I just saw this post over on Odeedoh about the importance of Forts. Oh my heart be still!
Forts are another childhood rite of passage for me. My brothers and I were the kings of fort-building. Of course, there are many kinds of forts - tree forts, land forts, and the elusive water fort. We are experts in the first two. The water fort - I am sure that we would be good at that too if we could have found some water in our land-locked Dallas suburb.
It all started with my dad. He made us our first fort. It was 2 levels. Did you hear me?... 2 LEVELS. It had an upstairs. That makes it the deluxe of all forts. We would take trash bags and pretend to parachute off the top. We were the envy of every kid in the neighborhood that summer. Everyone wanted to be our friend. It was awesome!
At that time there were a lot of new homes being built in our neighborhood and we had a deal with the builders - they would supply us with all of their scrap wood and extra nails if we agreed to not rummage through their job sites. I think they were mildly amused by us, but probably more concerned about a liability issue. But we of course thought we were ruthless businessmen making a killer deal. It was the perfect arrangement. We would hammer all day on our dream fort while they built someone's dream house.
Once the location was determined, we had to think of the blueprints. What would the layout of our dream fort be? Chris and I would argue for hours about the best location for the sitting nook or which limb would support the next level. But eventually we would come to an understanding and the hammering would begin.
Now with mom, the rules were as follows. You have to be back by noon for lunch. We had to wait til 3 before we could go back out again. And then we had to be back no later than 5 for dinner. Oh, and the worst rule of them all... Chris and I had to take our little brothers, Mark and Steven. Ugh! So of course they got the jobs of handing us nails one by one or standing look-out for anyone who might try to take over our fort. I have no idea who those people might be, but we were sure that they were out there and wanted our fort.
The best part of the whole fort quest - when it was complete. We would sit in our fort for hours. We would bring books, food, the dog, and our latest treasure finds and just sit. It was the equivalent of sitting on the front porch admiring your view and pondering life. Of course that was usually short-lived as Chris and I would think of some much-needed renovation that we could not live without. But those moments of pondering were awesome while the lasted.
Did you build childhood forts? If so, tell me about then in the comments. And even better, if you have pictures, I want to see them!
So here, here to forts! Now off to go clean the kitchen and do some laundry in my current fort.
Photos via Ohdeedoh, Dave Pics, Jason Silver
Forts are another childhood rite of passage for me. My brothers and I were the kings of fort-building. Of course, there are many kinds of forts - tree forts, land forts, and the elusive water fort. We are experts in the first two. The water fort - I am sure that we would be good at that too if we could have found some water in our land-locked Dallas suburb.
After our first fort retired, every summer we had this mission to build the best fort that ever was. It was our epic summer quest. We would arm ourselves with hammers, nails, and scrap wood, load it all into our wagon and go in search of the perfect fort location. One year it was in a tree in a empty lot in the neighborhood. Another time it was behind our house in this long super-secret path that ran between two fence lines.
At that time there were a lot of new homes being built in our neighborhood and we had a deal with the builders - they would supply us with all of their scrap wood and extra nails if we agreed to not rummage through their job sites. I think they were mildly amused by us, but probably more concerned about a liability issue. But we of course thought we were ruthless businessmen making a killer deal. It was the perfect arrangement. We would hammer all day on our dream fort while they built someone's dream house.
Once the location was determined, we had to think of the blueprints. What would the layout of our dream fort be? Chris and I would argue for hours about the best location for the sitting nook or which limb would support the next level. But eventually we would come to an understanding and the hammering would begin.
Now with mom, the rules were as follows. You have to be back by noon for lunch. We had to wait til 3 before we could go back out again. And then we had to be back no later than 5 for dinner. Oh, and the worst rule of them all... Chris and I had to take our little brothers, Mark and Steven. Ugh! So of course they got the jobs of handing us nails one by one or standing look-out for anyone who might try to take over our fort. I have no idea who those people might be, but we were sure that they were out there and wanted our fort.
The best part of the whole fort quest - when it was complete. We would sit in our fort for hours. We would bring books, food, the dog, and our latest treasure finds and just sit. It was the equivalent of sitting on the front porch admiring your view and pondering life. Of course that was usually short-lived as Chris and I would think of some much-needed renovation that we could not live without. But those moments of pondering were awesome while the lasted.
Did you build childhood forts? If so, tell me about then in the comments. And even better, if you have pictures, I want to see them!
So here, here to forts! Now off to go clean the kitchen and do some laundry in my current fort.
Photos via Ohdeedoh, Dave Pics, Jason Silver
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