Winter weekends at the Eastern 4-H Center can be difficult...it's to windy and cool for program groups to brave the elements. This weekend was no exception. Generally, I enjoy the winter time. The Center gets it's rest after a full spring, summer, and fall. The Program Director gets a rest after a full spring, summer, and fall, too.
In the winter time, I take advantage of my accrued vacation time to duck hunt. For those of you who don't duck hunt, I will tell you what it's like: On days that end with the letter "y" (except Sunday), the dedicated duck hunter wakes up at 2:30 am. After putting on 25.79 pounds of waterproof (semi, in my case) and windproof clothing, the dedicated hunter then consumes a metric carafe full of coffee. After this takes place, it is then deemed OK to load the boat trailer and head for the boat ramp, which is anywhere from 3-40 miles away. Once the dedicated duck hunter loads his/her boat with another dedicated hunter (never hunt alone!), supplies, and decoys (fake ducks that encourage other ducks to land near the hunter), the journey to the hunt location is ready to take place. Most hunters use spotlights to navigate through the swamps and rivers, and I am no different. Once all of the decoys are placed, and hunters are located in their positions, it is time to wait for the sunrise...my personal highlight. For the next 2 hours, hunters will complain about how cold it is and then it is time to leave.
Once hunting season has expired, weekends are best spent with chores and books, both of which I am highly allergic to. Generally I go to Sanford to visit my girlfriend and our miniature schnauzer, Olivia. This weekend, however, I braved the boredom of the Staff House at the Eastern 4-H Center. Normally, there is little to no precipitation. This weekend we got about 3" of rain, so I stared out the window all weekend. I couldn't go kayaking, running, or sightseeing. Nevertheless, the program staff and I took the rain in stride and ventured to the Outer Banks for some Rainy Day Fun.
Like any grand tour of the Outer Banks, we made our first stop at the Dollar Tree. I purchased Drano, Fig Newtons, and Banana Chips ( personal favorite of State OMK Coordinator Scott Enroughty). The program staff purchased some odd and end items (mostly odd, though). Next, we went to Five Guys for burgers...if you haven't eaten at Five Guys, you are missing out! This place is sooooo good! Once you enter the building, you are forced with the opportunity to eat free roasted peanuts. I took the dare and ate enough to impress an elephant. My burger was good, too. Everybody enjoyed their burgers and the special "hand cut fries."
After eating, we toured TW's tackle shop. The famous Outer Bank's fishing is not a part of my repertoire, but I indulged my program staffs' fishing priorities. Apparently cean fish like to eat plastic worms and fake fish. There were many lures bigger than any fish I had ever caught!
It was time for our final stop - The Decoy Store! Old waterfowl decoys are a hot collectors' item for many reasons. I enjoy the historical part about it...finding a cool looking decoy that was carved by an Atlantic Coast waterfowler many generation ago is really neat. Some people enjoy the high level of skill that is involved in forming an accurate decoy. I purchased a decoy, that was constructed around 1950 - it is a Black Duck, which is a prize duck on the east coast. I also saw a book written by a proud supporter of the Eastern 4-H Center and Camp Canvasback - Khrogie Andresen! the book focuses on decoys from Virginia and North Carolina...Mr. Andresen is also a noted collector of decoys. His book, "Gunnin' Birds", is a must read!
It rained our entire trip...as much as I wanted to get back to the Center, I should have known that it would be boring. Nothing was on the TV. We spent a lot of time on the internet, in fact, we found the end of the internet. We read every magazine we had, twice. I was so bored, I couldn't even cook. I thought the upcoming snow would make it better, but we got no snow...just more rain. I was so bored, I couldn't wait to get to work this morning...and I was the first one here! This week will not be boring...we are entertaining a Quilting Retreat, planning for our upcoming Operation 4-Heroes Camp, and interviewing summer staff. Odds are, I want be bored for another 11 months...guess I should have enjoyed it more!
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