Camping Trip, Friday, June 11

Up at 7 a.m. After a breakfast of quick breads and fresh fruit, Hubbie and I went to a veterinary clinic to get flea tablet for Shih Tzu, who was being bothered by the little beasties. Hubbie had bathed her and applied flea medication just before we left for camp, but she still had a few that needed eliminating.

The vet's clinic is very nice...at least the front of the building, where I waited, was attractive. Water cascaded over a rock wall into a pond of goldfish. In the center of the pond, was a rock island with cascading water. Around the edge grew water irises, elephant ears, tall grasses, ivy, and other plants. A seated St. Francis of Assisi statue, with birds alight on his hands and shoulders. graced a rock shelf. Behind the rock wall grew a small red Japanese Maple tree. It was a very pleasant spot.

Back at camp, Daughter-in-Law and Great-Grandson arrived for an early sandwich lunch. At noon, we traveled to Capital City to go to the art museum to see an Egyptian exhibit. We arrived just before 1 p.m. Since the ticket prices were lower for the afternoon matinee, I feared we'd be standing in line a long time, but we were admitted right away.

We spent about two and a half hours leisurely touring the exhibit, which included mummies, a sarcophogus, masks, pottery, jewelry, amulets, and other of over 200 artifacts from the 3,000 years of ancient Egypt. We rented two audio guides and shared them to hear more information about the artifacts than was written on plaques.

Each of us was struck by different items or information...Daughter-in-Law was fascinated by a razor blade, Great-Grandson was interested in the Egyptian afterlife culture, and I had to say hm-m-m at the fact that the distinctive kohl makeup around the eyes of Egyptians was not only for decorative purposes, but it also helped protect the eyes from the glaring sunshine. I'd never thought of it before, but sure...football players use the same technique when they apply black strips under their eyes during games.

We ladies loved the Egyptian jewelry, mainly necklaces, which would be lovely to wear even today.

We were back at camp around 4 p.m., when we played several games of Skipbo. This time, Daughter-in-Law won two games, I won two, and Great-Grandson won one.

We had a supper of leftover Chinese chicken soup and muffins. Then Daughter-in-Law and Great-Grandson stayed with Mother and Shih Tzu, while Hubbie and I went to a club to hear Son and his band play blues music. Hubbie had a couple of beers, while I, as the designated driver, had only water. We stayed a little longer than we meant to, and left around 10:30.

Before we left for the club, Daughter-in-Law received a phone call from Son, who related the news to her of a flood at a campground in the southern part of the state that killed a dozen people. Others were missing.

At the club, Hubbie and I watched the news about this tragedy on TV. The campground is located at the foot of three surrounding mountains. Rain caused rivers of water to flow down those mountains, and at 3 a.m., the water had rapidly risen to around 20 feet, carrying campers and sleeping people along a now rushing river. It was unbelievable and horrible.

We arrived back at camp around 11 p.m., and Daughter-in-Law and Great Grandson left shortly afterward. Hubbie and I were hungry, so we had slices of sourdough bread and glasses of milk before going to bed.