Memorial Day weekend -- Family Camp

Saturday am we -- the extended family minus Alex, who has important teen business to attend to-- are off to Sandy Island YMCA Camp on Lake Winipisaki, where my West Newton UU church (usually referred to as FUSN) regularly goes on a pre-summer retreat over Memorial Day. David and I think-- I say we think, we can't be certain-- that this is our 4th trip. Last year-- and perhaps the year before?-- we had work commitments and stayed behind. We're all going in Jim's van this time, to save on gas. It is always a fraught trip: we must arrive in time for one of the scheduled boats, and of course we always run late no matter how good our intentions or which of the 3 or 4 boats we are aiming for. David and I got up really early and were ready on time for a change. But then once people started remembering things they'd forgotten, we started going back to do "optionals" -- and then once we were finally all belted into the van, Jim started loading his new navigation program and GPS into his laptop-- which took more than 15 minutes! Which used up the time we ordinarily would have used for a rest stop to visit the toilet some time after we'd been an hour on the road. The GPS worked fine-- the problem was with interpreting the road signs to-- first, turn in the right direction off a cloverleaf; and second, to choose which small back road for a shortcut. A paved one without storm damage would have been preferable. These little blips sort of frittered away the time saved by not taking the tourist-laden main road. Also, the Ezy-pass picked this day to cease functioning and force us to hand-pay cash tolls. By the time we arrived at the boat landing, I needed very badly to use the single toilet facility, as did a large number of other campers. My family got on the boat. The boat filled up while I stood in line. When the captain announced that the boat was overloaded and that a dozen of us would have to wait 2 and a half hours for the next boat, I thought surely my husband would give up his place and keep me company---but chivalry is dead. Shocked! I was shocked! Abandoned by my family on our family vacation! I settled down to read my book in the shade of a pine. However, one of the stranded group was less amenable. She said that it was unfair to make a dozen of us wait--- we had arrived on time for the noon boat, and if there wasn't room they should send over another boat to pick us up: which in fact they did. I didn't have 2 hours to meditate on my husband's selfish callousness-- merely a half hour in which to summon up his compensatory virtuues and forgive him. The dumped dozen even arrived at the Island while lunch was still being served, and we were not required to go hungry till dinner time. I found David, and, as he deserved, beat him at a round of Bocche. Next I went to a yoga class, a non-strenuous one in the shade, which got rid of the cramps and aches of the long car ride. Dinner, a little ping-pong, a couple of hands of bridge, singing around the campfire, and then to our cabin to bed. Lovely retreat! I'd brought a script to do rewrites on, but I never looked at it.