Re-Do

I have tried to not get too excited about this upcoming weekend's camping excursion to Jekyll Island because, well, last time I got excited and that didn't turn out so great (unless YOU like camping with a fever, cold chills, sore throat, and headache). I realize getting sick had nothing to do with being excited about the trip, but somehow I keep telling myself if I pretend to be a little indifferent, my body will not decide to revolt on me and ruin another fun weekend.

Realizing that is pretty silly, I guess I'll break my "no excitement" rule for a few minutes to say: I'm so excited for this weekend! As luck would have it, the forecast is looking great (and the coolest it has been here so far this fall) at highs of mid-to-upper 70s and lots of sunshine, with no rain in sight. It will be nice to have a chance to re-do our trip from a couple of weeks ago, experiencing more of the eating-and-drinking-around-a-campfire-and-playing-on-the-beach that I had envisioned and less of feverish-half-sleeping-feeling-all-around-crappy that I experienced. We reserved the campsite that was right next to the one we had last time, as it provided everything the one we had did (privacy, space, etc.) but also had a little bit less canopy cover to let the sunshine in (it gets cold on those early mornings before you get a fire going!).

It's Thursday afternoon and I'm getting ready to begin the arduous packing process. Growing up camping in a camper, you don't realize how "spoiled" a version of camping it is until you go back to primitive tent camping. You have to bring along every single thing you think you might want (it's not going to be conveniently waiting in your camper for you) or you just have to do without it. We're pretty low maintenance, but even just for the two of us and the two dogs, our little car will be packed to the top! Tent, blankets, sleeping bags, pillows, tarps, firewood, cooler with food, cooler with drinks, lantern, clothes, dog crate, dog supplies, chairs, various tools, cooking supplies, toiletries, etc., etc. I guess if we were true hardcore campers, we'd fit everything we needed in a backpack and say to heck with the rest. But we're not, and I'm OK with that. I prefer to eat eggs and soy bacon cooked over the fire than MREs and freeze-dried food, and I don't mind lugging in a huge, heavy cooler if it is full of frosty libations. And the going more than one day without a shower thing is definitely not for me.