Opaque

John

     John awoke to a very cold nose, and a dead, numb arm. His family had driven ten hours the previous day and gotten to his grampas house long after dark. Being an avid camper, he and his brother had taken their hammocks that they used to go camping, and stayed the night in an old foundation away from the house. It also helped that Johns grandpa had too few spots to sleep. His grampa had lived most of his life at the once large farm providing for a poor family. But, as the kids had grown up, moved away and he got older, was unable to work all the land and sold most of it peice by peice until there was just a dozen or so acres.

John sat up a little and looked around, even though it was summer, the temperature had still dropped to a windy 45 degrees.  And with all the ventilation underneath a hammock you can end up having a miserably chilly time. Fortunately after a couple of cold nights he learned to bring a sleeping bag.

To his left his brother still slept, the sky only just lightening as the wind kept jumbling the trees together.

"What time is it?" Groaned his brother.

"I don't know." said John, and rolled back onto his side, deciding to sleep until someone came to wake them.

     John awoke to a very cold nose, again. It was bright outside this time, full on beams of radiation cooking him slowly from the outside in, John is not a fan of the sun despite its extreme popularity.

"Get up John!" he heard his brother yell, "It's time to go!"

     He reluctantly began to get out of his hammock slinging first one leg then the other out and down to stand among the rubble of the old foundation that they stayed the night in. He stretched and groaned deciding whether or not to take down his setup. His brother walked out of the house and began taking down his so he decided to as well.

"Weren't we gonna leave here at like six thirty?" said John.

"Yeah well, people have to be awake to do that." replied Andy.

"Hm." grunted John, not in the mood to deal with his brothers sour one.

Finished packing his hammock he grabed his backpack and started back up towards the house and coffee, Andy close behind.

"Hey Mom, mornin' Grampa."

"Well now! Good morning young man, and how are you this fine day?" replied his grampa.

John walks up the porch stairs and gives his mom a hug.

"Not too bad myself, a little cold and a little tired but that's pretty normal." he says, chuckling.

"What a spry guy such as yourself? I don't believe it for a second."

"You got me," laughed John, "I'm just super lazy."

Grandpa laughed, "Now that I believe!"

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     The Evergreen family milled around slowly getting ready to leave on the half hour drive it would take to get them to Crystal Lake. They had brought their boat with them, planning on spending a leisurely 4 days fishing, relaxing, and visiting with family. Unfortunately most of their relations that lived in Michigan worked long hours and were often to tired to visit. The only people they might see besides Grampa Evergreen was a couple cousins close to John and Andy's own age.

"C'mon," groaned Andy, "let's go before it's a thousand frickin degrees out there."

     "Uh-oh somebody ain't too happy." said Grampa. He now adopted a warbling old man voice and said, "Why sonny when I was your age I would spend 24 hours in 114 degree heat bailing hay for my great great uncle Jim Bob Jethro. And no water or breaks either!"