<p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">Sure I went apple picking as a child. Every city dweller has made that trek at least once with their parents if not on a class trip.
</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">I had the best laid plans when I decided to take my children apple picking in Upstate New York yesterday. 
</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">DREAM:  We'd be in the car a little after eight, at Maskers Orchard by ten at the absolute latest feasting on apples.
</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">REALITY: Leaving the city an hour and a half behind schedule wasn't really a problem. Hey, it happens.  
</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">DREAM:  The weather would be perfect. 
</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">REALITY: There was mud everywhere. Luke loved it. His little toy truck had plenty of fun areas to roll through.
</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">DREAM: My kids would be in layers – pants and comfortable sneakers.<br /><br />REALITY: Their kids were appropriately dressed.  Their mother on the other hand wore jeans bought in the year 2000. (The shade of blue was pretty horrifying.)<br /><br />DREAM: Natalie would say she was "so excited to go apple picking" about a thousand times while Luke would be busy listing who to bring apples to afterwards.<br /><br />REALITY: Natalie would say she was "so excited to go apple picking" about a thousand times while Luke would be busy listing who to bring apples to afterwards.
</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">DREAM:  A nice scenic drive through the <span style="text-decoration:line-through">sticks</span>
			<span style="text-decoration:line-through">country</span> upstate wooded area would be appreciated for what it was – a change of scenery.<br /><br />REALITY:  Signs posted on gun shops windows declaring "Sportsmen for McCain/Palin" would be viewed for a good six miles.<br /><br />DREAM:  I'd take photos of our adventures in the apple orchard and show family, friends, post some to my blog.
</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">REALITY:  92% of the photos taken with my digital camera wouldn't come out. At all. 
</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">DREAM:  We'd pick "only two bags of apples" and since there would be too many for just us – give them to everyone we knew.<br /><br />REALITY:  We'd be lucky to fill a bag completely full of apples after realizing one in twenty apples would not be pecked by birds.
</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">DREAM:  After picking apples for a bit, we'd stop and have a picnic among the Macintosh apples.<br /><br />REALITY:  Our stomachs would order us to stop picking apples, get out of the orchard and go eat in civilization.
</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">DREAM:  A stop at the Country Store before leaving Maskers would garner apple goodies for us to take back with us.
</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">REALITY: I'd look like a damn yuppie from Baby Boom buying up all of Diane Keaton's apple sauce like we have none back in Manhattan.
</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">DREAM:  We'd have fun together outside the city.<br /><br />REALITY:  We'd have fun together outside the city.
</span></p><p style="text-align: center"><img src="http://www.veepveep.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/100208-0151-thetruthabo1.jpg" alt=""/><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">
		</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia; font-size:10pt">Photo taken sitting in the mud in the Red Delicious apple section at Maskers Orchard in Warwick New York – September 30, 2008</span></p>