Saturday, July 13, 2013

TEENAGE BOOMERS



     Rex and I have a wonderful group of friends. I just printed out the invitations for our annual Pratt Campout. I came up with the idea 9 years ago when I realized we missed our annual campouts with that group of friends. We started when our children were all small and we would campout at one of the beaches for several days. We all had a wonderful time but as the kids grew up and left home, it fizzled out. One year we rented a house in Newport Beach with two of the couples. The other three couples weren’t able to make it for the whole time. I then decided that since Rex and I have a house big enough for everyone to campout in, and we have a pool, big yard and a patio, we all could camp here. It’s been a great success and in a few short weeks we’re going to do it again. We sit around and eat, drink, laugh, tell tales of the old days, look at photos, and get in and out of the pool. We stay up as late as we like and sleep as late as we want to in the morning. Sunday morning is great as we all sit around the table reading the paper, drinking coffee, then gorging ourselves on a giant breakfast.
     This also got me to thinking about all the other things we do with our friends now that we’re older. We spend three to four days a week either going to dinner, taking dance lessons, going to movies and plays, and anything else we can think of. In the last few weeks, we’ve gone on a gondola ride through Naples in Long Beach, taken a dance lesson, gone to the Art-A-Fair in Laguna Beach, and visited many restaurants. We call each other on the spur of the moment. “Do you want to meet for dinner?” “I’ve got tickets to a play, do you want to go?”
     Rex and I were talking on the way home from an evening with our friends last night and I said, “You know, I just realized that the way our life is now is like we’re teenagers again. Our responsibilities are few, and we spend most of our time playing. The best part is, now we have money to play with!”
     I’m really enjoying this time of life.