I'm Back!!!

Ahh, back once again. Yes, it is Monday and Monday sucks (work is right up my ass today!) but not even that most heinous of days can put a serious dent in my calmness today. I spent an entire week sitting alongside a 600 acre lake at the bottom of a huge valley deep in the Blue Ridge Mountains with the nearest town (population 347 - I kid you not!) was nearly three miles away and the only burg that might be considered large enough to even warrant a name in my native NJ, over 26 miles distant. It was a stunningly wonderful week. I spent time working with the boys and talking to them. I spent time with the other adult leaders, whittling, watching sunrise/sunset. I even had time to sit and quietly play my Native American Flute (the most relaxing instrument on the planet!) while gazing dreamily over still blue water alight with the dancing flares of brilliant sun upon it's softly rippling surface.

(sigh)

Then I came back to 78 e-mails, 21 phone messages, a lawn that needs cutting and a bathroom renovation to complete. And that's the easy stuff.

The week wasn't perfect of course: there was one night where I caught a stomach virus and spent the night using both the Pilot & Co-pilot seat in the latrine (any of you who've ever been to a BSA camp will catch the reference) at the same time. There was much time spent dealing with boys who also caught the bug, even an overnight hospital trip with one of my guys who had a severe asthma attack. (If you have never seen this before -I hadn't- it is some SCARY shit! He is one hell of a tough kid though and took it in stride. I was proud of him.) There was oppresive heat and some rain, but all-in-all the week was fantastic! We heard about the folks who died at the BSA NAtional Jamboree while we were there (we were on the other side of the state and in no danger.) It was a shame but I don' t know who thought it was a good idea to set up tents under power lines!!!!

So now I'm back and feeling ready to jump onto my next writing project. An entirely new concept occured to me while I was just relaxing the other day & I think I'll go with that instead of the dark fantasy I was expecting to do. This one will require a lot of world building and background before I get to the actual story but I think it will work nicely. I love the concept behind it. I'll keep you posted as I go and I'll let you know as soon as I come up with a working title.

That pretty much catches you up on the week. I won't bore you with all the tales (of which there are many!) of the trip. Suffice to say that a group of 30+ adolescent boys can provide you with enough entertainment in one week for a lifetime of stories!

So, to sum up: I'm back, I'm good, I'm writing, and I'm in a good mental place (for the moment!) I'll keep you posted as things change!

Later!