank Roland as hard as he could, seven times - one swat for each day Bear Cabin had failed to recover their Frisbee. Corey kept his hand pressed against the khaki material for a few seconds after each swat, doing everything he could to increase the sting and to prolong the spanking. Roland didn't squirm or make any sound. That was hardly surprising - this spanking was supposed to be more about humiliation than physical pain.

When Roland got up from Corey's lap his face was a bit flushed, but he gave no other sign that he had just been spanked. Corey got up off the chair and the pair walked down the row to take up their positions at the foot of Corey's bed.

"Phil, you and George are next," said Corey. He had decided to have the spankings done in reverse order from the order the Bears had entered the cabin. That would leave Pete Carlisle, the Bear Cabin Patrol Leader, for last. Let the creep stew for a while.

Soon Phil was seated on the chair and George was over his lap. Phil was the only lefty in Fox Cabin that year, so George was facing the opposite way from Roland - and all the boys who would follow him. Phil spanked George seven times, just as hard as he could. George's face was red, but he showed no other sign of the spanking he had just received as they made their way back to Phil's bed.

"Tony, you and Eddie are next," said Corey. He still didn't trust Tony, but had to admit that the little slimeball hadn't ratted on them again. In fact Tony had made himself useful a couple of times while playing frisbee today. Perhaps Tony deserved another chance - he'd just have to see how things went next summer.

Tony spanked Eddie hard, but was too nervous - or whatever - to make use of the spanking tips that Jerry and Corey had tried to pass on to the others that afternoon. He didn't keep his hand pressed down after each spank, and Eddie showed no ill effects when he got up afterwards.

"Lionel, you and Rob are next," said Corey. Lionel hadn't seemed quite as distant from Corey the past few days. They probably would never be good friends, but perhaps Lionel was finally getting over whatever had happened two years ago to make him mad at Corey in the first place.

Lionel did make use of the spanking tips he had been taught, and may even be a bit stronger than he looked. He actually managed to get a slight grunt out of Rob Anderson by the end of the spanking, although Rob didn't rub or show any other signs of distress as they headed back to their places afterwards.

"Alan, you and Vince are next," said Corey. Alan made quick work of Vince, who didn't really deserve this anyway. But at least Vince managed to keep his dignity about him, which Corey respected.

"Eric, you and Noah are next," said Corey. Corey had never had a real conversation with Noah Chapman. He had a reputation for being a major brain, but he also had a reputation for not putting his smarts to practical use. It must be some defect in most geniuses, only a very few of them make the contributions to their comrades - and society - of which they are capable.

Noah didn't seem that tough, but Eric wasn't hitting all that hard, either. Noah was red-faced when he got up from Eric's lap, but it was probably from the humiliation more than anything else. Oh, well, suffering is suffering and Corey tried to enjoy the suffering of bullies wherever he could find it.

"Willie, you and Brian are next," said Corey. This was gonna be interesting. Brian was a good six to eight inches taller than Willie. He looked ridiculous, draping himself carefully over the smaller boy's lap. His face was red with humiliation before Willie even started spanking him. It was even redder when he got back to his feet a minute later.

"Paul, you and Joey are next," said Corey. He continued to rub it in to Joey by using the diminutive form of his name while using the formal version of Paulie's name. Joey glared at Corey with a look of pure loathing as the mismatched pair walked past to the rear of the cabin and the waiting chair.

Paulie was thrilled, but became a bit less thrilled as the compartatively huge teenager began to arrange himself on his lap. Paulie's legs weren't strong enough to hold Joey up. In the end Joey had to support part of his own weight by pushing off the floor with his hands and feet. This enabled Paulie to begin the actual spanking.

It was obvious that Joey barely felt the seven spanks he received, even though Paulie was gamely hitting the broad shorts seat spread across his lap as hard as he could. The look of humiliation combined with naked hatred on Joey's face as they walked back to the foot of Paulie's bed was priceless. The memory of it stayed with Corey for the rest of his life.

"Kyle, you and Steve are next," said Corey. Steve was still scowling mightily as they approached the chair. Soon Kyle was swatting the back of Steve's shorts for all he was worth, and then they were walking back to their place.

"Jerry, you and Pete are next," said Corey. He wondered if Pete could possibly have forseen this result when he first snatched the Squirrel Cabin Frisbee nearly two weeks ago. Pete and his boys had been bullying the rest of the younger campers all summer, and now they had been bullied back by an alliance of the younger campers. What goes around comes around, as they say.

Jerry layed on the seven spanks as hard as he could, but Pete showed no reaction, except for a slight flushing in his already red face. Jerry returned to the spot at the foot of his bed, and then Corey marched to the rear of the cabin, where Pete waited for him.

Corey retrieved the Bear Cabin Frisbee from it's spot next to the Fox Cabin Frisbee. He walked over to where Pete was waiting and offered him his Frisbee back. Pete took the Frisbee, transferred it to his left hand, then offered his right hand, which Corey shook. Pete said, "Thanks."

"Don't mention it," said Corey.

Pete turned and marched back to the door of Fox Cabin. Marty said, "Bear Cabin, form up behind your Patrol Leader." The nine Bears complied with this order, then Marty shook Jeff's hand again and he lead his campers back out of Fox Cabin. The Fox campers followed, spilling out of the cabin on to the porch to watch their guests leave. There were a few cat calls from the other cabins as the Bears marched back up the path to their cabin. But most of the witnesses were content to simply watch the retreat of the red-faced, humiliated Bears.

After the Bears had disappeared up the trail, a smattering of applause broke out. The Fox Cabin campers, their faces glowing with pride, waved their acknowledgement to the assembled witnesses.

Saturday morning was a frenzy of packing. Corey couldn't seem to get everything back in to his luggage, which didn't make any sense. The only extra things that he hadn't brought with him in the first place were a couple of comic books and a bit of leftover candy.

Corey and Jerry had exchanged home addresses. They had threatened to become pen pals last year, but this time Corey was determined to actually do it. They had even discussed the idea of trying to visit each other at home at some point in the future - it would be interesting to see how Mom and Dad reacted to that idea.

The camper's family members starting showing up just after 10 AM. The first one was a tall man who helped Phil Lundon carry his luggage out of the cabin. Corey expected them to come back later, or at least show up for picnic, but they never did. Phil disappeared from their lives without saying goodbye, just as mysterious as ever.

Around 10:20 AM Corey walked past the Mess Hall to the parking lot that would be used by parents picking up campers. He carried one of his already-packed suitcases with him. They would pick up the rest of his stuff from the cabin later.

His parents always insisted on personally inspecting the cabin where Corey lived. They did this when he moved in and when he left. Corey suspected they did this so they wouldn't be billed for any damages that had occurred when Corey wasn't living in the cabin. His dad was an insurance executive and his mom was an accountant, so they tended to worry far too much about things like that.

Corey had only been waiting a few minutes when he saw his dad's car pulling into the parking lot. He still wasn't completely used to the new Ford Falcon Squire station wagon. Corey thought that the fake wood paneling looked stupid on a small station wagon like the Falcon. He could never tell his father that, of course.

As soon as Dad had parked the car and shut off the motor the right rear door opened and Becky, his little sister, sprinted over and threw herself into Corey's arms. He braced himself for impact but she still nearly knocked him off his feet.

Becky immediately attempted to tell Corey everything that had happened to her in the past month at camp. It all came out in a jumble and Corey barely got a word of it. He had never seen his sister this excited, except maybe on Christmas morning or her birthday. The gist of it seemed to be that Becky had enjoyed her first summer at camp.

Soon Mom joined the hugathon, and the three clung to each other while Mom tried to get Becky to shut up long enough so she could say hello to her son properly. Meanwhile Dad picked up Corey's suitcase and put in the cargo compartment of the station wagon.

When Dad got back from his errand, Corey could see that his father was staring at his hair. Yikes! He really wasn't happy about the mop of hair on Corey's head. He said, "Hi, Dad!"

"Good to see you again, son," said Dad. "Did the camp barber die, or something?"

"No, Dad," said Corey. "I just forgot to get a haircut last week."

"You look like some kind of beatnik!" said Dad.

"I'm sorry, Dad. I really didn't mean for it to get this long. I've been busy!"

"Too busy to write, I noticed," said Mom. Becky giggled at that, and stuck her tongue out at Corey when he glared at her.

"Please don't change the subject, Penny!" said Dad. Mom narrowed her eyes at him, but held her peace. "Is the barber shop open now?"

Corey wasn't sure. "Probably not," he said. "Mr. Barker might be here for the picnic, but I don't think he's open when the last day is on a Saturday."

"Let's go find out!" said Dad.

"Yes, sir," said Corey, resigned to his fate. He preferred getting haircuts when his dad wasn't around. Dad always insisted on a shorter haircut than Corey really wanted.

Corey led his family towards the Mess Hall. Mr Barker, a local retired barber, offered haircuts on Saturday mornings during the summer camping sessions. He set up in one of the small store rooms off the main Mess Hall.

They entered the Mess Hall and...oh great! Sure enough, there was a short line of people waiting for the barber. Corey couldn't help but notice that all the boys had long hair, and they were each escorted by an irritated parent. "Good," said Dad. "Let's get in line. Penny, why don't you and Becky take a little stroll while Corey and I wait for the barber?"

"Of course, dear," said Mom. She led Becky out of the Mess Hall.

As freshly-clipped boys emerged from the store room, it became apparent that they were all getting buzz cuts. There was no way Corey was gonna get one of those. Mr. Barker wasn't the best barber in the world, but his regular haircuts were okay. The line was moving every three minutes or so, which seemed really fast.

Tim Sheffield, a 13-year-old from Wolf Cabin, was ahead of Corey in line. When his turn in the chair came, he tried to order a regular haircut. But it turned out that Mr. Barker was only giving buzz cuts that morning - there was no time for anything else. Tim tried to decline, but his father forced him to get the buzz cut.

As Corey watched in horror, Mr. Barker ran the electric clippers over Tim's head, it looked like he was shearing a sheep. Corey couldn't possibly stand to have that done to him. The horrified boy turned to his father and said, "Please Dad, don't make me to do this! I promise I'll get my hair cut first thing Monday morning. I'll even pay for it out of my allowance!"

Corey's father looked at him sternly. "Do you seriously think I'm going to take you to church tomorrow looking like a beatnik?"

"But Dad, I..."

"Don't 'but Dad' me, young man! You had your chance to get a regular haircut any of the last few Saturdays. Now you'll take whatever this gentleman is dishing out today."

"No, Dad! I...Oww!" Corey's left ear had just been grabbed sharply, and his face was forcibly turned towards his angry father's.

"Did you just say 'no' to me, Corey?" asked Dad, in a very dangerous voice.

Corey was close to panic, breathing heavily. "I'm sorry, sir. I didn't mean it. Oww!" Corey yelped in surprise as his father administered a stinging open-handed swat to each of his bottom cheeks.

"One more word of protest out of you, young man, and I'll wear out a switch on your backside. Understand?"

"Yes, sir," said Corey.

Then Tim Sheffield was out of the barber chair, being led away by his father. Corey climbed in the chair, and Mr. Barker said, "Buzz cut okay...Corey, is it?"

Corey glanced at his father, winced at the look he received, then said, "Yes, Mr. Barker. A buzz cut will be fine." He couldn't help wincing again - several times - as the hair was sheared off of his head in about two minutes.

Before he knew it, Corey and his father were outside of the Mess Hall and Corey was running a hand over the stubble that now passed for hair on his head. Only two good things resulted from this incident: at least Corey would be cooler for the rest of the summer, and at least Dad didn't nag - or hold a grudge. As soon as the haircut was completed, his father had started smiling and asking Corey questions about his summer activities.

Soon they met up with Mom and Becky, and went to check out Fox Cabin. Dad insisted on thanking Jeff for promoting Corey to Patrol Leader, but Jeff insisted that Corey deserved the honor. Things got a little strained when Jeff returned the Flamingo Hotel playing cards to Corey, and it came out why they had been confiscated in the first place.

Jeff assured Corey's parents that Corey and the other boys had already been punished for gambling, and that he considered the matter closed. What neither Jeff or Corey realized was that Corey's dad had given him those cards against the express wishes of his mother. Only their aversion to fighting in public kept the lid on the situation. The ride home might prove to be a long one. Corey and Becky looked at each other and shrugged.

Corey's parents remembered Jerry from the previous year, and they met Eric and Alan. Corey was irritated by the fact that his friends, and sister, kept sniggering over his new haircut.

Alan's parents showed up at that point, and introductions were made. Corey was immediately impressed with Richard Dunson, M.D. He seemed like a person you could really trust as your doctor - and probably as your friend. Which might help explain why Alan was such a good friend. Alan's mother seemed less than thrilled by the "primitive conditions" at Camp Torowa Falls. She wore very fancy clothes, and Corey had trouble imagining Mrs. Dunson ever camping out.

Jerry's uncle, Owen Jones, showed up then. Mr. Jones was accompanied by his 8-year-old son, Robby. Corey remembered that Robby was expected to attend Camp Torowa Falls next summer. Robby looked a bit puny, but with another year of growth he might be summer camp material. He and Jerry would help the little guy out as much as possible when the time came.

Eric's parents showed up at Fox Cabin just before it was time for lunch. They were accompanied by Peter Linsey, their eldest son and current Assistant Counselor. Eric's 15-year-old sister Monica was also there, and she immediately attracted the attention of Jerry, Alan, and Corey.

The four families walked to the lakeside picnic grounds together. The unseasonably cool morning was turning into a seasonably hot day. The three mothers had already clustered together as they walked, swapping stories of the trials and tribulations of motherhood.

Mr. Jones joined the three fathers to discuss the usual: jobs, cars, sports and, if things really got boring, their families. Corey, Jerry, Eric and Alan walked together, closely enough to be able to overhear the men's conversations.

Mr. Jones had a cool-sounding job, working as a shop foreman at the American LaFrance Company in Elmira, New York. He helped build fire engines, which just seemed very cool to Corey. He wasn't keen on the idea of working in a factory, but if he had to have a job like that, building fire engines seemed like the most interesting possible factory job to have.

Mr. Linsey was the President of Westcon Communications, a company that owned and operated several radio stations in western Connecticut, centered in the Waterbury area. Corey was a bit surprised, since Eric just said that his father was in radio. Corey had thought he was a station manager or something. Eventually it came out that the Linsey family actually owned Westcon Communications, which probably made Eric rich.

Corey's father told them about his new job as the District Office Manager for the Erie Insurance Group in the Allentown/Bethlehem, Pennsylvania office. It was a short discussion. Nobody ever had questions about the insurance business.

Dr. Dunson had a urology practice in Paramus, New Jersey. He also taught part time at the Cornell Medical School in Manhattan. The other men started asking medical questions, which eventually got graphic enough that three of the four boys got disgusted and they all drifted away, although they practically had to drag Alan with them.

"Do you want to be a urologist, Alan?" said Jerry.

"I don't know yet," said Alan. "I just know I want to be a physician. There are dozens of different specialties, and I won't have to choose until my final year of medical school."

"That stuff sounded really disgusting," said Eric.

"Lots of medical stuff is disgusting," said Alan. "It's not pretty when things start going wrong with the human body."

"I know," said Corey, "but, yuck! I sure hope I don't live long enough to have stuff like that happening to me down there."

"The really interesting question is," said Eric. "Are those things actually happening to our fathers...and uncle?" This brought disgusted responses from Jerry and Corey. Alan just shrugged.

Corey's mother managed to embarrass him during lunch. She pulled out a newspaper clipping - it seemed that the Morning Call, the Allentown morning newspaper, had carried a story about Corey's "rescue" of Panny and Callie Welles. "Local Youth Rescues Missing Girls" was the headline. It even included his picture, complete with shaggy hair. Corey mumbled through an explanation of the whole incident aided by his fellow campers, who were quite amused by his discomfort.

Great! Now Corey's buddies back home would be expecting some big, exciting story about his "wilderness rescue". He'd have to make something up. At least it looked like his hometown paper had left out the skinny dipping part of the story. Thank heaven for small favors.

Eventually the conversation came around to politics. It turned out that the Linseys were Republicans, while the other three families were Democrats. Corey's mother surprised him again when she announced that she was planning to work as a volunteer for President Kennedy's 1964 re-election campaign. Corey knew his parents had voted for the president, of course. But neither of them had ever expressed an interest in getting personally involved in politics before.

Various people visited as the families enjoyed their lunch. Kyle and Timmy Garlin came over and introduced their parents. Corey was completely unsurprised to learn that their father was a Pentecostal minister. The Reverend and Mrs. Garlin thanked Corey and Jerry for their leadership in getting the Squirrel Cabin Frisbee back from the Bears. That was one bit of glory that Corey was happy to take credit for.

Boss Lemmon and the Reverend Belling visited their table while making the rounds. Boss Lemmon had nice things to say about all four boys. Unfortunately he threw some gasoline on the "Corey is a hero for rescuing the two little girls" fire - he and Corey's mother were absolutely disgusting about it.

Corey still could not believe how little Callie's naive assumption had been overblown into some big heroic saga with absolutely no basis in fact. It seemed like there was some sort of fundamental need for a hero in the situation. Since there really wasn't one, they picked some likely person and made it up from there. Corey had merely been standing in the wrong place at the wrong time.

By 2 PM Corey's father was itching to leave; they did have at least a four hour drive ahead of them. The other three families decided that it was time to head home as well, and walked back to Fox Cabin with the Lanes. Soon all the luggage had been gathered, and the four boys had said goodbye to Jeff.

The group strolled across the grounds towards the parking lot, with everyone making one last pre-journey pit stop. At the edge of the parking lot Corey, Jerry, Eric and Alan stopped to say goodbye while their families loaded the various cars.

"Well, I hope to see you guys again next summer," said Alan. "If I can talk my parents into it."

"Keep at it, guy," said Jerry. "You'll convince them."

Corey and Eric added their encouragement to Alan, who shooks hands with his friends and headed off to join his parents for the trip back to New Jersey.

Corey turned to Eric and said, "You never told us you stood to inherit a bunch of radio stations!"

Eric shrugged and said, "I wish! Pete will probably inherit most of that stuff and become the President of Westcon when our dad retires. I'll be lucky if Pete lets me sweep the floors. I'm gonna have to find a different career, which suits me just fine."

"What will you do instead?" said Jerry.

"Damned if I know," said Eric. "Lucky for me I still have a few years left before I have to decide. Speaking of Peter the Weird..." Pete Linsey was yelling across the parking lot for Eric to get his butt over to the car. The Linseys were ready to leave.

"Have you considered the Marines?" said Jerry, as he shook Eric's hand. "They're always looking for clever fellows like you."

"I'll consider it," said Eric, grinning.

"Or you might prefer the Navy," said Corey, shaking Eric's hand in turn. "They have a lot bigger and more interesting toys to play with, plus they have to charge a lot fewer machine gun nests."

"I'll take it under advisement," promised Eric, as he waved and headed for his father's car - a Lincoln of some sort, Corey noticed.

Jerry turned to Corey, hands on hips. "I'll have you know that getting a chance to charge machine gun nests is one of the major benefits of being a Marine, Squidling!" He was grinning as he said it.

"I'm sure it is, Jarhead," said Corey, grinning broadly. "Don't forget to write, if you ever learn how..."

Jerry punched Corey on the shoulder in response, and Corey punched Jerry on the shoulder. Then they hugged, albeit only briefly. Jerry started to walk away, in response to the call from his Uncle Owen. "I'll see ya around!" said Corey.

"Not if I see you first!" said Jerry. They both chuckled and waved to each other before Jerry turned and walked away.

Corey walked to his father's car and got in the back seat. Mom and Dad were already "discussing" the Flamingo playing cards situation and Becky immediately launched into some long-winded tale involving the social and political machinations of her summer camp. It was gonna be a very long ride home.

As they pulled out of the driveway onto the main road Corey looked back at the "Camp Torowa Falls" sign over the driveway. It was only about eleven months until he would return. He couldn't wait!

(Author Note: This concludes the story of the 1963 camping session at Camp Torowa Falls. The author is considering the idea of working with these characters some more in the future. This work could consist of episodes from future camping seasons, or from the character's lives outside of camp. Stay tuned to Corner Time, or the archive where you found this series for any such future stories.)