December is a good time for a camping story, right? Well, if it is or isn't, Rooth posted about camping today and Hawaii 5-0 had a camping theme, so I'm in the mood.
As a kid I used to camp out with other boys in the neighborhood. It was usually in a field on the other side of the train tracks, which was surrounded by woods. My parents said no to one camp out, but
later changed their minds. I decided to surprise my
friends.
They set up their tents at the cleared end of the field. I set-up my
homemade tent at the other end, behind a stand of milkweeds, where they couldn't see it. Next I gathered up about 10 "gumballs" (prickly
balls from sweetgum trees) and put them in a jar with just a little gasoline.
As expected, my friends eventually built a campfire. (Their dad dug a little pit and put cinder blocks around three sides of it for safety.)
When I saw the fire going, I started crawling towards it through the weeds--with my little jar of surprises. I stopped just outside the ring of light. My friends were telling stories, trying to scare each other, but it
wasn't working.
I pulled out the first gumball and threw it towards the
fire. I missed. Someone heard it land, but the sound was dismissed. I launched
the second one, but missed again. They all heard that one land and it spooked
them. They were worried about what might be out there in the dark. It was all I
could do to keep from laughing out loud and getting caught. The third time was
the charm. I threw the gumball directly into the fire pit and the flames shot up
pretty high. That scared the heck out of them! All of my friends jumped up and
half of them wanted to run home--one thought they were being haunted!
At
that point I couldn't hold it in any more. I started laughing so hard I couldn't
talk. The campers were so relieved it was me they forgot to be mad. I let them each
take a turn throwing a gumball into the fire and then we got down to the serious
business of camping--toasting marshmallows, talking about girls, and
occasionally sharing something meaningful that we never would have talked about
at home, in school or in the light of day.
It was a nice night!
haha you're so mischievious! That would be pretty hilarious though.
ReplyDeleteI have to admit it was a lot of fun!
DeleteYou are so bad...lol. It was a good episode on Hawaii 50 I love that show! ESP right now...it is so cold that the sandy beaches make it tempting to just go there for a getaway!
ReplyDeleteI'm usually not a beach person, but I'd love to visit Hawaii--especially during winter.
DeleteAs I was reading your story I kept thinking about how much you remind me of my brother. And please don't worry, that's a compliment. :-)
ReplyDeleteIt makes me sad to think that the kind of thing you and your friends did - camping out on your own - would probably never happen nowadays. A whole generation of kids is growing up without being able to experience that feeling of independence and adventure.
Thank you, Kristie! That means a lot.
DeleteIt is sad kids can't have those experiences today. Most of the kids in my neighborhood don't even walk to school. They're well within walking distance, but the parents drive them.
Haha, you really were too mischievous. But you really should have jumped out and scared them. Maybe that would have been a little too much...
ReplyDeleteWell, I didn't make a habit of it. But once in a while, just to keep people on their toes. :) Usually I was the kid in the group keeping others from doing dumb things.
Deletelol that is pretty damn mischievious, but I love it, my kind of humour haha
ReplyDeleteMaybe Leah (former blogger) was right to call me Denise the Menace. She meant it as a compliment, but I was such a good kid I never thought of myself that way--except for my slingshot adventures. :)
DeleteBoys will be boys right!? Seems like it was a pretty great camping experience, something you'll always remember. So you didn't sit around the campfire telling ghost stories? Or does that only happen on that show Are You Afraid of the Dark (do you remember that!)?
ReplyDeletexo, Yi-chia
Always Maylee
I do remember that show. I didn't see it often, but I liked it. It must have been a scheduling problem. We did tell tell ghost stories--the best one was about a man wrongly beheaded who came back at night, in search of a new head. Also, I grew up in "Goat Man" territory, so we were always sharing stories about him (and looking over our shoulders at night).
DeletePS - I was a good kid--very responsible. My boys-will-be-boys moments were always harmless. Mostly. A particular incident with a slingshot springs to mind. :D
yaaay
ReplyDeleteI like this little trick up your sleeves. I would have suspetced some sort of sorcery or witchcraft if I saw the fire rising like that.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure of the Hawaii 5-0 shown on AXN in Singapore is the same season as the US. I recently saw an episode on someone who got decapitated while riding his horse. Or far apart are we in episodes? Oh wait, you mean the new Hawaii 5-0 and not the original classic one right?
Yes, I mean the current version of Hawaii 5-0. I love the theme music at the start of the show. I'm glad they kept that from the classic version. It sounds like we're in the same season, but the US is running a few episodes ahead. I won't post any details to spoil epsiodes for anyone. :)
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