“Of course I’m scared. I’m not Superman.” – Jackie Chan
Anything that starts with an embarrassing photo of horrified campers is bound to make for a good story. The photo above holds many surprises besides the panic stricken aspects of those having their picture shot. From the looks of things you’d think they were actually being shot. Possibly, a camera flash was startling? Maybe they were actually being flashed by a stray hiker? As with any adventure, we must start at the beginning and work our way through the story until we arrive at these alarmed countenances.
I’d like to start by disecting the photo which you see above. It is worth noting a few things. First, there are 12 carbon-based-life-forms in the frame (eleven of which are human). Every adult male is a father (or soon to be) and every woman in the photo is pregnant.
As a side note, my wife (senior management) and I are expecting a son this year! It is also worth noting that this new child will fill the only remaining bunk in the jPod prototype trailer.
Enough daddy excitement for now. We have a story to tell.
This camping adventure all started when one of the couples suggested a camping trip. All of us are educators and could use a weekend away during the last quarter of the school year -which, in my case, is filled with spring fever, chaos, and hormonal teenagers. Yes, a holiday away provides something essential…sanity. Because of the pending births of our children, it was decided that we’d camp at a campground that was close to home & hospital. The campground we chose is the Bowl & Pitcher in Spokane, WA. We’ve all lived near it for years. In fact, several times a year we visit the place on a Saturday afternoon to hang out. Yet, we’ve never camped there.
It is a nice campground right on the Spokane river. There are decent facilities & a short walk to one of the most exciting & beautiful parts of the Spokane river. It is a site that is also rich in history. It was the focus of the Civilian Conservation Corp. during FDR’s presidency in the 1930’s and a place that many G.I.’s chose to camp after WWII. The “pitcher” part of the name comes from an odd rock formation in the river. Honestly, I have no idea where the ‘bowl” is. Someday, I’ll ask a park ranger.
Our camp sites were on a hillside & the two toddlers enjoyed running up an down the hill. I can only speak for myself but I enjoyed putting our daughter to bed because she fell asleep almost instantly…and so did I -because I spent the day chasing her.
All in all, it was a great weekend that ended with shocked expressions.
OH ya, the story!
That photo was taken by one of two cameras which were perched on the picnic table. As one camera shot the photo (which you see above), the other camera was in mid plummet and multiple ricochet off of the picnic table to the graveled ground (where the timer went off and it shot a rather dusty dark photo of the table leg). With an entire weekend’s worth of possible camping disasters, it was nice to have only one minor scare at the end of the weekend. Of course the best part is that we managed to get it “on film” and reminisce over it immediately. It is always good to camp with close friends, three pregnant women, two dogs, two toddlers, on a hill near a hospital and still end the weekend with a hearty laugh. Oh, and our sanity.
Here are some more shots from the weekend. I particularly like the one of our little girl & the flower (ok enough with the proud father business…I know).
Happy Camping!
Mark
