Have you heard about Camp magic MacGuffin?! What a fun and fascinating place to spend the summer! But there’s some strange things going on there!

I first raised my eyebrows at this strange character, Jim Groom. I  missed whatever started the commotion but he managed to get himself sequestered into a separate bunkhouse in the first couple of weeks of camp. Looking back over the summer, I have to wonder…is Jim Groom behind all the strange happenings at camp? Is Shed #4 really Bunkhouse X, aka Jim Groom’s lair? Is he responsible for the disappearance of camp counselors and the peculiar behavior of our beloved camp directors? Or was it the derecho that hit camp? Did we hit a nerve with our zombie apocalypse radio show? Hmmm…

Apocalypse Bumper by Chanda Sorrell Cowger

As I look back, I knew something peculiar was going on, but tried to mind my own business, even though the level of mystery was rising

@MagicMacguffin @mburtis @cogdog Very curious bout what you guys are up to! Seems a lil ominous to me!

— Chanda Cowger (@chanda0703) July 17, 2012

Then, I think I touched a nerve…or at the very least called unintended attention to  myself.

@MagicMacguffin @mburtis Oh, I’ve been watching! Was trying to mind my own business, be a good girl, and get a decent grade in #ds106!

— Chanda Cowger (@chanda0703) July 17, 2012

Would I become the next target? Campers and counselors were all around at the beginning of camp. Slowly but surely they started going silent, disappearing. Even our directors, Alan and Martha seemed to be acting a little strange. I found this very distressing! They were our leaders, our guide through this adventure. Alan kept disappearing and reappearing in the new places, irritating Martha. Or was Martha’s moods being influenced by someone or something else. She got more excitable and a little paranoid as time passed. Was it the crazy weather and heat causing her confusion? Did the derecho leave something unpleasant behind that would infect us all with the same affliction that had its grasp on Martha?

I became very concerned for Martha…and the effect her apparent altered mental, emotional state would have on those of us that still lingered at camp. She keeps rambling about Shed #4 and, in this video released earlier today, appears to be “jonesing” like an addict when Shed #4 inexplicably disappears!

I know it might seem a little far-fetched, but here’s my theory about what happened at Camp MacGuffin this Summer:

Someone…I’m still unsure as to who…came to camp with a sinister agenda, ready and waiting for fresh meat for their experiments in mind-control. Was it Jim Groom…Hatchet Jack…Uncle Hector…or even Slide Guy? I don’t know, but whoever it is constructed Shed #4 and ds106 radio to distribute…a virus or infection of some kind?  Once infected, the victim becomes addicted, obsessed with the ds106, its participants, the assignment repository, the daily creates, any and all creative media projects and collaboration…a zombie of sorts. Over time, these victims, also known as #4lifers, become so creative that it takes a toll on their mental and emotional health. Their logic and reasoning skills are changing, perspectives evolving. It’s already taken so many…including directors Alan and Martha, nearly all of the counselors and even some fellow campers like poor Kavon! Some must have run away…or were taken. In any case, campers that made it to the end of the season, appear to be showing signs of possessing this #4life contagion.

And now I fear…it has ME too!

Day 2 diary at Stafford Lakes by Chanda Sorrell Cowger

Given all that’s happened here this summer, I had a great time and learned so much!

DS106 I’ll Have What She’s Having… by Chanda Sorrell Cowger