By Staff
Lunches at The Brewton Standard are usually a communal thing. Most of us stay in the office for our lunch break and dine together. It's a time when we usually try to talk about anything but work, although that is sometimes difficult.
On one recent lunch break our conversation turned to camping as a vacation.
I've done it and most of the folks around here have done it at one time or another.
The kind of camping we were talking about involved tents, Coleman stoves, portable grills, ice chests and maybe even a few fishing poles thrown in for good measure.
I can remember as a child how much we looked forward to my daddy's long weekends. When Friday afternoon came, our family would have the supplies packed and the boat hooked to the truck in anticipation of the next four days at the fishing camp.
As our lunch conversation meandered through years gone by, the discussion of a camping breakfast came up.
There is just something about the smell of bacon frying and coffee brewing around the campfire (or Coleman stove) that is so much better than if it were cooked at home. The meal is just somehow better cooked outdoors. Even baked potatoes are better if they've been cooked around the edge of the campfire.
We all talked about our memories of camping, swimming, fishing and hiking with our family as we grew up. I even mentioned that my husband and I camped practically every weekend during the summer until just a few years ago.
When my son was born nine years ago, we gave up camping for a while. Our usual camping spot felt dangerous because of the lake it was situated on. We decided to forego camping for a while; at least until we felt our son was old enough to stay out of the water without an adult.
I have seen and heard an awful lot about how people may be changing their vacation traditions due to high gas prices. Some of our friends are pulling out the camping gear and getting things prepared for a short drive to the river, the lake or even the beach to commune with nature on a budget.
The only thing I have to do to get into the camping groove again is to find the marshmallow roasting forks, a good fan and maybe even an air mattress of some sort.
Now, where did we put the tent?
Lisa Tindell is the news editor for The Brewton Standard. She can be reached by email at lisa.tindell@brewtonstandard.com.