If you ever get the opportunity to visit Florida and you want to forgo the Disney doo-doo, then head to Ginnie Springs for a glimpse of what Florida really has to offer. Even if you don’t have a license to cave dive, you will certainly enjoy the camping on the Santa Fe river bank and diving into the 72 F degree crystal clear water in the beautiful springs. I’ve been camping here since I was a kid on these privately owned grounds and the springs have amazingly shown little stress from human visitors over the years.

The ol’ ENV ENG crew got together last weekend here for a mini-reunion. I got to give hugs to Pinger, Larry and Amy; Rob and Lisa; Julee and Gordon (+ bambino); Laura and Mike; Suzi, Steve, and baby Selma; and Gerardo. It was pretty neat to see everyone again and introduce them to Alex. It’s amazing during our 20s how quickly six years go and catapult us toward our 30s, with mortgages and babies in tow. I guess I’m a little resistant to mainstream. I’ll admit I feel like the radical odd one in the crowd because my life is sort-of out of the mold. It’s hard to explain even for myself but I’m happy I haven’t made a rush to fit in even though I have urges to want to blend in with the crowd -I fail miserably.

campfire photo :: take 5Ping was the first to arrive and the first victim of the Missing Tentpole Bandit. But that didn’t stop us avid campers for rigging her tent to tree trunks and branches with rope. Hey it worked! The next victims were Rob and Lisa so they bunked with Larry and Amy. The last to be dooped were Mike and Laura and they slept in the back of their jeep. For lack of foldable fiberglass or metal tubes, we made up in great eats and an excellent pyro-skills. The weather was perfect and the view of the wildlife was all the more relaxing. I hope we can do this again, I feel a little healed from city life.

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