That first trek to Pennsic.
When the day came to leave I had already been up for 3 days sewing, had closed several issues at work and gone to our friends storage area to pick up everything needed for 10 days at Pennsic and packed it into my huge Dodge Ram truck and the order dictated by our friend.
At 7 am we headed to Philly airport for a 9 am flight to pick up our friend from a business trip and to be on our way by 10 am.
That was the plan anyway.
ETA at Pennsic… 4 pm
THe flight was delayed, luggage was lost, luggage insurance claimed filed ( after waiting in line for 1 hour ) only to have them find said luggage before the ink was dry on the claim form.
We load the luggage in the truck, pay the rape fee for parking and head to another friends house to drop off luggage.
It is now 2:30 pm.
ETA at Pennsic… 8 pm
The drive across Pennsylvania to Pennsic will truly test your desire and commitment to go to Pennsic.
Construction, accidents, detours and the like can double or triple the time it will take to get there.
By midnight … we were still an hour away….. drive on ...
With a migraine pounding, sleep deprivation in full force …I was starting to lose it.
“Are we almost there ?!”, I ask.
“ Yea, we are close”, he says.
I ask, “How close?….I CAN NOT take this anymore ! … do you smell wood smoke ?”
He chuckles, “Wait for it…. wait for it …” (yea, he can be such a dick )
We pass a grouping of trees and we see the sprinkled lights of camp fires and torches that are mirroring the stars in the clear night sky….we have arrived.
It is now 1:30 am.
We pay our site fee and lumbered my big diesel truck to our site.
Exhausted we all spoon on the bench seats of my truck...ahhhh sleep.
Breathing each others breath and seat buckles digging into my side, the angry voice in my head is saying, “ I don’t care, I am tired and this had better be freaking worth it !”
Waking at dawn, condensation from our breath clouding the windows, I sit up and look around.
Canvas tents partially blocking the rising sun and the air is still misty from the cool night.
It was one of the most beautiful sites I have ever seen.
If I only had that one memory it would have already been worth it.
We set up camp and our journey begins.
The next 9 days are etched in my memory.
I can still smell them, taste them and feel them.
Yes, it was worth it.
And now we dream of Pennsic.
