Anticipation and Expectations
Go with the flow is the phrase for the weekend. It’s time for the men’s retreat at Grace Fellowship. Last year was the first one and we had a relaxing time with about 20 guys packed into a lake house. This year I think there are 40 guys signed up so the dynamic is definately going to be different.
One of my favorite phrases is, “don’t expect anything and you’ll never be let down.” I feel like I’ve been expecting to have a similar experience as last year so I need to let go of that and just take it for what it is. Last year was good as I got to know folks a bit better and we all created some lasting memories (”What is that, a panzy?”), but this year is different in the life of the church. I hope to get to know some new folks better and hope to make them feel welcome and accepted.
The plan remains the same for sleeping arrangements though. Try to land a bed. If I don’t then set up camp near one and play loud instruments late into the night until someone in the bed can’t stand it anymore. 
It will be interesting to see if the geeks and the jocks instantly separate again. Last year there were off and on rain showers so all the jocks went to play some ring toss game in the basement while the geeks played Trivial Pursuit upstairs.
June 26th, 2006 at 8:28 am
So, Mr. Clam, now that it’s over, what’s your take on the whole thing…
June 26th, 2006 at 11:02 am
DaveE - the uber tuber.
June 26th, 2006 at 11:39 am
Well I had a great time NOT thinking about house stuff for about 36 hours. Considering that some folks cancelled at the last minute and not that many “newer” people went, the dynamic wasn’t really THAT different. The only thing I noticed was that you had to socialize in shifts. Some people were in opposite shifts from me so I didn’t really see them that much. (When I was at the dock, they were in the house. When I was in the house, they were at the dock.)
Another difference was that I knew what to expect in regards to facilities and such. Many of us were going into it blind last year.
Although I couldn’t hang in the draft/coaching conversations, I think I did my part to blend the “jock/geek” line this year.
June 26th, 2006 at 4:20 pm
I did my part to participate in both circles, as well:
Jock: Dude, I went 62mph on the Yamaha.
Geek: Calculating the number of 5MB songs would fit on a 30GB iPod.