Since it's June already that means that several seasons either begin or end with this month. I guess one of the ones we pay great attention to along the gulf coast is hurricane season, which began the first day of this month. Also the first day of the month saw the beginning of the meteorological summer, some what different from the astrological summer most of us go by the meteorological summer runs from June 1 until August 31, whereas the astrological summer that most of us go by runs from mid June until mid September.
Some sports seasons are coming to a end during this month, and to me it's usually the end of camping season. Since I'm not a big fan of hot weather I do most of my camping during the cooler months, usually from about October until the end of May.
A few words about the upcoming hurricane season, according to most professionals in the weather business they are expecting a fairly active season again this year. If a hurricane does come your way this year, be sure to pay attention to your local officials, they will have the most up to date information on what is expected of local weather conditions and evacuation routes.
Over the past sixty years or so of camping I've pretty much learned what to do and what not to do on camping trips. A good friend, gave me some good firewood to take camping on one trip, fresh cut green pine, while my friend and I are loading all this good wood on my truck I'm thinking, this is going to be some fine firewood, all that sap and turpentine running out of it getting on everything, shouldn't be any problem to set on fire.
Well, it didn't take long to learn that green pine doesn't burn all that good. Just to get it burning you would probably need fifty gallons of diesel and three or four blow torches just to scorch it a little. Since that friend moved about seven hundred miles away shortly after giving us the wood I've often wondered just how good a friend he really was. I have to say it was a worth while experience since I learnt that green pine makes much better firewood after it's been cut about a year.
While on one camping trip, we grilled steaks, using just pecan wood and nothing else, even started the fire with small pecan wood sticks. I even learned how to make cornbread in one of those square grills.
A few times I even cooked the Thanksgiving turkey and dressing all from scratch in one of those grills. This was what I called real camping, cooking over a campfire or grill, at the time I felt like it just didn't get any better than that, even sleeping during the warm spring months out in the open to make sure the mosquitoes had a fresh blood supply didn't seem all that bad.
Now days I say that people can go camping out without really being out. By this I mean by camping in campers with all the modern day luxuries. To be honest as much as I enjoyed my younger years camping, I prefer the modern way now. I'm not going to say that I'm wiser, but I know for sure that I'm older and that is reason enough for me to prefer the new way with it's microwave ovens, TV's, and of course air conditioners, and even heaters.
A few years ago a man drove up to where some of us were camping, it was hunting season and the temperature was in the twenties or so. He said, “man I can't believe y'all are out here camping and it's this cold.” I pointed to the sweat on the windows of my camper and told him, it's seventy two degrees inside, the TV is on and breakfast is in the microwave, life is good, if you know how to make it good.
I guess to much of the good life can spoil you, I remember when I was in my twenties, get up at the house and it would be fifteen degrees outside, hook the boat up, drive no telling how far and go duck hunting, after knocking the ice out of the boat seats. Just a few years ago, I remember getting up in the camper, with the temperature about forty five and the duck hunting right outside the door, and deciding to go back to bed.
The Alger-Sullivan Historical Society meets the third Tuesday of the month at the Leach House Museum at 6 PM at the corner of Fourth and Jefferson streets in Century. This month our meeting will be on June 19, our guest speaker for this month will be long time Century resident Mr. Lloyd Barrow. Mr. Barrow has been involved in several civic organizations especially Little League Baseball. The little league baseball park in Century was named in honor of Mr. Barrow several years ago for his life long dedication to the people and especially the youth of Century. You can be sure what he has to say will be interesting.
