back to work

Today it was back to work for me. I have a lot of hours this week - 45! Not that I'm complaining, though, after all I just had a whole glorious week off. Besides, the early day shift on a Sunday hardly counts (usually, that is, and today was the norm). Tomorrow I only work half a shift (5 hours hardly counts either). Thursday, Friday and Saturday I work graveyard (my favorite) and my partner all 3 days is Dottie and it just just doesn't get any better than that, folks! Next week I'm only scheduled for (2) 5 hour shifts and the week after that its off to Tahoe again! I'd say I've reached the balance I was hoping for when I "retired" 11 months ago.

back to Bliss

Traditions, old or new, are a wonderful thing. They give us something to look forward to and they provide us with a wealth of memories to cherish. This past week my BFFs and I went camping at Lake Tahoe's incomparable D.L. Bliss State Park. We've had the same site in the same campground for three years in a row and have declared it a tradition. A new tradition, by some standards, but a tradition nonetheless. (Among our campground neighbors was a large group of women, some of whom have been camping at Bliss the same week each year for 20 years!) Our reservations were made six months ago in the dead of winter. We started out counting the months, then the weeks, then the days until we could once again behold the beauty of Lake Tahoe and spend quality girlfriend time in the great outdoors. Oh, the joy of cooking over an open fire (and a Coleman stove), playing cards by lantern light and sleeping on an air mattress in a tent. We tried some new things this year, like baking cornbread in a Dutch oven (yumm!) and making ice cream in a coffee can (YUMMM!). And DEBBIE brought the cookies this time. They were so good, its just too bad she didn't bring enough to last the whole week. Oh, wait, she did! I guess we were just a little short on self control seeing as how they were gone by the end of the second day. (Don't forget, Debbie, I want that recipe!) Then there was the kayak. This would be the first time I got to use my second hand kayak and the first time I had ever paddled a sit-on-top type. I learned in a hurry that one doesn't scoot over in the seat when the wind is blowing and the water isn't exactly smooth. To my surprise, I fell into the cold water and my kayak turned upside down! Luckily, I wasn't far from shore and the water was only about waist deep. I was easily able to right the kayak and get back aboard with little fuss. There were no further mishaps. I can't wait to go kayaking again! After some coaxing, both Debbie and JoAnne tried it, and both were pleasantly surprised. When we first got to the beach that morning there were a couple of women getting ready to get their kayaks in the water. Debbie learned that they were a mother and her 16 year old daughter, and they were departing to Emerald Bay to spend the night at Boat Camp (which is where we encountered the below pictured bear). They said it was about a 2 1/2 hour paddle. What a great experience! Hmmm...what else...

When I was lounging in the sand in Calawee Cove I thought of my newly created blog and wrote in my head about this trip. I did the same in my tent, just before slumber. Again, on the long ride home, I went over in my mind all the things that I wanted to convey here. However, as I write this now I'm wishing that I would have had a pen and paper with me on that beach and in the tent, and a tape recorder in the car, because my memory is not to be trusted! Suffice it to say that we had a great time and are already planning for our "Blissful" rendezvous next year.

Lessons learned this trip:

~ Flexibility = Harmony

~ Having a good plan is one thing, properly executing it is something different altogether. Being able to come up with Plan B is the key to success.

~ Sometimes less is more

~ Partial disassembly the night before leaving makes a huge difference (Good idea, Deb)

~ Its OK to grab a burger if its convenient, especially after a long hike

Things to remember for 2009:

~ Do better menu planning and pre-preparing of meals, especially dinner

~ Simple foods should not be overlooked, especially for breakfast

~ Get out of camp early enough to have a whole day at the beach

~ Take a picture of our camp site in full regalia

~ Work on reducing our carbon footprint

BFF JoAnne and BFF Debbie in camp

JoAnne and me in camp

Debbie and JoAnne at Lester Beach

JoAnne and me at Lester Beach

Calawee Cove

JoAnne and Debbie at Calawee Cove

View from my hammock

JoAnne goes a-paddling

Debbie goes a-paddling

We saw this bear while hiking the Rubicon trail

He was trying to get a free lunch and didn't want to take "no" for an answer!

Further along on the Rubicon Trail (too bad JoAnne had to leave us early that morning)

We certainly did enjoy our visit and will return again and again and again!

Coffee Can Ice Cream

Making ice cream while camping was a real treat. It was so good that I made it again when I got home. Here is the simple recipe that I used. You can substitute a zippered, quart sized freezer bag for the 1 pound coffee can and a zippered, gallon sized freezer bag for the 3 pound coffee can. I'm not sure why, but ours took maybe 10-15 minutes longer than the recipe says. We didn't give up and were amazed at the results. Give it a try!

Ingredients
1 cup milk
1 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-1 pound empty coffee can
1-3 pound empty coffee can
Crushed Ice
Rock salt

Directions
THIS IS FUN
Place all ingredients in a 1-pound coffee can with a tight lid
Place can inside 3-pound coffee can
Pack crushed ice around smaller can
Pour rock salt over ice
Place lid on can
Wrap in towel or wear gloves
Shake, rattle and roll for 10 minutes
Remove inner can and stir mixture scraping sides of can
Replace lid and pack again with more ice and salt
Roll/shake 5 minutes more
Makes about 3 cups :)

to blog or not to blog

Much consideration has gone into my decision to create this blog. Using the tried and true method of listing all of the positives and all of the negatives, my final answer is...this blog is on! Now, I could just list here the all pros and cons, but that would not be in keeping with one of reasons I first considered starting a blog in the first place. There were many times, before anyone ever heard of a blog, that I thought about keeping a journal. While in high school, I recorded everyday events on the big, open squares of a brightly colored, spiral bound Peanuts calendar. Of course, some of these "events" were non-school sanctioned "field trips" and they had to be cleverly disguised or abbreviated! I wish I would have saved that calendar. In reading the blogs of both friends and strangers, I've come to realize that sharing everyday experiences is more than just a way to keep family and friends informed. It can be inspirational, thought provoking, entertaining, and much more, but it is getting much too late for me put into words what I'm trying to say. There enter a couple of the cons: prioritization and obsessiveness. Sometimes (there may be some who would use the word "often") I have a problem in those areas. Perhaps it would have been better for me to enter the blogosphere after I got ready for my camping trip, since I plan to leave by 10 am! And just maybe I shouldn't be so fussy about some things and just "git 'er done" instead of spending so much time laboring over just the right word or phrase, or trying to remember the rules for using punctuation. Oh, well, if there are any English teachers reading this, know that it has been a long time since I've really used the skills I learned in school and an even longer time since I was in school actually learning them!
Watch for my next post which will be coming at the end of the week and will include photos of good times with forever friends at beautiful Lake Tahoe.

P.S. It's a good thing this allows editing even after posting!