Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeekend

Oh my, oh me! Or, should I say, oh me, or my! I quite enjoy my weekends, my only problem currently is that they necessitate a certain amount of recovery upon their conclusion. This is not to say that I don't enjoy them because they tire me out, but rather that they tire me out and I enjoy every minute of it. Take this past weekend, for example...

I moseyed up to see some friends at PHC (and the surrounding vicinity) on Friday the 11th. This was made doubly enjoyable by the fact that I was doing my moseying in newly acquired vehicular modus transportus--to be short--a new car. But anyway, I got up to school Friday afternoon and checked in with the folks who I stayed with for the weekend (an extremely gracious family by all accounts). I then proceeded to the campus and picked up some friends for a cook out.

Or a drive-and-hike-and-cook out I mean. We hiked up to Raven's Rock on the Appalachian Trail and had a most wonderful time. Finding firewood while the sun shines is the preferred method, but flashlights work too. After enough wood was collected, we got a rousing fire going, and then the cooking began. I came to the conclusion that I'm destined to eat spicy sausages. Strange, I know, but a revalation nontheless. My destiny was revealed in this way. We'd all taken sticks to roast our sausages on and we'd brought two varieties: spicy and normal. My natural affinity for spicy things induced me to spike a spicy sausage. This I roasted (to the utmost of perfection) and consumed. I decided to have another as there was plenty to go around had myself another jalepeno-laced tube-steak. This was working out rather well and I thought I'd try one of the normal ones. Sausage is placed on stick. Stick is placed over fire. Fire cooks sausage...which promptly splits, drips sausage stuff, laughs with glee, and jumps into the fire. Aside from the affrontry of being laughed at by my supposed dinner, I took no offense and quickly skewered another slick swinelett. This well-mannered peice of pork, presented itself in well-mannered pride to the prestigious flame, and proceeded to plop itself amongst the embers, precisely in the place of its predecessor. It was in this manner that my destiny was unfolded to me and I succombed to the fact that God has intended me to be a spicy sausage consuming person--besides, we were breaking out the marshmallows.

The marshmallows went a lot better than the sausages and were consumed in far larger quantities--which is totally appropriate. Some of the girls even brought s'mores stuff, which was wonderfully messy. We ate our roasted/burned/cindered marshmallows and talked and sang and overall had a great time. We were joined by some other friends who hung out with us and probably would have stayed out talking much longer than we did, but some people had to head out--such is the way of life.

Saturday morning I drove with a good friend up to Maryland to pick up a co-op order for my mom and several other families in my area. Actually, most of the order came back with me, I opted to leave about 200 lbs. there so that I wouldn't bottom out my suspension. With roughly 900 lbs. situated between my trunk and the back seats my friend and I made it back to the college uneventfully. We did see a sign for Harper's Ferry and both decided that since it was such a nice day, that would be an awesome way to use it.

We got back, unloaded the car, grabbed some lunch (leftover sausages, and you guessed it, I got another spicy one), and drove out to Harper's Ferry. We'd both been there before, but only one of us had been up Maryland Heights--ergo, it was up Maryland Heights we went. At about 2 miles to hike up, it was a respectable hike and the view was simply wonderful. While the wind was a little chilly at times, overall it was very comfortable. My friend decided that the beaten path was to be eschewed and with a "Hey! Look at those people way out there! You think we can get waaaaaay out on that rock?" we were off the beaten path. We found a spot with an even better view up and down both the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers, as well as a panoramic vista of the town beneath us. Definitely out of my normal comfort zone, but just as definitely worth it.

When we got back there was the Hoedown to attend. The sand was damp, and a bit sloshy in my personal opinion, but I don't think that affected the enjoyment of the evening at all. There were lots of good people to see, many interesting dances to be danced, and lots of laughter to share. I got the dirtiest I've ever gotten dancing but I really wasn't paying attention. It was all fun and the evening went late as we all enjoyed the music, company of good friends, and the dancing that ensued.

Sunday morning I slept in too much. Funny how when you look at your watch once its 8:15 AM and the next 10:30 AM. Normally I walk to church with a good friend and we try to leave the campus at 10--ergo my panic of sorts and rushed shower, packing and driving. I made it to the campus at 11:15 AM or so and we walked in to church together, chatting. The church service was led by a visiting pastor who I hadn't seen in a long time and I was encouraged to be able to renew the acquaintance. He preached on Psalm 1 and did a meticulous job of following the outline provided by that Psalm and drawing ample application. The fellowship time was well spent and I enjoyed seeing everyone. After things were picked up my friend and I walked back to school and after metamorphosing into our more comfortable selves, played a couple rounds of Spit before I had to load up and head out.

I'm still amazed that it all fit. A friend needed a ride down to my neck of the woods (or thereabouts) and I was glad to have him along for the journey--it proved a great time to catch up with each other. But anyway, in my car we had the 900 lbs. of co-op food (50 lb. bags of grain, tubs of peanut butter, a 60 lb. bucket of honey, etc.), my stuff, my friend's stuff, my friend, and myself. I'm really glad we didn't bottom out the car. It survived the trip well, and I now have a new appreciation for what my car can handle. The ride back home was uneventful, other than some heavy traffic on the homeward end, and some really good conversation with my friend, ranging from politics to the theology. So OK, it was an eventful trip.

Thus was my weekend. It was joyful, enjoyable, and worthy of rejoicing over, and I am now recovering joyfully.

Musings...

Well, now, that's a little more like it! Coolin' down and everything--bring on the Fall, er, Autumn. It was most refreshingly wonderful this morning to get up and drive off into the rain, with the sky totally overcast, and in the space of an hour have the sky clear, cool, and crisp. These cold fronts are all that they are cracked up to be. And when one is expecting to go spend a most splendiforously fantabulous weekend with cherished chums, I tell you, life just doesn't get any better.

But wait--it does get better! There's dancing. In a humongeous barn. And food. And beverages. And live music. And more dancing. If there's one thing I like more than anything it's music. Rousing good music that won't let you keep your feet still. Combine that with excellent companions--you know the type, the one's you've been through the wars with--and you know some awesome memories are in the making. Making memories is really great, especially when making them with the best friends you have.

This weekend will be nice. The weather is finally starting to assume its autumnal countenance and while there aren't many leaves left on the trees, the foliage that's visible is enhanced by the backdrop. I think I'm looking forward to it particularly because I don't have to plan much. I like my weekends (and life in general) that way. A goal to stive for and a basic plan to get there--that's me. Now as far as all the intermediary stuff, obviously some of it is more important than others, but my tendency is to be fluid, taking changes as they come. Occasionally I try to effect some change of my own when I'm in the mood, but mostly I just enjoy what's going on and try to be good company.

I'll have to post something following the weekend, as the muse strikes. If there's one thing I've noticed it's that good posts can't be forced, they have to happen. And having the time to jot them down when they do happen adds quite another varible. So...there 'tis for all you wondering at the random and somewhat sporadic nature of my postings--there's reason to't after all. There are things I would have posted if I'd had the time, and there are times I've sat and stared and stared and sat, wondering what on earth was worth writing about. But no, it has to happen as it happens, and all in all, I think that's for the best. I'll be posting shortly (read "in the author's good time, if the publisher is willin'").

Executive Session...or is it?

You know, it's interesting. When one hears "Executive Session" one thinks of all these cool executive types getting together to discuss, well, executive things. This would seem normal. But in our nation's capital this is not the case. Ho no. What we have there is the more formal rendering of the term and it is invoked. I refer to the events of yesterday when certain personages invoked rule 21 of the Senate in order to bog down proceedings with an untimely discussion of irrelevant material.

The Brits have a most wonderful word to describe this sort of malarky: tripe. I don't know what a tripe is exactly but it has that unharmonious ring to it that perfectly captures the sentiment put forward by "those on the other side of the aisle." They complain about the deficit, but won't cut taxes or spending; they militantly oppose the war in Iraq, but won't bring forth viable alternatives; they dismiss SCOTUS nominees as "radical" and "out of the mainstream," but fail to note that the "mainstream" elected a president last year who would nominate justices in the mold of Antonin Scalia.

That's another problem. They get all upset when it looks like the justice to replace Sandra Day O'Connor won't swing just the way she did. They say that they are determined to uphold what our vaunted forefathers intended when they authored the Constitution. Well, make up your minds! Do you want a particular rendition of the Constitution that promotes your agenda or do you want an unbiased application of the law in the manner the Founding Fathers intended?

Not that I am in any way distraught over these matters. I merely wish to see our lawmakers, who make such a point of listening to the American people and holding the truth in such high esteem, be held accountable to their word. Now there's a radically conservative idea.