well this weekend, just like every other thanksgiving weekend since i can remember, was time to head out to Garner State Park for some camping, hiking, letting our beards grow and some catching up with old friends. i had to work friday so we kind of got a late start. matt picked me up (his wife and kids were out of town) and we went back to the house to get the tent and my sleeping bag and etc. one last stop at walmart for some impulse buying, and then we were on our way. it took about an hour to get out there, and it was already getting cold. we spent about an hour driving around trying to find my sister's cabin, and then we we did, we spent an hour driving around trying to find our campsite. then when we did find it, someone else was already camped there. we thought about asking them to move, but we just decided to get our own in another area, the park was quite empty anyways. we found our spot and i set up the tent in the dark, with a little help from the moon. the stars were out and the night was somewhat clear. one thing i regret about living in the city is that we never see many stars. i guess i tend to forget how many there out there. never seems to amaze me when i get to see the view in the country. this year we must have had our minds in other places, cause we forgot lots of things. i brought a mini heater, but no extension cord. we planned on having a huge raging fire hotter then all hell and damnation, but we forgot firewood. i planned to sit around the campfire and relax, but forgot my chair. yeah, i know, i'm a city guy, no matter how hard i try to be rough and brash and outdoorsy. so that night we started a fire with some wood we "commandeered" from a local mom and pop store. thanks to them for leaving two stacks of wood so easily accessible at 12:30 in the A.M. that night we had tortilla chips, cold queso dip, and even colder bud light. the night was quiet and cold, and i slept quite well in my sleeping bag. saturday started with egg and sausage tacos, i'd have to say i've never been a big fan of breakfast tacos, but when your hungry, you don't care. they had a basketball tournament that day, you pay $8 and you get a t-shirt and a chance at the title. i didn't bring any basketball shoes, so i humbly yielded. i saw many old friends, some with their new husbands and wives, some with their new babies. sometimes i wonder if i'm behind the times here, i have no wife or kids or any family of my own. sometimes i feel the need to have that security, to settle down and have those things, to have a simpler way of life. i guess one day i will, but just not today. i'm not out living the wild single man's life by any means, but i guess to have a wife and kids seems too foreign to me. well maybe a wife would be nice. ok i dont want to get into all that, so back to camping. well that day was beautiful, the sky was blue, the wind was cool, the food was delicious! we ate at matt's cousin's camp that evening. it was amazing how much food they had. chicken, ribs, hamburgers, and steak all cooked over the campfire. mashed potatoes, green beans, corn, and bread. matt's family sure knows how to eat, Thank You Ramirez's, Parades's and the Casares's, I am forever in debt to you. If the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, then your definately there, along with all the cholesterol. That night just like every Saturday night before since I was 11, Jason's dad Val promised to have a dance. It's funny, because back in the day Val would play tapes through some beat up speakers, and if we wanted a song played we just had to put the tape on the right song and he would play it. Well times have changed. Now Val has a full desktop computer loaded with MP3's and a full speaker and stereo reciever setup. But even with all the modern technology and the higher sound quality, the young guys still came up to request songs so they could dance with that certain girl they had met. It's funny to me. To know that was me so many years ago, doing the same exact thing. But this time i just watched from the sideline, as these guys tried so hard to look cool and to impress the females. I would have to say that this younger generation doesn't know how to properly slowdance. They were bobbing and moving way too fast! I felt like going out there and giving them some lessons on how to properly hold the girl and how to do the simple two step. It's not that hard boys! Either way it was fun to watch, and remember when it was me out there. I got to talking with another friend, well actually a little brother of a old friend. I asked him how old he was now and he's 17! 17! Oh to be 17 again! I loved being 17, graduating high school, living with Chris and the guys. At 17 me and matt (who was 24 or so) took our cross country road trip/move to Washington. I would have to say that was the most fun thing I have ever done. To be on the road with little money, no responsiblity, not knowing where were going to live and work when we got there, it was great! Across New Mexico and Arizona, taking our time in California, and finally through Oregon and Washington. It was great. We got to talking about old girlfriends (well mine atleast) and he said he remembered Alison. He said even back then he thought she was hot. I just laughed, cause well she was. He asked if i still thought about her, and I told him ofcourse. I will remember her, she was my first girlfriend! My first kiss! I told him so much time has passed though, I was 15 when i dated her, and that was 9 years ago! (now you know how old i am). One of the guys around us over heard me, did the math, and muttered a "wow, he's old" under his breath. Yeah, thanks. Stupid kid. I guess I can still pass for a 18 year old though. The dance continued on into the night, but we left for the warmth of our fire, and the coldness of our bud light. that night matt, his cuz jason, steve and his gf tiffany and myself sat around the fire drinking beer and talking about old times. eventually steve and tiffany departed and it was just us three guys. once again i felt a bit odd, i've known these guys for over 12 years now, but still we differ. Jason is married now for 7 years with no kids, and Matt for 2 years with 2 kids. And me with 0 years and 0 kids. How times have changed. How we have changed over the years. No longer are we all single teenagers looking for a future girlfriend or spouse. The new generation has moved in, I guess it's their turn. Sunday we left early, packed up the car and just drove away. No saying goodbye's to everyone we met that year. No group picture taking, no signing shirts or exchanging addresses and phone numbers. Just a quiet exit back to reality. I got back to San Antonio and washed my clothes and took a shower. I met up with some friends and ate dinner and nowtoday I'm back at work. This year was different, there wasn't as many people out there, and it just seemed different somehow. I guess I'm getting older. Back here things are going good, I'm getting my Acura today, so i'm happy about that. Well it's back to the grind, so with that I'm going to end this. Hope everyone is safe and warm and the in the company of loved ones and friends, wherever in this world you might be. Adios.
3 comments:
It sounds like you had a much more enjoyable Thanksgiving weekend than I did.
Oh and 24 isn't too old. I like to think about 50 year olds wishing they were me. That helps sometimes. Heh.
Cece, yeah it was fun this weekend. Nice time to relax. And no, I don't think 24 is old by any means. But when there is nothing but 15 and 16 year olds running around, then 24 can seem ancient.
Vero, and like I said, I dont think 24 is old at all. Maybe sometimes I feel old because of all the craziness that life has handed me so far.
And what do I think about you? Well nothing really, or nothing ill. 27 isn't old either, I mean age isn't a big deal. I guess it's as old or young as you feel. So eventhough you don't have a husband or kids (that somehow sounds mean to me) it's good your just having fun.
Wow, Vero, I'm sorry to hear that. It's never a good thing when things don't work out between two people. From what I've gathered in my short existence is that it takes two. It has to be a two way street. And if it one sided, then it wont work. Maybe its a good thing (if at all possible) that it didnt go farther. It would have been much harder i assume if you learned the type of person he was years after marriage, when there is kids.
I agree, it's not all your fault, and it's not all my fault I'm single either. I always said i would probably still be with certain girlfriends, if they weren't the ones that left or did something to break us up. It's my fault I don't really try, but like i said, it's a two way thing, and you can't necessarily control the other person. You just got to trust. It's by far easy said then done. But it's good your happy, and your not alone, you got all us blog buddies :)
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