Hello and we're happy to report that NNC held another successful rally.

First of all, what a blast! In life, you can measure a lot of things, what things weight, how far one can jump and even clock the "movement" of matter in nanoseconds. But it's those intangible things like "fun" that certainly defy any quantifying scale.

Like what is the measure you use when the weather turns out better than predicted? Well, we had beautiful weather. And just how do you keep tabs of smiles and laughter throughout the whole weekend. And the food, just how much one can stuff in the belly before the body cries for mercy.

Well, all told, this was another vintage NNC rally, complete with someone taking the wrong site, to people taking the wrong routes and getting lost, but most of all finding old friends and making new ones.

Clearly, the NNC rallies have become a regular activity, but each and every rally breeds a personality of its own. To get to Snug Harbor, it is a pretty trying experience (especialy in the dark), but once you turn off a lonely levee road, you come upon a community that is reminiscent of the town in the movie Deliverence. It is a pretty backwoods and backwater kind of a place. But, you get over that quite quickly. That place actually grows on you once you're there.

But as delightful as ever are the familiar faces and the warm smiles that greet you upon arrival. And it doesn't matter whether it's been since the last rally you've seen them or a couple of rallies back, what's evident is the kind of warmth and friendship that eveyone exudes, like putting on a old comfortable pair of sneakers. It's a feeling never goes out of style nor ever loses its richness.

From Larry's gourmet like cooking, to CWB's stories of reenactment (where people are apparently shot one day, but they come back to fight again the next day, go figure), to Neff's enthusiasm for the pop-up, one can never really exhaust all the tall tales and the yards upon yards of yarns spun. It is like camping out on steriods.

There are stories that will be told in future rallies, like the night when Georgeanne and Rita ended up dancing on the tables in their drunken stupor. Or the time that Pete passed out, a rabid Lakers fan, we took pictures of him with a maksshift sign that said GO KINGS, a little prank for which he was none too pleased when he woke up in the midst of camera flashes. Or when we filled the big tent with enough smoke to gas the Nick-Neff-Coughers away because the pit was in the wrong place. To Madlyn's signature Margaritas that proceeded to intoxicate everyone.

And the time when Ralph assigned CWB to take care of his tri-tip while it was cooking on the grill while he stepped away for an errand, but by the time he came back, Larry, Pete and I had all but consumed every bit of it. And that p*ssed Larry off again because he didn't get any.

And Kevin and Margaret proudly presenting their Irish stew for dinner, only to find out that the potatoes weren't quite done. And they started cooking that stuff since ten tar-tee in the mar-neeng in a crockpot.

I guess you have to be there to really get what I'm talking about. But for those that didn't make it, it's just a glimpse of the shenanigans and sentiments of another unforgettable weekend. It is an unparalled experience, a bunch of folks whose bonds were first initiated by the rolling rigs they have in common, but what transpired was something more that what canvas walls could contain. It is a spirit of childlike innocence, the pursuit for wholesome fun and some pretty prime rabble rousing. Axe Me About My Weekend was a terrific rally.

And so, just how do you measure fun? You just can't and it's something you'll just have to do in person.

 

Surfcal