Past Tents

So much has happened since my last tent adventure update.  The last time I checked in I was livin’ large in a cozy sleeping bag on an air mattress with a headboard. Then two weeks ago, I was livin’ a little less large, in a sleeping bag inside of another sleeping bag, on a roll mat on the tent floor. Tonight I’m sleeping on a concrete slab.

The wind was crazy last night. The zip-ties that held the tent in place on the deck- all except 2 of them- snapped. Then the tent poles were almost bending in half, until one of the main ones broke from the stress. Then the whole tent collapsed. It was pretty cool actually. The wind found its way under the rain fly, and every time a gust would come along, it would fill the tent up like a parachute and try to carry itself (and me) away. There were a few times when it rolled me over onto my side and woke me up.

My tent collapsed into the shape of a Jack in the Box spicy chicken sandwich box.

aw snap!

This morning the rain came and soaked everything, and I had to take down the tent and bring everything into the living room to dry. Suzanne wasn’t super thrilled about that. Nor was she thrilled about my plan to sleep on the front porch. So now I have to break down porch camp every morning. That, along with the aggregate concrete flooring, should be enough incentive to get me down to REI tomorrow for new tent poles and carbon fiber zip ties.

Temporary temporary housing. (Yes- that’s a pillow pet. It’s comfy. Don’t judge me.)

Greetings From the Cuckoo’s Nest

Today on my walk I found a bird’s nest in the middle of the trail. So cool! So I built a human-sized nest of my own. I built it where three cedar trees come together, and took a surprisingly comfy nap until a squirrel started barking at me. It had a nice dry home in the roots below, and wasn’t going to give up his space without a fight. Good on ya, li’l guy! Clearly it’ll be awhile before I’m initiated into the fraternal order of forest animals.

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camping with dad

i guess the only pic i took of the scenery was in the background of this plant

The kids, the dog and I went to Orcas Island for our last trip of the summer. We met up with our good friend Steve D’Amico and daughter Olivia and camped out at Doe Bay.

This trip was a necessary trip. Last month I took the kids on a spontaneous camping trip that sucked. It was a mile long uphill hike where I forgot the sleeping bags and water. We ate lucky charms and drank 7 up and slept under a shared blanket and the tent’s rain fly (until it started raining.) Both Abby and Zach told me they never wanted to go camping again. But after some bargaining, they decided to give me one more chance.

The Doe Bay Resort is a fascinating place. It’s kind of like a commune with short term residents. Yurts and tiny cabins and tents. An organic garden that feeds the restaurant guests. A community fire pit and (gasp!) clothing optional hot tubs. It was a unique experience and we had a blast.

We played a lot of Yahtzee and Farkle, and collected a bunch of rocks. The kids wandered around with newly made friends, Stevie D and I kicked it, and I spent lots of time (all of it, really) sharing a leash with our dog Roger. Any time I tried to leave him in the car or at camp, he yipped away the surrounding serenity. But that was nothing really.  Our first morning there, at 730am, Abby went to the car to get Roger’s leash and accidentally hit the panic button. Since we were staying in a “natural amphitheater,” the sound bounced and echoed throughout the bay. I had to run across the gravel road, half dressed and in bare feet, to help Abby turn it off. Ahh good times.

Stevie D rockin' the bay

TOO MANY PICS! I've earned the nickname papa razzi

It’s been a wild summer, full of great things and tragedies. It’s so nice to have such awesome people to be with through it all.

Zach and new friend Sten landed some serious jumps!