Ryan and I packed up our respective vehicles on Saturday morning, and away we went. I was screaming that I was hungry (as usual), so we stopped and ate breakfast at a McDonald's I eat at quite often. By the time we stopped at my parents' house 10 miles away, the two Sausage Biscuits and 1.5 hash browns I ate were threatening to come up. We stopped at a drug store to get me some Pepto Bismol, which I chugged straight from the bottle in the CVS parking lot.
Back on the road again, and we're running late (as usual). I told my Mom we would be there around 9:30, and it's almost 9:00. We're still a good hour from where we're going....and I get us lost. I can read a map very well, but I didn't need one. My parents have been camping at the same campground since 1995, and I've been there about a hundred times. I turned on Highway 26 instead of Highway 22, and I realized my mistake. I called Ryan, and we pulled over in the parking lot of a little country church to consult Google Maps on my iPhone. I gave my phone to Ryan (gasp!) and told him to be our navigator. We drove for a few minutes, and he went straight on Highway 22 instead of turning left. I couldn't call him to tell him his mistake, because HE HAD MY PHONE! So I followed him blindly for what seemed like hours until we finally got to the campground. Then the real fun began.
Ryan and I knew my ex-boyfriend (my son's dad) was going to be there. It was Trey's weekend with his dad, and my ex decided to take off and go fishing. Trey hates fishing, so my ex left him with us. I love my kiddo, but Trey was looking forward to spending the weekend with his dad. I was pissed about it, but kept it to myself so I didn't ruin anybody's weekend. Trey gave his dad his just desserts, however, when he decided to stay at the campground with me Saturday night instead of going home with his dad. Maybe my kiddo does have a mean bone in his body, after all. If so, I hope I'm never on the receiving end of it. Here's a snippet of the conversation:
Trey: "I'm staying here tonight"
My ex: "You don't want to go home with me?"
Trey: "Nope. You didn't want to hang out with me today, so I don't want to hang out with you tonight and tomorrow"
I thought it was hilarious. Not because Trey was being mean to my ex, but because Trey's reasoning and logic were spot on.
Saturday night was good. We ate, drank, took wild rides on the golf cart, made fun of the crappy sounding band the campground owner hired for the night, drank some more, went for midnight walks in a semi-intoxicated state, etc.
Mom, Dad, and I were supposed to go out on the boat Sunday morning. Ryan, Trey, and I went into Peru, IN on Saturday afternoon and bought me a new fishing pole and fishing licence for the occasion. I was ready. The three of us packed a cooler, bought bait and snacks, loaded the boat on the trailer, and headed to the boat dock. We had the boat in the water, and then...the boat wouldn't start. The damn thing wouldn't even turn over. Dad was pissed, Mom was pissed, I was somewhat indifferent. I'm not normally a fan of fishing. I won't bait my own hook, I won't take fish off the hook, and I get bored easily.
We went back to the campground, and the men decided they were going to get the boat running again. One hour and a few spark plugs later, we were headed back to the boat dock. This time, the boat started perfectly.
We fished for hours and hours. Like, almost 5 hours. Even I caught a fish big enough to keep. I got pissed because a huge fish broke my line. I hooked it, and it took off. I know it was a huge fish, because I couldn't even reel in my line because the fish was swimming so fast in the other direction. Lost my bobber, hook, everything. We recovered the bobber as we were leaving for the day. Recovering bobbers is a big deal, because they cost a couple of dollars apiece.
I also caught a nasty sunburn. I've been super pale all my life. My great-grandmother was a full blooded Cherokee Indian, but you can't tell by looking at me. I think the genetic thing that allows a person's skin to tan and not burn stopped with my Dad. I applied SPF 50 sunscreen a couple of times throughout the day, but it didn't help. I need SPF Vampire or something like that. Driving home from Peru to Gaston was fun, because I was so burnt my legs were swollen. Yeah, it was that bad. Ryan (who is also part Native American and doesn't burn) has been super helpful the past couple of days, but I wish he would stop calling me his "crispy critter". I'm fairly certain I have a 2nd degree sunburn on my back and upper legs, possibly 3rd degree sunburn. I could barely walk yesterday. My legs were still swollen, and standing in one place for too long made them feel like they were going to explode. My back is still killing me. I wore my swimsuit with a tank top over it, and I have weird burn lines. My bra straps are digging in and killing me. I can walk a little better today, but not after I've been sitting for a while.
Will I go back to the campground this summer? Heck yeah! I have lots of fun up there. We always have a big pitch-in dinner on holiday weekends, and I have many wonderful friends who camp there. Will I go back on the boat this summer? Probably, but only if I can find the SPF Vampire sunscreen before July 4th weekend.
