Backyard Camping

When I was a kid, my parents would go out of town on occasion. Once I turned 14, they deemed me old enough to stay home alone while my younger sister went to stay with my grandparents. I know it seems a little ridiculous but I was a pretty good kid and it saved them the trouble of begging friends and family to check on the house or paying a house sitter and to be fair, I never really abused the privilege. I just remember that those weeks were great because I had the entire house to myself. I could eat dinner and watch TV; sleep in my room, the living room or even the backyard if I felt like it; have friends over without getting hassled by my mom.

The best time I had was probably when I was 17; my best friend Josh still lived in town and we’d recently discovered the wonders of drinking. We weren’t big partiers, more the outdoors types, which was perfect because my family was big on BBQ’s and cookouts. There was a built in grill in the backyard and my dad had built an outdoor fireplace—well, that’s what he called it, but it was really a fire pit with a cover on top—so we could basically spend all our time outside camping out in style.