Date: 2014-08-30
To: ÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂHere they come again, mmmÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂ
Miles today: 0.0

209 days to go¢¦Well, here we are. Once again on our way back to the local outfitters. Although I suppose that The Dave Clark Five (those of you under 50 should Google or YouTube Dave Clark Five, Catch us if you can¢¦ They were a popular pop rock group of the early 60¢s¢¦¢ah yes, what fond memories of my youth¢) said or rather sang these opening words better. Anyway, while I was trying to think-up a clever little title for this post I kept thinking of things that would be an inspirational concept of returning¢¦Then it happened, this song popped into my head and ever since I¢ve been having one of those days where it just keeps playing in my head, over and over, and over again. Even as I sit here writing this blog I am hearing this song¢¦enough; Already! So, last week was my daughter¢s birthday and we, that is, my wife and I gave her a gift certificate to the local outfitters. Now she was about to enter the realm of acquisitions and possession of hiking equipment. I couldn¢t wait¢¦As we pulled into the parking lot of the outfitters I asked her what she was going to purchase. A major item or several less expensive things, not that anything in this store is ¢less expensive.¢ She said that she thought she would purchase a pack. As we walked into to the outfitters there she was, Nicole, in all her splendor, helping another customer with what appeared to be some water sport items. We made eye contact as a little smirkee-smile came across her face and she glanced away from us, back to matters at hand. She and the customer went up the stairs to the upper level where the backpacks, tents, sleeping bags and yes, kayaks were located. We of course were in hot pursuit. We had money to spend. It was burning holes in our pockets. We could hardly wait¢¦ We started to look at some of the products ¢ my daughter, the backpacks and I, the tents. When Nicole finished with the customer, broke contact and came right over to us. Pleasantries were exchanged and then it was down to business. ¢How can I help?¢ she asked. ¢Well, Erin is here for a backpack and I am here for a tent,¢ I replied. ¢Good, what did you have in mind?¢ as she turned to my daughter. ¢I would like a pack like my dad¢s,¢ my daughter said. ¢Okay, then¢¦¢ Nicole turned to go to the back room to retrieve one¢¦¢it was the Osprey wasn¢t it?¢ ¢Yep,¢ as she faded from sight. Back she came¢¦¢I¢m sorry we are out of that one.¢ ¢But, we have another like it¢¦it is a 50 not a 48.¢ ¢Okay, let¢s try it¢¦do you have some weights?¢ ¢Yes, I¢ll be right back.¢ Now, I¢m here to tell you that I did not realize that there is a difference between men¢s and women¢s backpacks. Accommodations need to be made. I mean the straps¢¦The shoulder straps need to be cut differently. You know, for allowances¢¦Yah, okay, well, you know, boobs need to be taken into consideration. So, not only did she try the Osprey 50 but it was a correctly gendered one. Oh, and Bill, the rain cover and water bladder were optional but it did have a bottom¢¦ Now it was my turn¢¦Tents!... for some strange reason the term or name Big Agnes kept rolling around my head. So, I asked Nichole ¢ ¢Is there a Big Agnes or is that the name of someone?¢ ¢Yes, in fact that is the tent I use ¢ Big Agnes, Copper Spur¢¦ the pack weight is 2 lb 8 oz, and would you like to see it?¢ ¢Yes, please;¢ as she pulled one out of the pigeon-hole. We then walked over to an open area where she proceeded to pull it out of the bag and set it up. When she pulled the frame or spine out of the bag in a flash it just sprang open and into shape like one of those folding canes that you see advertised on late night television. It took her only minutes to assemble the tent, as she explained every step. When it was up, I felt as if she should have stood at the front of the tent with hands held high in the air as if she had just dismounted from the balance beam in Olympic competition. I helped her disassemble the tent, fearing that the stays or frame would fall out of my hands and spring into action killing everyone within a five foot radius. As Nichole quickly and securely removed the folded frame from my hands so this would not happen and properly returned it to its own little bag she then packed the tent, the stakes, the frame and rain fly all neatly into the storage bag which measures 4.5¢ x 16.5¢. This is a far cry from what I was used to. To put this into perspective¢¦When my wife and I were in our twenties we lived in Massachusetts and on summer weekends we used to pack-up and hop into the family car, which was a Volkswagen Bus, ¢A-kit Camper,¢ tomato red with the classic silver VW emblem on the front; and we would head north to camp in one of the various State or National Forests. We had very little money but we were long on fun and each other, we also had our first child, a little girl ¢ Gretty (Gretchen). It used to take both of us to remove the tent from the center of the floor of the VW Bus. We would place Gretty in a dishpan on the ground and as she would play with the sticks, stones and pine needles that were scattered on the ground all around her and as we listened to The Dave Clark Five blaring on the radio and we both hoisted the tent up with some help from adjacent campers. We would then very carefully and strategically move the tent close enough to the bus so that the side of the tent could be hooked to the gutter of the VW. When we broke camp it took at least an hour to clean and drop the tent then return it to its rightful place in the center of the floor of the VW. We needed a nap after that event. ¢Is there anything else?¢ she asked. ¢Nope, I think that will about do it.¢ I picked up a couple of small things ¢ that is small in size, large in price. We were within our budgetary limits, my daughter for just over $200.00 and me for just under $500.00. We bid our farewells to Nichole until next month after the MasterCard bill drops. I will now be spending some of my off time from work in my backyard practicing setting-up the tent because I know the first time I have to do it I will be in Georgia and it will still be raining from the day before.