CLUNY'S CORNER Cluny@ClarionIsh.Com

CAMPING WITH THE BOY SCOUTS

My master has many hobbies. He likes to hunt, fish, watch football on TV, watch baseball on TV, watch wresting on TV, watch basketball on TV, watch the Olympics on TV, watch-well you get the picture. One of my favorite things he does is to go camping with the Boy Scouts once a month; because, he will usually let me go with him. Boy do we have fun.

I know its time to go camping when he starts to get out his camping stuff. He packs up his tent, his sleeping bag, his cook gear, and all the stuff he'll need to go out and rough it with the boys. I know I'm going to get to go when he gets out my Snoopy and Woodstock Boy Scout bandana that I wear as my uniform. That is when I really get excited.

Camping with the Boy Scouts is a lot of fun. At night the boys play manhunt, commando hide-and-seek, capture the flag, and fox and hounds. I prefer to play fox and hounds. I bet you can guess which team I'm always on. Sometimes the younger boys go on a snipe hunt and get left 'holding the bag'. My master and the other adult leaders sit around the campfire and listen to baseball, football, or basketball on the radio and wish for a long extension cord so they could watch the game on TV.

During the day we have a lot of activities. The boys hike, fish, tie knots, paddle canoes, and work on badges. My master and the other leaders usually make sure the older boys are teaching the young boys what they need to know, and then they listen to some sort'a ballgame on the radio. About the only time they leave the fire and the game is to cook, and let me tell ya', they cook.The eats on these trips are really why I like to go camping. They eat eggs, grits, and sausage for breakfast. For lunch they usually have something quick like a trail burger so the clean up is easy and they can be through before the game starts. The
left over sausage, eggs, and hamburgers from these two meals are better than anything Alpo can fix up. But what ya' don't want to miss is supper. Supper is a major meal out in the woods and must be planned with
extreme care.

One major point in this plan is that the preparation of the meal cannot interfere with the University of Georgia or the FSU game in the afternoon and must be completed and eaten by the Braves game at 7:35. These guys usually cook a main dish like venison stew, Brunswick stew, salmon, BBQ chicken & ribs, or some other wonderful entrée. They have side dishes and veggies like Stove Top Stuffen', wild rice, broccoli and creamed spinach. They even cook cobblers and pies for desert. One leader, Mr. Gil, believes that no camping trip is complete without a steak and potato. When I smell that the steak is about done I usually slide over next to him because even the bone is great. I'll admit it is hard to lay off the fish sticks and popcorn the boys try to feed me, but for supper I wait on the adults. I save the popcorn for the 7th inning stretch during the Braves game. These guys eat so good that when my master gets home the first thing he does, even before he takes his shower, is to take a double dose of Lipitor.

Getting to go camping with the guys sure beats spending the weekend with Miss Leashemup. All she does is feed me dry doggie food and watch ice skating on TV. Give me a steak bone and football game with the guys
anytime!

Email me:Cluny@ClarionIsh.com