A Deep Breath of Fresh Air

I haven't been camping since I was kid. We used to camp on the beaches of Oahu and spend the night chasing crabs up and down the beach as the sun went down. I've got a lot of really good memories camping with my parents. I forgot how much I love falling asleep outdoors.
It was perfect weather for it other than a light drizzle of rain that came down a few times. We spent our time walking the creek, chasing frogs, and climbing all the rocks. We even climbed Enchanted Rock itself. I'm really glad that Laura and Charlie thought to invite us along with them. I would have liked to have brought Sally along but there really just wasn't room for her in the truck this time around for her. I'm hoping next time we decide to go camping we'll have a cargo shell for the top of the truck. We were only there for a few days but I think it did us all a little good to disconnect. It was a little weird not being able to call for directions on our cell phone but we did alright and enjoyed the ride up.
We even stopped at our favorite San Antonio place, Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch. It was pretty packed and it took us over an hour to drive through but it's always fun even when it's not that great. I even got to see the Ostrich "want some dick?" dance. It was even more amusing with Lana's commentary although I hear Kelly's is much better.
About forty minutes from the campsite we lost complete cell phone signal. No voice mail, text messages or internet connection. It did make the drive there a little more nervous since we couldn't call anyone for directions but we managed to find the place eventually even with mine and Lana's sense of direction.
I got some reading in while Marcel played on the rocks. Finished one of the three Sci-Fi books I'm reading, reread parts of another and overall just took a deep breath in and let it out slowly. I'm really looking forward to heading out again. I can see how camping can become a very addictive (and therapeutic) thing.
Speaking of camp, as soon as we got back the very next day Marcel packed his bags and headed to Horse Camp! He seems to be enjoying himself. His horse for the next few days is Daniel so he's pretty happy about that. They're packed this year!! I think last year they had half the kids they do this year. It looks like Lana's website is really making a difference for their barn. Lana's really busted her butt on that website so it's good to see it working out. I don't think a lot people realize how much work goes into a website sometimes especially one that requires constant updates and advertising.
Marcel and Britt didn't spend the night with the other thirteen (thirteen!!!) kids so Lana had the great idea of letting them camp in the backyard with their friends at our house. They roasted hot dogs, stuffed themselves on smores and curled up in the tent and promptly passed out. It was truly a very nice evening. To top it all off, tomorrow my dad moves from McAllen to Victoria! He'll be all of three hours away. My brother and I head out on Saturday afternoon to help him unpack. Have I mentioned it's been a great week so far?
Oh, a little somethin before I sign out. Just before we left for camping I got a package from Amazon. Now I had been expecting a book so when I opened it up I was already bitching to myself when it wasn't the book I was expecting. I was immediately aggravated and working myself up to a good mad. I was ready to start the emails and phone calls to fix my mixed up order. Then I got to the bottom of the box to find a note from Josh. He had read The Walking Dead and thought to send me a copy since he knew how much I love a good zombie story. I was a little more than floored. I was quick to assume the worst and surprised to find a gift. Thanks Josh!!

Riding at Full Throttle

Wow, it's hard to believe that it's been nearly a month since I last blogged but the dates don't lie I guess. It's been a pretty busy month. It's been hard to find the time to just sit down in front of the computer to write. Sure, I find the time to read D&D stuff, or lurk on the Heroscape boards but I just hadn't had the energy to blog. It doesn't help that my average night's sleep is around four or five hours lately but I guess blogging just hasn't been at the top of the list of things to do. Trust me, the list is long these days. It's going to be a busy week-er month with spring break coming up and Lana's Passion Parties convention just around the corner. Throw in there Marcel's got Barn Camp and it just seems like we're running full throttle.
Good news is that we've been making time for roleplaying these days. We missed last weekend but I made up for it by spending GM's Day spoiling myself to a bookstore day then stuffing myself with sushi at Miyako's. In all honesty I had no idea it was GM's day so it was quite an amusing surprise to find out from Micah especially after a rather geeky day. I even got a t-shirt and some new dice. The shirt is black with bold white print, "You're not the DM of me."
I must say though, I've been growing rather fond of my time at the barn. I've been riding a new horse they have out at the barn these days. Rock's such a blast to ride. He feels like energy just waiting to explode. A month ago that would have scared the shit out of me but he listens well and he's really fun to trot. I'm hoping to get a chance at loping with him before they sell him. I must say, he's a guy I'll definitely miss at the barn. I was hoping to get out there today to ride but we've got far too much to do around the house tonight. Tomorrow is our regular lesson though so I'm looking forward to that. It'll be nice to slow down and ride even if it is at a trot. ;)
Well, off to do some laundry and watch some more of The Shield.
Oh, I took this picture on the way home from the corner gas station a block from my house.