Nein!
Yes, I used the German word that sounds like the English word for the number 9. No, I do not care. I'm just that cool.
So I got back today from that camping trip with my mother. Surprisingly, we did not fight the whole time. We both have very dominant personalities (I may be a Pisces, but I'm Aries dominant. She's an Aries), and we easily could've gotten angry multiple times throughout the entire trip, but we mainly let it go. When my brother joined with his girlfriend yesterday, though, there were some disturbances. The three of us ALL have dominant personalities. Luckily, his girlfriend was able to call him out on some of the stuff he'd get angry at us for calling him out on. I only (accidentally) physically harmed him once. Well, it was kind of an accident. He was being ridiculous during a game of Crazy Eights and I couldn't let it slide (I get super competitive when it comes to games), so I threw (what I thought was) an empty coke can at him. Turns out it was not empty. There were still a few drops left in the can, and when I threw it, they ended up hitting him. His eye, to be specific. Of course, when this happened I apologized immediately and profusely, which I learned could sometimes save me from being punished by him. Pretty sure a mixture of things stopped him from injuring me, like the fact that his girlfriend was RIGHT THERE, and, oh yeah, we're not children anymore. Like that would stop him. Anyway. He wasn't too mad at me, and we stopped playing cards after that.
We first arrived at the campsite around 9:00 pm. It wasn't dark, and we had to set up the tent. Of course, I wanted the huge tent with the screened-in porch, but after half an hour of sweat and swears, my mom caved. While I started on dinner, she put up a two-and-a-half person tent. That tent was full of lies. It's more like a one-person tent with some room for a backpack or small child. I tried my best with dinner. I really did. We got these little mac n cheese bowls that you add water to, but apparently you need a microwave. Which, surprise, surprise, we did not have in the middle of the woods. Instead, we poured some boiling water in and tried to stir it around. The noodles were mushy, yet there was still an excess of water in the cup, making the cheese sauce less of a sauce and more of a soup. We established the meal as a "cheesy pasta soup." But we were hungry, so we ate it anyway. We made a fire, and while we were sitting there, we heard some rustling in the forest. Where we were camping, there were no bears or wolves, so it wasn't terrifying, but it was still scary to think that something was watching you in the dark. Turns out it was a raccoon, who scampered away as soon as we flashed our lights his way. We named him Rocky. Rocky attempted to infiltrate our campsite while we were awake again by approaching from a different angle. Unfortunately for him, he was not immune to snapping sticks and crunching leaves. We could've heard him from a mile away. By turning our heads we were able to send him running, again. He did not show himself while we were up after that. When we went to bed, I did hear some rustling. Part of the rustling was from the trees, which were dropping nuts. I got hit by said nuts about six separate times. Six. Those trees really wanted me. My mom and I were scrunched in this tiny little tent, and I heard this growling noise. I promptly freaked. I froze and kept listening. It was only every few seconds, so I thought it was possibly coming from my mother. After nudging her, it stopped. Apparently she forgot her allergy meds, which stuffs up her nose, making her snore. Almost causing my untimely death by means of heart attack, too.
We didn't go hiking like we said we would. The only use for my brand new hiking shoes was to pound in stakes to hold the tent because of course we forgot the mallet. By gripping them on the toe and whacking the heel against the stake, they were an unexpected good substitute. On Saturday (yesterday, day two of camping), we went to the beach. I brought along my phone (I was reading a book online) and my iPod (playlists are a godsend). I spent most of the time in the shade, but I managed to get a little sun. After we left the beach, we gathered some lunch from our food stash and waited for my brother to arrive. After he and his girlyfriend came, we put them to work putting up the big tent. It took all four of us, but after it was done, we reaped the benefits. We could easily change without telling the others to look away, using the tent as a changing station. It was like a mansion compared to the mouse of a tent we slept in the night before.
After making s'mores (I only had one then ate some chocolate by itself), we tried (and failed) to make jiffy pop over the fire. We got, like, eight pieces popped in a span of twenty minutes. Epic fail. My brother and his gf were displaying quite a lot of PDA and it made me uncomfortable. I mean, I appreciate he has someone, but he doesn't need to remind me every second. There was lap sitting. And that awkward half-hug thing. I felt so awkward. Even when it was me dating, I didn't like PDA. Why do people feel the need to touch other people in romantic ways IN FRONT OF OTHER PEOPLE?! Agh. Like, thanks for reminding me how lonely I am. Wow, I am so bitter. I really am glad my brother is dating. I'm just uncomfortable with him shoving it in my face.
They left after breakfast this morning, and my mom and I headed out to the beach. We both read, and when it became too hot, we got in the water. The bottom of the lake was not covered in just sand. Oh, no, it also had rocks. Big, hard, pointy rocks. Lovely for stepping on. Not. We explored the water, picking up shells and pretty rocks along the way. When we were tired of dodging the rocks, we got out and laid on our towels to dry off. After a while, we packed up and headed home. We sang along partially to my playlist, then to the Beatles (because I played Beatles songs on my playlist, and mom just HAD to hear "When I'm 64" which is also one of my favorites).
All in all, it was a successful weekend and it was super fun. Not that I'm not grateful for plumbing and, oh yeah, a MATTRESS. The ground is not soft. I'm super ready to sleep in my own bed for the first time in three days. L8r Sk8rs
