It's Elk Time

I'm trying to find a window through which to escape. This window consists of two or three straight days that I can run away and see some elk, up close and personal.



Last year, I made it through the window TWICE!!!  Here's one of the adventures
http://momonvacation.blogspot.com/2011/10/bugle-boy-of-campany-b.html



If you really want a great weekend trip, and some cool photo ops, and the thrill of hearing elk bugle right in your ear, head to Ponca, Arkansas. Go it now. Get in your car and go.

You'll see some aweome sights like this.

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!?!?!?!?!?

Back to the camping

As promised, once I again I meandered down Random Thought Lane and back to the main road of talking about the great outdoors.



In the interest of self-preservation, The Whee was all for me taking a camping trip recently. In the interest of getting future meals cooked and laundry done, she went with me to make sure I came back.

Our plan was to put distance and elevation between us and the white hot, red dirt plains of Oklahoma. We live in a place that's a constant cacophony of sirens, train whistles, people blaring their car radios, dogs barking. It's enough to create insanity, which would explain the way people drive here. I sometimes wear my ear buds all day. Being thought weird is better than being thought of as 'cellmate'.





We went clear to no-man's land to get enough distance between us and the clamor.  Here's proof:

We got off the beaten path. But not so far as to meet any rattlesnakes.

We found out of the way tiny towns filled with artists and old-time goodness.

We found solitude, and silence, and comfy, colorful benches on which to contemplate the quiet.

And a place to get away from everything....

Except the teenaged paparazzi that was stalking people

                     


   Happy Trails and may you always quietly find adventure!!

Ridin' herd on things

Do you ever have those days where you feel like you have to ride herd on everything and everybody? That the laundry, the dishes, the vacuuming and the grocery shopping are all about to stampede and you haven't even saddled your horse?

Yep. Been there, been trampled like that.

It's that time of year-

• band concerts
• dishes
• science fair projects
• laundry
• getting close to the end of semester study projects
• getting close to the end of the semester catch upon grading projects
• dishes
• dishes

How can a family who's eating most of their meals standing at the stove have so many dirty dishes? I'll spare you the visuals.

Add to the bawling herd a trip to Kansas for the holiday, a desire to cook some real holiday food, and fighting off the inner elf who wants to start putting up the Christmas decorations, and you have a drove of on-edge bossies who will spook and bolt at the smallest hint of an extra task on their already-too-full plates. I'm speaking metaphorically, of course. This is not a description of people I work with.

The last trip Philoboy and I made to Kansas we ran into this very thing. A herd of cattle, not bossy people I work with.

The disparity between city life and rural life is enough to give you whiplash. I've run into some boss cows in the city, usually on the PTA committees or at youth soccer games, but never a herd of cows.

There were cows coming and going. Cows almost as far as you could see. 

And cowboys riding herd on the cows. Somehow their herd ridin' looked a lot more fun than my city herd ridin'.

And I couldn't pass up the opportunity to show you the dirty windows of the Travelin' Van.  That's adventure miles dirt, ma'am.



"Dang paparazzi- we can never re-locate without one of them hangin' out a vehicle window with their dang camera...."

Ahhh, I'm looking forward to the holiday, going back home to a place where horses are the vehicles, walking is the pace of life, and cows are the most interesting thing around.


    Happy Trails, and may you always find a whole herd of adventures!