Oh So Good To Be Home

With a side dish of the good and bad of camping in state parks.

We had a beautiful trip, the weather was perfect, spectacular views, warm sunny beaches. All the while my head is having a major sinus event. I did not whine or even mention it but by the weekend Sandie said "You look like you have sinus." Maybe I mentioned I was tired or something, might of whined a little. Paul had it too. But he takes beer for it as well as Sudifed. That is certainly cheating.

The straw that broke this particular camel's back was a not so innocent little campfire right next to our bedroom window. You know how irritating smoke can be to a scratchy throat, the heady combination of damp swamp wood and dry leaves put me over the edge. I wanna go home! Plus Paul was kept up by their trailer fan both nights we were there. My poor hearing is sometimes an advantage.

So I have segued right into the annoying parts of camping in state parks. The good part is the beautiful beaches, low prices, nice rangers, etc. Here's the thing, no f***ing cable, in Pentwater we couldn't even get a radio station to listen to the Tiger's games. Oddly, I had amazing internet service through my Alltel phone. But I would have to pay to hear or see the game. If I did that they would surely lose and I would feel guilty. We keep telling ourselves we certainty don't need to drag the direct tv dish along with us. We can survive camping without it. Can't we? It appears only for a limited time and not during playoffs or when the Lions are on a winning streak.

Another annoying thing about state parks is all the campfires, all day long, no matter how hot it is. There are always trees and hills to trap the smoke in. Why do folks escape the city to choke in a campground without tv? Stay home and save enough money to order pizza and watch tv, the air is cleaner.

And at times the other campers are unfriendly, you wave and say hi to the neighbors and they just look through you. We do love the millions of kids in the parks, fun to watch. The campsites are small and only have electric connections. Most campers have a trailer, a tent or two, two cars, six bikes and two dogs. Cheek to jowl all the way.