Last week I believe we had a first at the house. We were porch sitting in February. In case you didn’t know, porch sitting is more than just sitting down on a porch. It is a complex ritual that involves two or more friends sitting on a porch drinking beer, telling fish stories and wondering about the greater questions in life. In our case, the porch sit involved a sixer of Sam Adams, two fine cigars, and talk of fishing trips for the summer.
We have the ultimate porch sitting set up at our house. We have a balcony on the back of the house overlooking a neighborhood park, with the Bridger Mountains in the background. Almost every night in the summer we end up out there winding down from the day and watching the day end. It’s one of the best places in the world that I know of to just sit and talk, especially if something is on your mind. The river, of course, is the absolute best place. This picture, taken last May, shows it pretty well:
Porch sitting has become part of the ritual of our life in Montana. It fits in so well with the outdoorsman lifestyle that my friends and I choose to live. Many fishing trips have been planned there, many problems have been discussed, many laughs and good times have been had. We all need that kind of place and event in our lives.
Summer is still a long ways off. It’s just February. Most of the country is covered in snow and is cold as hell. But no matter what the rest of the winter brings, we can still say we were porch sitting in February. And that is not a bad way to start things off at all.
