Yep folks, we are going away for an extended long weekend in the camper. What else do you do when you actually have one and haven't taken it out but once? Luck may actually be on our side with the weather even..woohoo! The leaves are starting to turn as well. I'm excited. More excited about going mid-berkshires and back into Bear territory. Abby (Jim Royer of Littleton Massachusetts' dog) probably disagrees but, she's a dog - it's her job to be the Black Bear Alert System so, she should get used to it.

Does anyone watch Gene Simmons reality show "Family Jewels"? I do and all I can think about is their camping trip.......and it's cracking me up. Wish I had someone to share all that with. Anyone? No. Well, you should dangit..they are quite the funny family and not funny like Oz's and their freak show. More like the how can I mess with you today? family of all time. I love that, makes me feel all warm and fuzzy.

 Anyway - there will be photos and some odd story as there always is. Hopefully we are not eaten by the Bears which you know, could happen at any time but, certainly more at this time of year when they are bulking up to sleep. Another great point - how fabulous is it to be a Bear anyway? Eat, Sleep for months, eat more, and no one messes with you. Find a good spot and maybe never even bump into a hunter. It's all strawberries and fresh fish by the riverside. Cool stuff.

There will also be photos of Amelia Rose as I have been stopping by trying to get shots for a few weeks now. Should have some good ones (some even with Mom included). Keep your fingers crossed.

We lucked out with the weather and had a lovely time camping out at DAR State Forest for Columbus Day weekend. Lucky enough to take extra time off worked out well. To get there on a Friday early afternoon and set up to sit and relax weas great. The rain came in Saturday night after dinner and was done by the time we got up Sunday Morning. The next bout of rain came during the night and it was really just a drizzle off the trees while we were packing it up Monday morning so, all in all, very nice. To have some hot sunny times in there just made it a perfect weekend to get away from it all.

My thoughts on teh location - DAR is pretty nice as far as State Forests go.

http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/western/darf.htm

Rt 112, Goshen, MA

The sites were really well spaced and pretty thickly treed. It didn't help with the riotous young folk on Saturday - even with the pouring rain it was pretty loud but, it could have been a lot worse. The gentle slopes between the camping areas gave a bit of a sound buffer between each other and we were lucky enough to be away from the louder ones.

Since there were no hook ups and this was our second time out - more testing going on with the camper. We ended up with no refridgerator or hot water heater and the batteries lasted almost 3 days so, we have to keep in mind a few of those things when going to places without hook ups. It did give us a chance to try out the bathhouse and I must say it was clean, hot and had lots of pressure. I also liked the fact that the 2 shower rooms were off the side of the bath house so, it was not gender specific. The sites themselves came with both a barbeque pit and a fire pit - lovely stuff!

The facilities and roads seemed very well kept and updated. Some of the roads needed some levelling as some of the cars going through were leaving scuff marks. Grapevine says that next year they are adding year round cabins so, that'll be nice to have another place with cabin options.

The really odd thing that I will remember from now on is that they didnt have a ranger on duty at the check in station (after Labor Day it's off season). They were around and about, just not sitting there to check you in. You had to check yourself in and did I have the reservation information - ummm, no. I also went crazy trying to get in touch with Reserve America - no 411, no 800-directory...argh. Anyway, eventually got them and they were very helpful so, that was great. Will make sure I bring reservation information from now on dangit.

Also, the dump station wasn't there at the camp area. What? Um, yeah. Funny really. The forest headquarters was on the other end of the place and that's where the dump station was.

Wildlife. Lacking. Although the web says it's be Bear Aware and all that - no bears we saw or saw trace of even. We saw something the first night - it was the glowing eyes about to enter our site until the Advanced Black Bear Yelping system (Abby) chased it off. It was like small coon size. No idea what it was. Heck - could have been someone's house cat for all I know. Abby (Jim Royer's dog) did find newts on the site (so did the kids in the next site) they were all over - busting out like crazy. Very cool colored guys. 

There are pictures and as soon as I get aminute to scan them, I certainly will share. Until then, that's the summary and all is well.

A couple of items came up to get to this point:

1. An old website was updated and I went in to see what was going on.

2. I remembered that there were quite a few pictures there of both myself and BoyScout Jim.

3. I remembered there were also High School pictures of me there and thought it was hysterical.

4. I thought the young peeps at work would get a kick out of it and yep -  they did.

5. I remembered I had some GREAT 70's & 80's shots in a couple of scrapbooks that were actually sitting under the TV because I haven't had room to put them into the hope chest and, heck, they are out of the way.

So, while I was working, and grabbing schedule time last night, I scanned some of those....it was a lot of fun. There are some great things going on in these pictures and some fabulous dated looks and I find it hysterical that I have aged to the point to actually think that way.

Then I sent them to work to find out what got the best reaction from the younger crowd and so, I will share those as well as the comments they had here. We have all laughed and had fun this morning and that's fabulous.

My co-workers wonder "How can you put yourself out there like that?"

Its me, it's history, it's funny, I got over it long ago because well really it's just more of a 'oh yeah, everyone else looked the same way' - someday you'll be in the same place and it wont bother you either. Funny stuff.

I've also called it "The Evolution of Hair" because the most funny and prominent thing seems to be clothes first and then the hair.

Enjoy a trip back in time.

http://pandafan.tabulas.com/gallery/a@61008/

Not like that.

So, here's the update to the story that shall continue on and has become some kind of crazy foot fetish - and believe me I hate feet. I dont want to see your feet, dont touch my feet and dont touch me with your feet so, it really sucks for me at times. lol.

The Morton's Neuroma's update.......who freakin knows. Can't get a positive answer on how that is, if it really even exists, etc. Why you ask? (I knew you were). Because Cass can't get an MRI. Cass tried. Oh did I try. I got so incredibly frustrated and upset I cried. Dang - just not feeling the love lately. 7 or 8 shots with the dang machine and they got 2 short partial scans. There was nothing I could do about it. Freaky wormy like spasms just have a mind of their own. arggghh.

The MRI thing - oh yeah - thats just how it is...not gonna happen. Doc says you have Restless leg blah blah blah......I immediately think of all those commercials....that's just wierd, it's not like that. I dont think. I dont need medication for the freaky spasms in my feet that feel like I'm walking in a shoe full of worms...it's just freaky..no biggie. Still. Argghh.

So - that was last week. I know, late on sharing but, I haven't been all that happy so, I figured you few didn't mind all that much.

This week I get to go have a lovely bone scan to see if I have stress fractures. Notice that has an s on it. arggghh. This week or next I suppose - eventually whatever. Pissin me off at this point dangit.

Can you see me smiling? I'm trying.

So, after 5 months of pain, torture, and frustration I still am no further than I was when I started. And lots of people have touched my feet. It's creepy.

I've missed so much time in work that I'm having lunch at my desk probably 3-4 days of the week and I just can't wait to tell them I basically have to take a day off for this 3-4 hour bone scan crap. I'm sure they'll be thrilled.

If someone could just poke me in the eye - I'd feel better, I'm sure.

So at this point I am just going ahead and making my own diagnosis. Here ya go......