Sunday, June 28, 2009

Not California

I was suppose to go to California with Sharell this week… then my car decided to get sick. We decided not to go. Sharell went with some other friends on a mini-trip and I stayed home to enjoy not doing anything: reading, beading, gone-with-the-wind, and frantically trying to finishing my tie skirt. It was really nice.

Thursday after a game of Volleyball at the Rays, Hannah invited me to go Backpacking the next day. After some apprehension, I agreed and Friday afternoon I was hiking up a hill with a 20lb pack. We went swimming in freezing water and swatted at mesquites. We made a fire and swatted at mosquitoes. We played a game of cards and swatted at mesquites. Did I mention that we had some mosquito visitors?

It was bad. Bed came before the sun, and we huddled in our sleeping bags beneath the open sky for about 10 hours… not really sleeping. A quick breakfast, sloppy packing and we ran down the mountain… swatting at mesquites. We came home 24 hours early, feeling slightly defeated… and oh so itchy.

I have about 300 bites. On my right leg alone I lost count at 150. I got bit through my pants and long sleeve shirt… I guess the little bugs like lotion.

As miserable as this all sounds, this was an absolutely wonderful week. I accomplished things, and spent time doing nothing, and backpacked. I have not yet spent time with Sharell… but we will make up for it. I am just working on not touching my right leg.

1 comment:

Harmony Moore said...

I bet you'll take repellent next time! =) This makes me want to go backpacking; for all your descriptions of misery, it still sounds absolutely delightful to me.

(My dictionary says mesquites are spiny trees or shrubs of the pea family found in the southwestern regions of North America: "It yields useful timber, tanbark, medicinal products, and edible pods.The timber is used for fencing and flooring, and burned in barbecues as flavoring. • Genus Prosopis, family Leguminosae: several species, in particular P. glandulosa."-- this plant, I assume, is not what spent a night feasting on your flesh?)

=) =)

Me

Portland, Oregon, United States