there's a lot of dirt in nature.

a LOT of dirt.

why is that?

yes, the Big Sissy Girl made it through just fine, thanks for asking. we actually got lost heading out to the campsite (and considering the instructions included "turn off the paved road")by turning on the wrong unpaved road, but my friend & i were calling on the cells, and she roared up on her quad to lead us back to their campsite.

this is in Lucierne Valley up in California's high desert area, off the 15 freeway, on the way to VivaLasVegas. lots of campers up with toy haulers, quads, dirt bikes. and yet, it didn't feel crowded - my friend even said it wasn't nearly as crowded as she expected.

City Girl has a hard time getting her mind around the fact that the season is just starting for this sort of thing...since it's sooo hot during the summer, i know you couldn't stand to go out there, but still. summer is camping time, right? not here.

anyway - my friend had gathered about three other families together, so the wagons were circled..except the wagons were trailers, toy haulers & bigass trucks. and quads. lots of quads.
my friend's youngest's quad was DOA, and her daughter's wasn't far behind..so Hubbs got to play mechanic and was in his element.

i didn't get to go quad riding, but the Daughter decided she would take auntie (me)on a ride anyway. one of the families brought a Yamaha Rhino, a cross between a sandrail & a jeep, so off we went.

let me tell you, it takes a lot of faith and prayer to put your life in the hands of a 14 year old. after hitting some of those berms, my back was starting to really hate me, then i realized if i just relaxed when we hit them, it didn't hurt. of course, trying to remember to relax was another thing.

oh, and the nine year old boy took me on a quad ride. while he drove. i almost fell off twice (because he started & i wasn't expecting it) and while holding on for dear life, tore a nail below the bed (owowowowowow!), but otherwise survived.

the worse part was coming home. dang near three hours, for what is a 1-1.5 hr. trip. why? Vegas baby. the 15 is THE artery in & out of California to Vegas. so, coming down the summit was elbowstoarse traffic. Husband was a little cranky during the whole drive. then by the time we got home was completely unhinged. it's bad enough to be tired, but then add that to the fun. well, you get the idea.

so. there you go. yes, i survived. we had an air mattress, our own sleeping bags & i had a shower. it was dry. dusty. i need more moisturizers. like crisco. i drank diet Coke, but not enough H2O. would i do it again? possibly. like i told the Hubbs, i'd rather go where it's greener. more grass, less dirt.

what made me laugh was some of the people in our group actually were sweeping the carpet in front of their motorhome. why? it's just gonna get dirty. again. real quick.

and yes, i am up at the crack of dawn. my body (at 3:15 a.m.) thought it was 4:15. still early for me to be up, but even worse because it really was 3:15. apparently the older i get, the longer it takes for my body to adjust to the ending of Daylight Savings.

pictures later. back to the grind. how was your weekend?