Nov. 15, 2001 - 23:31 PST

THE WONDERING JEW

Camping

Day cracks to become dawn. Mountain chill is powerful about dawn and has always chilled me to the bone, it causes me to pull the sleeping bag up around my head and settle down for a bit more sleep. But there is usually the tantalizing aroma of coffee and bacon wafting in from the campfire of an earlier riser, that smell with the background scent of wood smoke and pine scent brings me as close to serenity as can be.It makes my tummy rumble and sets off my built in starvation alarm. It screams out, eat now, eat now. When I am out camping I rarely need more sleep but hibernation is in my genes. Stirred by a twitching tummy, I reach out, snag and pull my underwear, socks and shirt into the sleeping bag with me to warm them up a bit.Then I dress in the pre-warmed clothes, pulling on my cold pants and stuffing my feet in the ice cubes called shoes and shamble out to light the pre-laid fire and put the coffee on to boil, he eggs scrambling and the bacon sizzling.When my breakfast is ready I take it with me to the running board of the car and proceed to have a brown transfusion. He asked, �Running board-whuzzat ?� I said, �In answer to your question son, once upon a time cars had a running board. It was a step up to get in the car, wide enough to sit on and strong enough to hold a heavy person. It ran from the back of the front fender to the front of the back fender. The running board was the right height to make a super seat, now let�s go on.�

So, after I eat I sit on the running board sip coffee and view the mountain scene ahead making plans for today or refining those already made. Pulling my jacket closer around my neck I realize how supremely lucky I am to be here, now. Free to enjoy the exhilaration of life in our country of freedom.

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