Ok, it's Memorial Day weekend and I have big plans. Todd has a 4 day weekend and I have a 3 day weekend. The plan is for me to take off work early around 2pm and go home to load up the tools and camping gear in the truck. Eric will come over straight from work, clean up a bit and then we'll leave for Circle H.
Well...we got out there around 6pm. We stopped and bought footlongs, My favorite...Spicy Italian on Honey Oat. Yum...with lots of Jalapeno peppers, pepper jack cheese and Chipotle southwest dressing.
When we got out there, Todd had already setup his tent, built a Gazebo and erected a Privy. He got out to Circle H around 1pm and got busy.
So, we decided to eat first and then get to work. I had an idea to drive stakes into the ground at the center of the driveway and run a stringline at 6". Then, we could shovel the roadbase to the string level. I also put stakes on each end at 5" so there would be gentle crown in the middle. We managed to get a couple of hours of shoveling in before we started losing daylight. We called it quits around 8:45pm on Friday night, May 22nd.
It's hard work but there is something different about working on your own property. I've shoveled gravel before at an hourly rate and I can't recall that I actually enjoyed it. Working with my sons was actually very relaxing. By the time we called it a night, all of the mental garbage, that accumulates from a typical days work, seemed to have melted away and I had a strange sense of satisfaction. It was really a good feeling. Imagine, working hard and feeling good about it. Hmmmm. I think that is how it was meant to be.
By the way, Eric and I took note that Todd had a real nice airmattress, the last time we went camping out here. Eric came prepared with a nice cot and I brought an airmattress myself. Or, should I call it an airbed? I slept really well that night. We watched a DVD called "Passengers" and then went to bed around midnight. I woke up to the sound of a bird that sounded just like my alarm clock and grinned to myself at the irony. It was 6am. Geeez, you can't sleep in in the country. Funny thing is, I was rested and ready to go. So, I got up, grabbed a shovel and rake and got to work until Todd and Eric were up. Then we had breakfast and got back to work. All in all, I'd say we got a lot accomplished. We lashed some poles together to fashion a crude gate, loaded up and headed back to town. 
Once we had done all the work we were going to do for the day. We took a stroll through back acreage. Here is a picture of the cattle ranch behind Circle H and a cactus blossum. I can't help it. I think that the cactus is pretty. It's no fun to brush up against but it's still nice to look at. All in all, a really good day spent with my two sons.
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