YOU GO CAMPING???

That's right and I love it. Now, I have to say there was a time in my life when my sentiment was not so and I quote, "oh, I do not do camping." However, after my time living in Flagstaff, AZ my mind was changed and my attitude was shifted. Of course, the combination of high elevation and low temps equals no snakes and hardly any bugs aside from the occassional delirious fly. Arkansas, on the other hand, offers plently of both which is why I was never too keen on the idea while growing up. The very few camping and floating trips I attended as a child were miserable at best.

Cut to my short list of camping trips as an adult and I have come to realize that camping is not necessarily 'roughing it' if you are with friends who know what they are doing. Let's see, my non roughing it adventures have included car camping in Durango, CO, tent camping in Canyon De Chelly, AZ, neither car nor tent camping (yep, just a sleeping bag and a beach) in Rocky Point, Mexico, car camping on Lake Ouachita , AR, and finally my latest fete, Island camping on Lake Ouachita. The latter being my favorite so far.



Now my outlook on camping is much more positive and I have come to actually enjoy it, not bad for a girly girl whose friend once quipped "I can picture you trekking down the Grand Canyon in stilletos." How could it not be enjoyable when you are surrounded by close friends accompanied by almost every amenity you could imagine, short of AC. I'm talking tents, air mattresses (w/ pump, preferably charged), chairs, coolers, Ipods, speakers, Iphones, CatchPhrase, fans, soap (biodegradable of course), and all kinds of food and cold beverages. I have recently discovered there is nothing quite like solving the world's problems over a camp fire.

Seeing as how the hubs and I are not proficient campers we had to get our hands on a tent for the island camping extravaganza. Seeing as how we are also moving in a few weeks we hated to buy one just to be chucked into storage. Thank goodness my friends Steph & Adam came through with an extra one we could borrow for the weekend. The tent did come with a few disclaimers: duct tape and pegs needed, no problem. We plunked down on our island in the middle of one of the most breathtakingly beautiful lakes in the country and got down to business. One hour and six people later. . .our tent was up.

Oh yeah, it was a doozy. The tent was older than the island itself and short of the duct tape suggestion there were no additional directions. It took roughly 60 minutes, 12 eyes, 12 hands, and 6 intelligent minds to decipher the ancient code of this particular structure, but we did it. In the end and still to this day the faded color coding on the poles was never cracked or made sense of in anyway, but we did it. And all was well for the Weez's to sleep virtually bug free and to stay dry in the rain.

CAUTION: If you are camping with your spouse, please be prepared for the inevitable 'packing fight' due to high levels of irritability running rampant. We were unable to solve this particular problem over the campfire, but what we do know is that the risk of a 'packing fight' during the days leading up to your weekend is highly likely and quite possibly unavoidable. Remember to stay calm, check off your own list TWICE, and just ride the frustration wave all the way to your intended destination at which point irritation & frustration will subside immediatelly if not sooner.

What a bitter sweet weekend it was for this smalltownista. Good friends, good conversations, and good fire roasted veggie dogs made for an almost perfect farewell. By almost, I am referring to the fact that we are leaving all that behind in a few short days. I am also assuming there will be no camping in Chicago so we will be leaving that hobby behind as well. More on the Big Move in the next post.

If you are currently a smalltownista under the spell that camping is just not for you, I have been there and would like to add this simple question for you to ponder. . .

Do you know how many accessories are involved in camping?

Think about it and maybe cruise an outdoor store, if in Hot Springs I highly recommend Ouachita Outdoor Outfitters. Check out all the neat knick knacks and outdoor appropriate fashions and get back to me. You may very well be the next smalltownista to step out of her comfort zone and experience a whole new world.

Will post pics when they become available, we broke our camera a few weeks ago, so relying on my fellow smalltownistas to relay our memories from the weekend.

What a bitter sweet weekend it was for this smalltownista. Good friends, good convos, and good fire roasted veggie dogs made for a near perfect farewell. I am assuming there will be not be any camping once we arrive to our new home, so we will leave our new found hobby behind for now.

Toodles from one Happy Camper!!