Afterglow 2013 - Day 1 Saturday

Afterglow is all about tradition. You all know that by now. But I don't think that I've ever show you this one. Right before I leave work on Friday, I put out this Gone Fishin' sign at my desk. I do a lot of things on vacation, but fishing isn't one of them. I sure fooled them. They think I'm going fishing all week. Suckers.

After we rearrange the furniture and put away our belongings (and my drink is properly mixed) the next logical course of action to take is to immerse myself in the waters of Lake Afterglow. But before I did that I took a moment to reflect on how wonderful this place truly is and how much I miss Timmy. He was the very embodiment of Afterglow and exemplified what makes this week special. Whenever I think of him I think of Afterglow. In more ways than one, the two of them will always be connected. This is why I need to be here.

This would be the 3rd time (South Carolina November 2012 and Las Vegas March 2013) that I've left Korben Dallas alone for an extended period of time, only what he didn't realize is that this time it would be for a full week. I was sad to leave him behind but cats don't go on vacation. I left him in the care of my best good friend Jessica for a few days and my landlord Carl for the others. I don't think he realized how hard this was for me to say goodbye and he certainly wasn't fond of me taking pictures of and with him. He has to learn that any time I skip town for a few days, I need some pictures to take with me. That's how the game is played young Korben.

We always stop at (Bonson's) Pick 'N Save to stock up on groceries for the week. I normally stock up on booze. I don't want my Mom to see how much I'm buying so I often stock up at home and pack it in my bags. This is my at the liquor store after work buying enough to last me 3-4 days up there. Not even a week's worth.

For the past 10 months I have been living mere minutes away from my Mom's house, so I was there bright and early ready to pack the car and head North. I couldn't wait to get on the road. Last year we were delayed. Nothing would stop me this time.

I had to grab one last picture with my BFF before leaving him alone. By this point I bet he couldn't wait for me to leave because I was hugging him and smothering him with love. I can't help myself. I love the little bastard. I hope that he loves me too.

My Mom bought real food but I just grabbed the bare essentials (Lucky Charms, corndogs, Five Alive and Mac N Cheese) I wanted nothing more than to be there. What a delight it was when I turned on to Sugar Maple road and saw this sign.

Jenny would not be traveling with us this year. She went down to Chicago to see Phish last night and she was catching a ride up with Beege. This gave me a little extra wiggle room for packing the car, but I still had to be careful because on the way back home we would be taking Jenny back with us. I needed to make sure I could still fit a human in the back seat. We were all packed up and ready to go real nice and early with nothing to hold us back. I think this is the first time we actually left at 9am when we said that we would.

I made it from the gas station on 92nd and Burleigh to the Pick 'N Save in Eagle River in 4 hours flat. That has to be a new record for me. I didn't stop for food, refreshments or bathroom. I told my Mom, "You are mine now! There is no bathroom!"

I was so excited to be here that I had to get out of the car and get my picture with the sign. I realized that I hadn't done this in years. We used to always grab a picture with the sign but I guess as the years go by, you start to lose some of the traditions that were a part of your past. Well no more. Not on my watch pal. I was going to do whatever I could to keep some traditions alive even if it made me delay whiskey time by 5 minutes. Mom obviously liked my idea because she got out of the car and did the same. Now that's... that's Chaos.

There's no sweeter sight in the World than the place that I call home during the last week of July every single year. I love Cabin #2. I wish that I could live here. Everything that I have, everything that I have built or earned in life I would give up in a heartbeat to stay here year round. I want to stay here in this upside-down World with these upside-down geese. Believe it or not, in my World this somehow makes sense.

Timmy is always with us. He's on my wrist (RFT bracelet), on my arm and back (in tattoo form) but most importantly, he's in my heart. But it helps to have some pictures as well. I like to be able to see him as he was in life - in harmony with the music.

The time had come to pour the first of very many drinks this week. After all the bags and groceries had been brought in from the car I could finally relax. Hell, I wasn't driving anywhere for a while. There is no reason why I couldn't booze it up big time.

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