Nights in White Satin

Rock Weekend adventure starts here

           It was wonderful.  It was Rock Weekend and it snowed 8 inches at the Creek.  Too bad you weren’t there to enjoy it.  Angy and I mounted the ‘74 Jeep and head to the Creek before the snow got bad on Friday.  When we stopped at Kroger’s in Lawrenceburg, the ground was wet, but the flakes were as big as I have ever seen.  Ten minutes later, when we reached the top of the hill on 350, it was a white out and the ground was covered and traffic slowed to 30 mph.  When we arrived at the Creek, there was about 2 inches on the ground.  It didn’t stop snowing until 10 or so the next morning.  It was nothing but white, every limb on every tree was snow covered, and it was about 8 inches deep.  We had the Jeep, so we left the four wheeler in the garage until noon on Saturday, after it quit snowing.  The Jeep plowed through the snow anywhere we wanted to go, after we broke out the four wheeler, it was fun to go everywhere.  Angy took it on the four wheel trail and got stuck.  

Not stuck

 She really wasn’t stuck, but the snow on the trees drooped branches over the trail making it hard to traverse.  As she went up a hill, she had to go around a branch and off the trail, causing the four wheeler to go sideways.  That is where she bailed and came and got me.  I backed it on to the trail and we took off anew.  The four wheeler is fun all year long, but it is even funner (sp?) in the snow.  

          It got cold, exactly 8 degrees on Sunday morn.  The weekend was a vacation for the eyes.  The Creek is pretty when it is green, the flowers are all colorful, the trees are pretty, and its pretty nice.  But on a weekend like this, beauty is all white with me.  The sun shining through the snow covered trees, the perfect blanket of white across the fields, the ice flowing in the Creek, the frozen pond……all are spectacular views for an old set of eyes like mine.  The drive up 350 was pretty, the driveway down to the Creek was beautiful, and our entire property was an unbelievable wonderland.  Just being there was an adventure, something that happens once in a great while that you can take it all in.  We were there to enjoy it, and for that I am thankful.  Nature paints some pretty pictures, many times they are there and no one is there to appreciate it.  Angy and I were there.  Awesome. 

Beautiful snow maiden

         We did have a visitor.  Mike Q, a friend of mine from work and a long time Creek visitor blew in from Sunman in his four wheel drive Chevy truck.  It would take that, I don’t think a two wheel vehicle would have made it in and out the driveway.  

Mike Q

 Mike stayed around for a few brewskis and head back to Sunman.  When Nature gives you beauty and adventure, you gotta go out and take it in.  Mike has his four wheel Chevy pickup, I have my ‘74 Jeep.  These are our tickets to paradise when Nature is loading the train.  As I saw the weather coming during the week, I was getting excited about getting a weekend snowstorm where I could go out and play.  Angy and I did just that, with four wheeling, sled riding behind the four wheeler, Jeeping, hiking, and just sightseeing the property where I know every tree and branch, but I marvel on how beautiful it is in the snow.  Wow.  

          There was a sense of sadness, though.  It was Rock Weekend, a longtime tradition of winter camping with some really good friends, none of whom made it to Rock Weekend.  It was the end of an era.  I was hoping to spark some new blood into the tradition, but they all opted out citing the snow.  Cheeeeeeesesooey.  That is the point.  Adventure.  It comes in difficult times, Adventure doesn’t knock on your door in perfect weather.  It comes when there is risk, when there is hard work to survive, when you have to push yourself to be at the right place at the perfect time.  The greatest adventures of my life were on days like we had last weekend, and my hard core Rocker buddies blew off 30 years of tradition on a great Rock weekend and my young friends didn’t quite understand the adventure possibilities.   It didn’t matter, Angy and I and Mike Q were there on Rock Weekend and were blown away with the beauty, fun, and adventure.  Rock is dead. 

          Here are some pictures taken last weekend for your pleasure: 

 

 

 

 

Rock Weekend Alert: Snow Predicted!!

News Flash:   Deep snow predicted for Rock Weekend.  Stay tuned………Come to the Creek this weekend and see how deep it gets!  The Weatherperson sees snow this weekend for our Rock Weekend Celebration.  How cool is that?  It’s not going to be so cold, so the white stuff is like icing on the cake.  When is the last time you got to play in the snow?  Celebrate Rock Weekend with us, it’s going to be a great time.

THCC ALERT: Rock Weekend Cometh.

Yeah......It's cold

          Single digits.  That’s what I’m talking about.  It definitely was cold.  But…..with a nice fire, stiff drink, and hearty conversation, it was a pretty good time.  I asked Zuggy when we were sitting outside in lawn chairs in nine degrees if he knew any other knuckleheads who would do this.  He had a quick answer:  Sner, Jeanie, Luke, Ross, Alex (who was there with us), Nick, Patrick, and a whole lot of others.  Actually, it’s probably a roster for the THCCs (True Hard Core Creekers).  It’s a bunch of campers who don’t worry about the weather, they just dress differently and bring different gear. 

Alex renews his THCC status

          But it was cold.  Saturday afternoon was extra cold because it was windy.  The wind would cut right through you, but with proper layers, it wasn’t bad.  Zugs was there, Alex was there, and me, too.  We got up some wood and had a great fire, food, and drink and prepared for an evening by the fire.  It was an extra special night with a fool moon, the Wolf Moon, bigger and brighter than any other full moon of the year because it was as close to the Earth as it gets in a year.  The sky was clear, the air was crisp, and the moonshadows were huge.  A remarkable night that was missed by most everyone (you, too?) because it was cold outside and everyone stayed in instead of sitting outside in a lawn chair in 9 degree weather.  Nuts?  Yeah, but it’s great.. 

Shooting the Moon

          Sunday was Zuggy’s birthday and we celebrated it at Brownings Camp over some bacon and eggs.  Sunday got up to 32 degrees and it felt like summer.  Zuggy rolled out fairly early to do birthday stuff, I spent the afternoon doing what I really enjoy:   The Sunday crossword at the Creek, sitting by the fire, listening to Nature around me, the sound of the Creek, and the warmth of a January sunny day.  It was pretty nice.  (Yes, I did git-r-dun).

Cold can be artistic

ROCK WEEKEND IS HERE!!!

          What is Rock Weekend you ask?  The short story (see February 2008 blog for the long version) is that Rock Weekend used to be our prime reason to go winter camping.  It started back in Boy Scouts, then became a camping Rock Overhang in Hocking Hills that Sner, Patrick, L.G., and I used to attend religiously the first week in February.  It was quite a trek, a three hour drive, a 1 mile hike down to the Rock, usually taking several trips to carry all our gear.  It was winter camping, target shooting, hiking, great food and drink, and an adventure every year.  After many years (probably more than 20, it came to an abrupt halt when the area was de-forested (logged) and ruined the entire site.  On Feb. 8, 2002, we moved Rock Weekend to Indianaland and have been here ever since. 

More artistry

          Many people have been to Rock Weekend.  At the original Rock, we saw Zugs, Rat, MarMar, Knaps, Jerry, Bard, Warren, Brian, and others long forgotten, along with the regulars, Patrick, Sner, L.G., and me.  Rock Weekend at the Creek has seen countless others, too many to name.  For Zuggy, Sner, and me, we winter camp every weekend at the Creek, so it isn’t as special for us as Rock Weekend used to be.  But it still gives us a reason to urge others who occasionally winter camp to come out and strut their stuff.  The weather looks perfect, a little snow, easy temps (27-32 degrees), and we are hoping for a crowd of THCCs.  Where are you Doc, Nick, G-man, Ross, Alex, Luke, Zak, Patrick, Mark, and other Rock Weekend alumni?  How ’bout some newbies?  Come and enjoy what may be the last true winter camping of the year.  It’s just another great excuse to come to the Creek.  Like you needed an excuse?  Well, some of you do because we haven’t seen you in a while.  Come to the Creek.  Come to the Creek.  Rock Weekend only happens one weekend a year.  Make is so.

It's what I like to do on a Sunday afternoon

January Creekin’

          These are trying times.  No, I’m not talking economy, jobs, or health care, I’m talking Creek and January weather.  January can be all over the map when it comes to the weather.  It could be 72 degrees.  It could be 24 below.  I’ve seen both.  Sunny, rainy, or snowy.  Since the Creek is an outdoor thing (we don’t have much indoor anything), the weather is always a factor, especially in January and February. 

          Last week it was supposed to be rainy, but it didn’t rain.  But the snow melt had the ground so wet that it was muddy everywhere.  This weekend was warmer and not so much mud.  The ground was soft, but not too muddy.  I got there on Friday evening around 5 and built a fire.  That was no easy quest, the wood was saturated from the week long rain.  Zugford finally recovered from his bronchial funk and made a prodigal return to the Creek.  Friday night was above freezing, the fire finally kicked in, and we had a nice evening hanging out at the firepit.  The Creek is a little high, which means it’s pretty loud, a welcome sound to my and Zuggy’s ears. 

          Saturday started with a fine breakfast at the Naptav.  Since we haven’t been to the Creek in a while, we have plenty of little projects to work on.  We bought a chainsaw sharpener and figured out where we want to mount it, now it’s next week’s project.  I bought a new bar for the chainsaw and fixed that, bought a new fan belt for Old Blue and went out to fix that.  How hard is it to replace a fan belt?  Unbelievably difficult.  The crankshaft pulley that drives the belt is connected to the front bucket hydraulics, which means I can’t just slip it around the pulley, I have to take out the shaft and the hydraulic unit to slip it  around the pulley.  I’m thinking 2 or 3 hours instead of 10 minutes. Another project for next week. 

          If you remember the bales of straw we had the pumpkins displayed on in our entrance to the Creek, those bales aren’t straw, they are barley.  We were told that people with ponds put barley bales on the ice so when it melts, the barley settles down on the bottom in the shallow areas where the algae grows.  The barley is supposed to help curtail the algae, so we put it in this weekend.  It couldn’t hurt.

          Being so warm during the day, we didn’t start a fire when we returned from the Naptav.  We did our little projects and kept pretty busy.  Around 3, I started the fire and decided to call it a day and start getting ready for food and drink.  That’s when Dennis rolled down the driveway.  The beauty of Laughery is you never know who is going to be there week to week.  Dennis brought his famous bean dip, Zugford had shrimp, and I had steaks.  It was going to be a feast.

          Saturday night was nice.  Not cold at all, somewhere around 40 degrees.  We ate good, drank good, and each of us being a Colerain ‘69er, we had intelligent conversation for most of the night, waning as it got later.   It wasn’t long before midnight showed up and we all called it a night.  Pretty nice night for January.  

          We knew that Sunday was going to be wet.  The plan was to go out for breakfast if it was raining, because it was supposed to rain all day.   The weather channel finally got one right.  We ate at Browning’s Campground, returned to a rainy Laughery, and packed it in.  It was a good choice, because it rained all day.  The Creek is still a fun place when it rains if it is warm, because we have shelters and we can still party.  When it’s rainy and cold, you can’t have a fire to get warm and the cold goes right through you.  That is when it’s time to pack it in, as we did today.  January can be all over the map, the weather is calling for snow and temps in the teens next weekend.  That is actually better for us in January, where we can have a nice big fire and great food and drink.

          What’s coming up at the Creek?   February 6 is Rock Weekend.  I’ll explain Rock Weekend in the next blog, but just plan on being there.  It was our annual winter camping trip until we started camping every weekend during the year, including the Winter.  Our next event after Rock Weekend is the Vernal Equinox, the first day of Spring.  Unbelievable, but Spring is not far off.  I do a countdown to March 1, and that is just 35 days away.  Since you haven’t been to the Creek for quite a long time, start making your plans.  Zugs and I plan on being there this weekend, maybe we will see you there.  Never say never…………..

Dennis and Zuggy try the famous Murphy Bean Dip

Back at the Creek

Definately properly named

 

          Ah, to be at the Creek again.  It was three weeks since I was here, and it seemed to be three months.    The snow was all but gone, just a little on the Northern slopes and the Creek was still ice covered, the pond is still frozen, but it was a nice evening.  I rolled down the driveway into a soup, the  ground was saturated from the snow melt and the firepit area was a muddy mucky mess.  A fire was the first order of business, which didn’t take long.  Soon after the fire was blazing, the Tukee’s, Doug and Deb rolled in.  They brought shish-ka-bobs and beer, and a good time.  Doug is the consummate X fan, and I am all about UC.  It doesn’t take long before he bleeds blue and I bleed red and black.  Deb is a sports fan, and tolerates both of us and likes both teams.  Doug Jr. is going to X, daughter Steph is at the University of Montana.  We had lots to talk about (the sordid details of New Orleans!!) and lots of fun.  The shish-ka-bobs were great, we cooked them over the fire, and we had a great time.  I asked them where they were going to sleep and they said at home, they drove from Madeira just for a visit.  They were going to the X game the next day, an early nooner game, and rolled out around 10.  I hung out at the fire doing my best George Thorogood and probably went to bed around 11 or so.   

          The next morning was amazingly foggy, as seen in the picture above.  I ate breakfast at Naptav and it was still foggy when I returned.  I decided to fire up Old Blue, our new old tractor.  He hadn’t been started for almost two months.  He wouldn’t start:  I found a bad battery cable.  Once fixed, he started right up and I drove him down by the Creek.  Then he overheated and I found the fan belt was broken.  That’s the neat thing about owning a 50 year old tractor, which is still better than owning a 70 year old tractor, like Ol’ Henry.  It will be a while to shake down all the little glitches, Old Blue really wasn’t used much before arriving at the Creek, and we’ll fix him up just fine.   

          Lucky Luke rolled in Saturday afternoon and we wallared in the mud around the place.  It was really wet everywhere you went.  We cut up a little wood, I made some chili for the evening meal, and we reminisced about our Nawlin’s trip.  What fun it was to relive the trip while drinking some brewskis on the Creek around the fire.  The stars came out and it really wasn’t very cold, above freezing.  Good food and drink, great stories, lots of laughs, and one heck of a good time.  Of course, that is why we were there.   

          The weatherperson said Sunday was going to be rainy, but we didn’t see anything but a brief mist.  It turned out to be a nice day, but still a little muddy.  Snerfy rolled in about 1 in the White Death and we quickly put him to work.  We brought down all the wood cut the day before, loading my pickup to the limit.  We then cut and stacked enough wood for a couple of weekends.  The afternoon was spent with Snerfyisms and lots of talk about…..well, Nawlin’s, of course.  The three of us (and 4 others) had a great time there and reliving it through story embellishments is part of the fun.  I had to roll out around 5, Sner and Lucky Luke were going to spend another night, both were off for the MLK holiday.  

          Zugs has been under the weather lately but promises a full recovery and visit this weekend.  Sner said he thought he would be back, and I will also be at the Creek.  THCC’s come in January, you should come to re-establish your THCC certification.  January has turned into a lamb of a month, with more warm temps promised this weekend, maybe even 50 degrees.  Certainly plan on Rock Weekend, which is February 6.  That is our next planned event.  But in any event, you are always welcome on any weekend.  We will be there most every weekend, the only one in question is Feb.13 when we will be in Zuleski (Lake Hope). 

          So get on your THCC face, pack you woolies and come to the Creek soon.  It has been a while and we all have a lot to catch up on.  We have plenty of funny Nawlin’s stories, and they get better each time they are told.  See you at the Creek.  

Elmer Fudd and Daffy Duck

It’s Creek time, get it on…..

         

It shan't be long

            This is a blog about Laughery Creek.  Specifically, our little slice of heaven on Laughery Creek.  So how can I write about it when I haven’t been there in almost a month?   We were there for the Winter Solstice on December 20.  Christmas kinda got in the way and we missed that weekend.  The next weekend I was in New Orleans for the Sugar Bowl with some true THCCs, and missed again.  This past weekend I was sick (one baddass cold), and it was cold (2 degrees) and snowy (3-6 inches), all putting in doubt my true Hard Core Creekness.  Guilty as charged, I haven’t been to the Creek in going on 4 weeks, but…….as Pongo is my witness (Angy is out of town), I will be there this weekend.

          And why not?  Its going to be 40 degrees.  With sunshine.  The snow will probably be gone.  I completely missed a snow filled weekend at the Creek!!  Whatever.   Between the cold, both sickness and temp, and recuperating from our trip to Nawlin’s, it was probably a good thing I stayed home.  I barely left the house for three days.  But I’m feelin’ better and destined for the Creek.  How about you?  It will be warm enough you may think about skinny dipping.   You haven’t been there for a long time, and you need to blow off some stink from being inside the cabin for sooooooooo long.  This might be the weekend for you to be able to say you were at the Creek in January!  I promise a warm fire at the pit and the ice in your glass won’t melt.  It’s too good of a deal.  See you there.

Ol' Henry

          Ol’ Henry has been sold.  He is going to a good home in Oxford, Ohio.  As of this writing, he has been paid for, the money is already in the Creek account, but he is still on a trailer at my house.  The weather wasn’t real nice to take a 16′ trailer on the road, and the new owner has been patient.  He will probably go to his new home this week when it thaws.  Ol’ Henry is a 70 yr. old tractor that did almost everything we ever asked him to do.  He is being replace by Old Blue, who is a young 50 years old and has bigger balls and a front end loader that allows us to do so much more.  Ol’ Henry will be missed, he was a friendly drive while cutting the grass, I spent many hours with Henry thinking all kinds of manly thoughts while running back and forth on the back forty.  There is something about a man and his tractor…………

New Old Blue

           As we watch the snow melt, knowing there is more coming, probably worse than what we have received to date, it’s good to know that March is only 49 days away.  I have already started the countdown.  In just 7 weeks, 50 degrees will be normal, and the cold will still happen, but only for short blasts.  We live in a great area, where the cold is only brief, and spring is soon around the corner.   I always wish for a really cold blast for about two weeks in December (single digits), because after we are accumated to the cold, the rest of Winter is easy.  The past week of cold has got us where we want to be:   The rest of Winter will be easy.  Some white, some dips in temperatures, but who cares, we have seen the cold stuff, now we are just waiting for March 1 to let us know that Spring is near.  Hang in there, it won’t be long now and the grass will start turning green again.

          I was serious about this weekend, none of us have enjoyed the Creek for a while and we all need to blast out of cabin fever.  Come out this weekend, I will make some chili and we can sit by the fire in 40 degree temps and we will tell you the bodacious tales of New Orleans.  Even thought the Cats lost, the stories are a definate winner.  Come out to stay with us or just do a daytrip.  Either way, its still a lot of fun.  See you at the Creek.

We are on the down hill slide to greenness

Hard Sugar at the Big Easy

Creekers at the Big Easy

           Let me be perfectly clear:  The game pretty much sucked.  But….we had two days to prepare for it in New Orleans, and that ain’t all bad.  Creekers Sner, Lucky Luke, Ross, L.G. Parks, Haynes, and yours truly left for the Big Easy on Wednesday morning at 4am.  After a nearly non stop push South, we were in New Orleans at 4:30 pm that evening, and on Bourbon Street  by 6.   I traveled and stayed with three 24 year olds (Ross, Parks, and Haynes),  and this 58 year old learned a lot about partying by watching these three.  Lucky Luke jumped right in with the young bucks, I hung with Sner most of the time, and L.G. was sleeping or M.I.A half the trip.  Friday night was our introductory tour of Bourbon Street, my tour ended hours before the young studs came back to the room. 

          With the long trip and even longer night, we all slept in on New Year’s Eve.  Once we were moving again, we walked down to Riverwalk on the banks of the Great Mississippi, then to Jackson Park, the French Quarter, and then to Bourbon Street.   Bourbon Street was so crowded you couldn’t walk down the middle the street.  What an unbelievable day it was on the last day of the first decade.  Friday was much of the same, sightseeing during the day and then an old fashioned butt whipping in the Superdome.  Saturday…..same again, exept Bourbon Street was quite nice, most everyone had gone home.  We left for home on Sunday morning around 8 and was home in time to see the Mighty Bengals in their butt whipping.  Whew, what a long, strange trip its been…..

          That was a pretty generic description of one of the most enjoyable trips I have ever been on.   It was fun, and when I recover, I would like to do it again.  The Bearcat fans owned downtown New Orleans, outnumbering Gator Fans by 10 to 1.  It was obvious, with a whole lot of high fives and cheers on every corner.  If you want details, and the details of the trip are pretty wild and crazy, you have to come to the Creek for a complete play by play.  It should make a fun time at many firepit discussions.  I will post some pics of the trips on a page marked Sugar Bowl Pics, you can see them by clicking on them.

          As I write this blog, there is talk of the Great White Death heading our way, 5+ inches of snow followed by single digit temps for the Weekend.  I’m not sure what True Hard Core Creekers will be at the Creek, but I probably (never say never!) won’t make it this weekend due to weather and some scheduled events.  You might want to call Zugs or Sner if you want to prove your Hard Coreness.  This might be a good one to earn some THCC stripes.  I expect to get back into the groove next weekend, to get my Creek fix back on.  The holidays were fun, but I have missed a couple of weekends in a row at the Creek, and I feel the current drawing me back.  New Orleans is one of my favorite places on this earth, but I can only go once in a while.  I need the Creek to clear the head and get green again.   See you soon.

          Happy New Year.   Can anyone tell me what happened to the Old New Year?  Didn’t ‘09 start just a couple of months ago?  Maybe it’s an age thing, you know, when you get our age you just can’t remember what happened last month so it never really happened and someone keeps flipping the calendar pages over and over until the year ends?  It seemed like we celebrated the Autumnal Equinox (first day of fall) a few weekends ago, and now we are less than 90 days from the Vernal Equinox (first day of spring).  The days are getting longer as we speak.

          The holidays were even more special this year.  My son-in-law Sean is enjoying a government paid vacation in sunny Iraq and Rae and the grandkids are all home (here) for Christmas.  For the first time since Ross was little, Santa did come to visit, ate all the cookies and drank the milk, and made some youngsters happy campers.  We actually put up a Christmas tree, the first in over 10 years.  Empty nesters really like it when the little people come home for Christmas.  It snowed 2″ the first day they were here and they got to go sled riding at Miami Whitewater park.  Pretty neat stuff for Army Brat’s from Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, where a white dusting is a big deal.

          For a small contingent of Creekers, the big Oh-Ten will begin in the Big Easy, N.O.  We leave Wednesday for Nawlin’s to see the Cats fillet the Gators.  Creekers Sner, Lucky Luke, Ross, L.G., me, and Creeker-want-to-be Haynes and Lukas are looking for a good time on Bourbon St., and while we are there, see a football game.  We’ll have some pics and stupid human-trick stories when we return.

          What about 2010 at the Creek?   We sold Ol’ Henry on Christmas Eve, we found a nice owner in Oxford who promises to keep the dip stick lubed.  We named the new old tractor, the 1960 Ford 601 Workmaster will now be named Ol’ Blue.  2010 will probably look a whole lot like 2009.  Zugs and I were talking, one of the things we love to do at the Creek is talk about building stuff, all the planning and change of plans, and then the actual construction.  We love to build things at the Creek.   The problem we are having is too much planning, and not enough money to build anything.  All construction material is expensive, so our joyous construction plans are oft laid to waste.  We want to build a Creekhouse, a pavilion near the Creek that we can use when it rains or people can sleep in (with heat!!!)  It has been designed so many times we just don’t want to talk about it any more (plans complete, funding on hold).  We are planning an Indian Guru flushable toilet this year (gotta keep the ladies happy), because it shouldn’t cost too much money.   With the new front end loader on Ol’ Blue, we hope to do some excavation projects like a ramp into the Creek, a hillside shooting range, and a bridge over the dam to extend the loop road up the hill around the pond.  Another shelter is planned up by the pond, but material costs may put that on hold, too.  It’s the economy stupid, and it does affect us at the Creek.

          A New Year brings new opportunities.  If you are a winter camper, you better get your game on at the Creek, there are only 8 more weeks of cold weather left.  If you are a fair weather Creeker, your time is coming around soon, March 1 is only 60 days away.  And if it has to be hot before you step outdoors, hang in there, Summer will be here before you know it, especially if you’re my age and someone keeps flipping the calendar pages over.  2009 was a good year, we expect 2010 to be even better.  It does get better every year at the Creek, and even more-better when you come to visit.  ‘09 is history, see you at the Creek in 2010.

What' sweeter than the Orange Bowl? Sugar Bowl!!

Tis the Season

          From the Elseners and the Browns, here’s wishing you and all your loved ones a truly Merry Christmas and the Happiest of New Years.  To all our beloved Creekers, and future Creekers, you bring us joy when you visit us at Laughery Creek.  The Welcome Mat is always out, our hospitality is always there for you, and you make a wonderful place even better.  Thank you for helping us enjoy 2009 and we are looking forward to seeing you in 2010.

Winter Solstice was a blast

          What does it take to celebrate the first day of Winter?   Good friends and the white stuff, and we had plenty of both.  The white stuff came early, and it pretty much snowed the whole weekend.  I was there Friday and enjoyed the pristine snow and quietness.  Although it snowed all night, it really wasn’t that hard with about an inch or two accumulation.  Saturday morn was pretty, that’s when I took the above photo.  I had a nice breakfast, fixed a pot of chili at the Creek, and awaited for the first of the True Hard Core Creekers (THCC’s) to come down the driveway. 

          The first was Lucky Luke and Parker, followed closely by Snerfy.  By the time they arrived, the fire was hot, the place was whited out with snow, and it was time to start the celebration.  Nick rolled in, then Jeanine and Zugford, Ross and Bubba, L.G., and Dennis.  A true representation of THCCs at the Creek.  You had to look at the crowd and know you were going to have a good time.   Since it was the shortest day of the year, it wasn’t long before it was dark.  The snow was still falling, but not accumulating.  Everyone had a place around the fire, keeping warm and enjoying the great outdoors.  The weather was perfect for such an outing.  Here we were celebrating the first day of Winter, in the snow, with temperatures just below freezing so the snow was not melting but it really wasn’t very cold, especially around the fire.  Plenty of food and drink, funny people telling funnier stories, and tons of laughter. 

          Dennis brought his famous Bean Dip, which was tested and found worthy enough to mix in with my chili.  It was quite the combination, and everyone was hitting it heavy.  Nothing better than spicy chili/bean dip on a cool wintery night in the snow around a fire at Laughery Creek.  If  it’s not your  cup of tea, maybe you need to rethink your city bred life.  Your body acclimates to the weather, and if you stay outside for a while, 32 degrees is plenty warm with a jacket.  Think of all the animals outside, they don’t seem to mind being outside and neither do the THCC’s.  We are enjoying the great outdoors in all weather, it makes you healthier and stronger, and we seem to laugh a lot because we are having such a good time.   The only one who looked cold was Bubba, and he is a city dog with a thin coat.

Jeanine, Bubba, and an old Lizard

  After he ran around for a while, we let him sweat it out in the LoveShack, where 72 degrees is the norm.  A lot of the discussion was the upcoming Sugar Bowl, as Sner, Lucky Luke, Ross, L.G., and me are all leaving this Wednesday for New Orleans.  Planning for New Year’s Eve on Bourbon Street followed by the Bearcats eating Gator meat on New Year’s Day is almost as much fun as going.  We will give you a full report after the game, film at 11.

          Sner had his festive hat, Jeanine brought us up to date on all the Colorado happenings, and L.G. did his best L.G. imitation.  As the night wore on, more and more peeled off to find horizontal comfort.  Lucky Luke, Parker and Nick retired to the Tipi and built a fire.  I took a picture the next morning because it was pretty cool.  See the pic, the bottom of the Tipi was snow covered, the heat from the fire was blocked by the inside liner.  The top half was snowless.  Zugs stayed in Hotel California, Ross under the Creek shelter, L.G. under the Zuggyville shelter, Dennis in his Bronco, and Jeanine, Sner, and I all stayed in the LoveShack.  We had bodies spread out everywhere.

          Sunday morning brought out more whiteness with moderate temps.  Sner, Dennis, and I went to the store for breakfast vittles, building a big fire before we left.  When we returned, everyone was up and sitting around the fire.  Breakfast was homemade sausage, egg, and cheese sandwiches on wheat toast.  pretty tasty.  With Christmas just around the corner, most everyone had to leave early afternoon, with some of us hanging out till just before dark, which is still pretty early in the day. 

          It was a great Winter Solstice Celebration.  If you couldn’t be there, hang tight, we’ll do it again next year.  Our Spring Equinox party is only 90 days away, and remember, the days now get longer.  With Christmas on the weekend, the Creek might be a quiet place this weekend, and then a lot of us are in New Orleans the next weekend.  Zugs isn’t going to the game, so he might be looking for some company at the Creek over New Year’s weekend, give him a call if you plan on visiting.  After the holidays, we should be back on a regular schedule, which means Zug, Angy, and me every weekend and Sner bopping in whenever.  Come and enjoy the great outdoors, especially this time of year.  Its a new focus on Creek existence, which is still beautiful and fun.  We look forward to seeing you.  Daytrips are always welcome.  See you at the Creek.

True Hard Core Creekers Solsticing