purple room vents: CRAZY WEEKEND IN A CRAZY PLACE!!!

Oh Lordy!!! We had more fun than a monkey on a banana farm.

Cookie and Gail were already there when we arrived. And they had done the check in and got the keys to the eight bedrooms and...opened all the windows and doors you possibly could. The place totally smelt like urine! It had them gagging as they walked upstairs! I think they narrowed it down to the stairs, someone didn't make it! A can of febreez helped a bunch.

What a fantastic weekend. We unloaded everything, people started to trickle in, which is always exciting and, as opposed to our usual November retreats, this time the weather was so fantastic that other than evenings, we spent our entire time outside. There was a lovely firepit and we had brought wood. So hot dog roasts, sitting around the fire gossiping, playing games...soooo much fun.

Dorothy and Jo had brought all the stuff and set the whole thing up I might add, for BIHO (beer in hand olympics). OMG!! They had set up a circuit of crazy games out on the field. We had to bocci, throw crumpled beer cans through narrow holes, hop (old fat broads with sore knees and loose shorts with beer in hand CAN'T HOP), etc. holding a cup of beer the whole time. It finished with cup flipping beer pong. All of this was done in full sun on a very hot field. And it was soooo funny!! I have posted some pics below!

This place is really really hard to get a read on. The actual log lodge is really beautiful on the outside, kind of worn down but very functional on the inside. But the whole grounds are several acres with cabins, rough little cabanas, a huge outdoor theatre, abandoned and weird and full of junk..a hoarder's paradise, and another giant stone building full of cats, ducks, dolls, dresses, junk ... you name it. There is also an old cement plant ruins..so odd. Then out on the grounds down different lanes and paths are statues, ponds, bridges, riding rings, more religious statues, dock on pond with paddle boats and kayaks, weird buildings with booths and chandeliers, a wee tiny church and on and on. So very weird.

I know the owner is Chinese and she caters to Chinese tours. I don't know if this explains anything or not. The Chinese do have a wonderful appreciation for the 'not normal'.

The food everyone brought was fabulous. Because there were only twelve this year we were able to sit down at the table for dinner! I love this! It honours the food and conversation is just different when you sit at the table instead of spreading out through the house finding places to sit and eat. And the food was fantastic!

For some odd reason there are two very old ex-circus things in the abandoned roofless cement ruins. Aryn climbed onto the spinning board, where you throw knives as they spin, and spun. Jeez!!! We didn't need to add the knives to create danger! And then she climbed into a huge wooden wheely thing and walked it like a hamster wheel. This place is just crazy and whole lot of fun!! We found llamas and pot belly pigs! The pigs had a pig pen with an old camper plunked in the middle. This was their house. The stone stairs leading up to the upper part of the property are all full of actual real fossils. Crazy place!

We had a beautiful trip back on Sunday. Yesterday I was up at the crack of dawn and off to the hospital for that appointment...which was pleasant and quick. The hospital staff are so amazing and the anesthesiologist (sp?) was a hoot!

Anywhoo I must get ready for Kiwanis. Here are some pics! TTYL