CHOOSING HAPPINESS
We was planning a trip to Oklahoma and the National Public lands were only allowing self-contained RVs due to Covid precautions. We was planning on camping in our SUV so that wouldn’t work. We checked out State Parks next. The one that we was interested in only had a couple tent camp sites that you park and walk up to. So we researched private campgrounds. The hubby finds Hip Camp. A cool alternative where people rent out there land. We researched a few spots. Called one lady who didn’t have time when we called to answer our questions so the husband made an executive decision and we booked a 15 acre spot that had 4 positive reviews. We were excited. Until we got there. Now we don’t consider ourselves snobs, but this neighborhood was sketchy looking…well as sketchy looking as ours to an outsider looking in. It was shady. Our final tipping point on our decision was that neither of us had cell service. Our personal safety is worth more than the $50 we just kissed goodbye because there are no refunds.
Within a few miles is the State Park we wanted to hike at. So we drive to the State Park office and all is good, we just need to go to the overflow camp area and pick a site, call the office and let them know our site choice and pay. Done – nice. We are pleased. We feel safe.
Husband goes to rearrange how we parked in the site while I go to the restroom. He never seen the fire ring and runs the front bumper and tire all up in it. Uh ok. We didn’t damage the fire ring or the truck. Ok…breathe a sigh of relief. We set up, get our stove out and start dinner. It runs out of fuel. A storm is fast approaching. We pack it all up fast. Cold, half cooked food just thrown in a storage bowl. Ok that was poor planning on our part. No biggy. We will buy dinner when we buy more stove fuel.
We go to REI nearby…40 miles away. We love REI so we are headed to our happy place to get more butane fuel for our camp stove. It pours rain. It storms. Radar check…
I run in real quick. Husband calls. He says “Don’t freak out…” I instantly freak out and ask 10 questions. Did you wreck my ride? Did someone hit my truck? What happened? Are you okay? He lets me know that the paint has peeled off my newly painted vehicle. Shedazzle. This trip just keeps on giving. Okay. Glad you are okay babe. I can deal with a little paint peeling.
We make it back to campsite and sleep good. Coffee in the morning always gives new perspective. All is well.
We go do a 5 mile hike and relax. Glad we stuck it out. We discuss how all of these bad happenstances would have caused most to give up already. But we have resolve. That is what the hubby calls it. Resolve to still have fun.
We finish our hike and make it back to our campsite which is adjacent to the trailhead.
We find a ticket on our vehicle. Are you kidding me right now. We decide to ride over to the office to ask what we did wrong. On the way out we find a park officer. We ask him. He resolves it for us and has the park office void the ticket and registers our vehicle properly as a camper. We can park anywhere in the park now. Okay. Thank you sir. We still go around to the State Park office and grab an Oklahoma State Park Play Outside sticker for our trip memories. We have a warped sense of humor right? Who would want to remember this?
We continue riding around and checking out the campgrounds. We are pleased with our overflow site. These RV sites are jammed together. Way too close for our comfort bubble. Are we anti-social? Nah, we agree we just like our space to enjoy nature.
So, we get back to our campsite and someone has set a tent up in our spot. Really?
We inform him that he is in the site we already reserved for 3 nights. He calls the office and asks how they just took his money for the same site. The lady from the office tells him to move to site D. He already has his tent set up sooooo…we graciously offer to move sites. He appreciated it, the office notes it. We are all good again.
We drive over a site in the grass and set up. We sit and relax. We realize that we don’t have a picnic table, fire ring, or water at this site. Oh well, we came prepared for a truly primitive hip camp so we don’t fret it. We laugh and choose happiness. Again.
After awhile we pull out our new fuel and fire up the stove. We enjoy our dinner at 5 which is 6 our usual time…and then it happens. The after 5 crowd shows up in the overflow. Overflowing every spot!
It is like grand central station. People stack in everywhere.
A pickup pulling a camper trailer and a pickup pulling a boat roll up in front of our site. One nice guy asks if this is our site. We say yes as he explains their situation.
A woman with his group is cussing because she had reservations and got kicked out of handicap site that she had reserved 3 months ago. We point out a couple spots with electric that haven’t been taken, they are hidden behind the bathroom. They go check those sites out. We sit back down to relax.
A semi sleeper rig pulls in. Parks right beside our backed in SUV. He shuts it off and gets out. He acts like he is going to hook his electric up to our site. Really? So the hubby politely asks him if he was planning to stay there? He was. Again, we politely explain that we paid for this site. We try to protect our bubble. He checks around but now all the sites are already full, two different parties in some. He explains he is local and this is how they do their weekend camping. So he seems nice enough, we allow him to move his rig so we still have privacy. He politely repositions his rig. We are both happy. We then notice that when he pulled in, he ran over and busted a water line. Oh, so there was water on the site. We call the office and they send maintenance around to fix it. We now have a lake front site. We laugh with the truck driver about it being par for the course this weekend.
Maintenance gets there and repairs the broken pipe while a young adult male tries to outrun park police and loses. Thank goodness he didn’t hit the two little boys riding their scooters around.
Then we look behind us, two young campers start a BBQ fire and the flames are taller than their camper. A BBQ grill bonfire. Wow.
We finally call it another day and go inside our SUV to sleep. Too much excitement for one night. Our windows are cracked for air ventilation and we fall asleep to the hideous laugh of a lady that joined the party in Site C. Wow! We laugh about it as we drift off.
Morning time and the campground is quiet. Some left with their boats already. Some are sleeping still. We eat breakfast and head out on a 6 mile hike.
We break for lunch at the campground we hiked over to. Just get our food out and a tornado siren goes off. Kids start running. Hearts in our throats, eyes wide, we notice the adults are calm. High noon. Clear skies. Forecasted beautiful day. It’s. A. Test. We laugh again. We eat and finish our hike.
We come back and all is still quiet. We sit around our site and relax.
Minus the competing music at the sites, it is a quiet night. We settle in around 9:30 PM.
11:30 PM and we are woke up. A truck pulls up in our site, pops their hood, their lights all shining in our vehicle around our windshield shade.
They are there a few minutes, shut the hood and leave. Okay. Back to sleep.
Husband gets up in the morning to go to the bathroom and the campground, not just our site this time, is flooded. Good morning. The truck that pulled in, broke the same pipe that maintenance just fixed.
We give up. We have resolve but it is maxed out. We pack up fast and just get out of dodge.
Oh…and our OK Play sticker won’t stick – go figure. We will superglue that memory on our dry food container. That is resolve. LOL
In spite of it all, we did have fun.
“It’s an unfortunate fact that I’m easily discouraged. But the fortunate truth is I’m stubborn as hell and near impossible to sway in my resolve.”
~Richelle E. Goodrich,
Have you ever been determined to relax and have fun regardless of the situations that present themselves?
Getting outdoors and relaxing is worth it. We wish everyone great adventures and happy memories.
FLATWOODERS 