pain don't hurt, unless it hurts a lot

so this past weekend was fun. 6 of us trekked out to tuscaora state forest and got our camp on. it was great - at least what i might define as great. camping is not for everyone - especially the kind we did this past weekend. i love me some dirty ol', no toilets, no running water camping.

it didn't start out all that well though... here is how it went down. i left work at 3 to go home. now initially, we were supposed to have our car packed and ready to go so that way by the time I got home we could just leave (around 3:30). but a few aggravating events took place earlier in the day. and as luck would have it, we would end up having to pick up our car from uhaul after i got home and then go home and then pack 'er up and leave. we ended up hitting the round around 4:30ish - and hour late.

after a long, almost 3 hour, drive with spotty sun, some pouring rain and accident backup traffic, we finally get to our designated campsite around 7:30ish. only to discover that our campsite was a huge mountainous hill with rocks and trees everywhere. there were no places to actually set up camp. well. maybe there were two spots that appeared less sloped... but they were still riddled with rocks or trees and debris. we couldn't figure out how this spot ever came to be an actual permissible campsite. reluctantly, as the first to arrive, we started to set up our tent.

unbeknownst to mike and i, our friends, beth and benny, had already arrived earlier and discovered this very same debacle and had decided to go on a reconnaissance mission to see what else was around. so, shortly after mike and i arrived, and right as we were getting ready to pop the tent, they came back from their mission! "don't set anything up!" beth yelled from the bottom of the rocky hillside. she proceeded to tell us their findings and their ideas. there were two other, much more viable, sites close by and they wanted to contact the forester's office to see about doing a little switch-a-roo.

beth and benny drove off to find cell service.

as mike and i eagerly await some better news, beth and benny return. "the office is closed..." beth said. the four of us talked a little and agreed that we had three options:

1. stay at our designated mound of rocks and trees
   
2. bogart campsite 96 in hopes that no one else has a permit out on it for the weekend
   
3. sneakily camp down the road at an non-designated campsite that is super awesome and it is also very apparent that people have camped there before

okay okay - long story short - we went and checked out the non-designated site first. it rocked so much we couldn't not take the risk of getting booted. so we camped there. it was just a little off the road, had plenty of flat places for tents and stuff and it was right by a nice babbling creek. lori and ben eventually showed up and we had a fun night talking, drinking and eating smores around the fire. here are some other events that took place:

• benny did some fly fishing.
• the dogs tweaked out at things in the dark of the night.
• people peed and pooed in the woods.
• forest ranger came by and asked to see our permit. chatted with beth and benny a little then eventually modified our permit so that way we were were legally camping at that site.
  
• there was a 5-star steak dinner.
• we used the creek to chill beer.
• standing trees (that were dead) got pushed down by manly men.
  
• lori and i hiked up a huge steep hill turning over rocks looking for salamanders - we found one. poor thing lost its tail as i turned over the rock. broke my heart knowing it was my fault. sorry salamander :-(
  
• i messed up my back - bad enough i took percocet on sunday to easy my discomfort. not something i do often, but it hurts to move.
  

this post is titled after that last bullet. i'm in a lot of pain. i don't usually whine much when i am hurt or experiencing some discomfort. but there's always a first, and i have found my first. i don't know what happened, but my back has been sort of bothering me for over week now. no big deal - i didn't think much of it. but, whatever i did over the weekend - perhaps turning over big rocks while climbing a super steep hill - must have made it worse. i can't do much that doesn't cause this pinching pain to shoot down my lower back through my left butt cheek!

i'm sure i sound like and old person talking about back pain. i am 30. whatever that means. i suppose some young chippies might consider me old, while others might consider me young.

....................jfk.......................