Fun – Page 2 – Conrad Birmingham

Shift

Shift

Left to right
Forward and back
Dark to bright
Run to tack

There are many ways to go
And I must change
Do not go with the flow
I must turn the page

Leave Jackson
Do not be shocked
Viking or saxon
Not land locked

A new journey
Sailing away
Leaving absurdity
A new sunset everyday

My intent
My want
My plan
My desire

At sixty not too late
To transition 
A new journey and fate
A grand ambition

But wait
Who is this girl
That I went on a date
Her hair has so much curl

I am smitten
By her beauty and enthusiasm 
Maybe sailing is not written
She has to be an addendum

My plan b has crumpled
Moving to plan c
My arrogance humbled
I now can see

I want her in my life
And she makes me laugh
With no crazy strife
I want to be her better half

In this moment
In this time
In this minute
In this space

I will pursue her
Wanting to know if she is real
Not some imaginary blur
And my feelings are real

Sailing will be there
But I can not let this pass
I am chasing that wild hair
And this charming lass

There is so much opportunity 
There is so much promise
There is so much compassion
There is so much expectation

Go all in
Do not miss the chance
I can only laugh and grin
A sailboat can not kiss or dance

I Never Dreamed



I never dreamed
Someone from my past
Feelings redeemed
So much time has passed

I kept up with her
We would always be friends
She would concurr
Our friendship transcends

We have reconnected
Both being single
We have redirected
For us to mingle

She watched me sail
Commenting along the way
I called her instead of email
Just not any comminique

We talked for hours
Just about everything
She must have superpowers
She was so addicting

We communicated frequently
Four or five times a day
I enjoyed her evidently
Because she was so gay

She was brilliant
She was happy
She was exciting
She was captivating

I wanted more
I wanted that energy
I wanted to explore
I wanted synergy

I asked her out
And she agreed
What a rout
I decreed

Too smooth
Too slick
Too easy
Too sleek

We were so agreeable
I was flabbergasted
Our future is unforeseeable
And it was not forecasted

Now a new journey
Where will we go
A magnificent tourney
Only God will know

Seafood

When I visit the coast, the most important thing is to eat seafood. I want to sample and try all the various seaside dishes available.

I try to eat a different variety at every seating.

Brunswick Soup (Oops Gone) in Hilton Head

Bicycling in Savannah

Bicycling is the only way to get around Savannah. There are so many parks, shops, and restaurants. You are stopping and going frequently.

The parks are littered throughout the historical district are cool. I do not have a favorite park. but I like to cruise around all of them. Traffic is not terrible, just stay off the main one way streets and the main east to west street.

Restaurants are numerous and you have many choices. I like the ones on the river with a second floor balcony where you can look at the river. I eat seafood since I do not get any fresh seafood in Tennessee – shrimp, oysters, mussels, and clams.

There are a number of coffee shops, but sitting on the river is best. I am a sucker for Starbucks because they are convenient and consistent. I have found in traveling that most of the time that Starbucks are in prime locations.

Riding bicycles along the river is grand. I enjoy watching the gigantic ships move up and down the river. The air is cooler on the river, too.

Savannah is a great place to ride bicycles.

Camping?

Camping? Really?

What can I do this fall with less contact with the outside world? One way to protect me from COVID-19 is camping. How about camping? I have not camped in a long time, and I wonder what it would be like to camp this fall. Has camping changed that much since I last camped 20 years ago?

I do not have any personal experience camping. My gut feeling is that it has not changed any in the past 20 years. I can do my usual research reading articles about it on the web, but does that capture the actual state of the camping world, especially with inexperienced campers. If it was just me, I could tough it out, and I would have a good time no matter what. You make your fun as you find it.

My camping trip will include an eight-year-old girl. Yes, an eight-year-old girl who has never been camping before. I do not know if she can handle all of the negative things that can happen on a camping trip. She might not be able to roll with the punches or go with the flow. How will she survive no internet or television?

I plan to share a list of negatives with my eight-year-old camping buddy, and here is my list.

Bugs! Who wants to spend the night with bugs? A wasp flies by, and this eight-year-old ducks for cover. If she runs into a spider web, she screams bloody murder. I did too as a kid. I know these events will happen as they have on every camping trip before and after this trip. Do not forget mosquitoes. My only solution is bug spray.
Rain! I do not want to be in the rain for any length of time. I am a fair-weather camper, just like a fair-weather sailor. If rain is in the forecast, then there will be no campout. If a storm blows up, I will go home or climb into my SUV Tent. I purchased an SUV Tent so we can jump into the back of the SUV to get away from nature – bugs, rain, heat, etc. Also, it is an excellent second tent or bedroom on a camping trip. The SUV Tent is one thing that has changed in the past 20 years, and I hope it is a game-changer. My fingers are crossed.
Hot, humid weather! I plan to camp in the fall when the low temperatures at night will be in the low sixties. I do not want to be hot trying to sleep outside with an eight-year-old child, bugs, and the possibility of rain. Plan my trip when it will be cool at night is the best option.
No television or wifi! I do not know if any kids can get through life without television or wifi. I know this eight-year-old is no exception to the rule. If I keep her busy hiking, kayaking, star watching, and storytelling, I think we can survive. She has an imagination, and she is curious, so I can tap those two things to get past no television or wifi. I think this is a huge positive for the camping trip.

I am listing one positive to counter the negatives. Get out of the house! I can not explain, or do I have to explain how horrible just sitting in the house during the COVID-19 virus pandemic? Everyone gets edgy, but an eight-year-old with plenty of energy is the edgiest of all. We can ride bicycles and play in and out and around the house only so much. She needs an outlet. She needs to roam. The trip to the beach did her wonders. I hope a trip to the great outdoors will be unique and fun and give her a boost.

I am sure everything will not go perfectly, but it is part of the journey. I hope my eight-year-old camping buddy sees it the same way. If it goes well, we can go camping some more, and if it goes wrong, we will never go camping again.

What negative experiences have you had camping? What do you consider the great positives of camping? Do you have any great tips for my camping trip this fall?