Still There

There’s a game I like to play almost every time I watch the sunset called Still There. If you don’t want to play, I give you full permission to stop reading now. In fact, by reading on I guarantee with near certainty you will also play this game almost every time you find yourself watching the sunset. It is a game which chooses you, more so than you choose it. Read on with caution.

Still There is simple: the last one to say still there while the sun is still there wins. I can see the eye rolls from beyond my laptop screen. I thought you were going to give us something real, Aaron. This game sounds like a load of bull. In fact, now that you mention it, most of your blog posts are just massive bait and switch scams. I’ve learned almost nothing about camping and the outdoors from your blog.

I assure you, this is no bait and switch. I too shared your feelings of incredulity when I was first introduced to the game.

I was in Clearlake, California, watching the sunset with a group of friends when my buddy Lewis told us the rules for Still There. We all laughed at how silly it sounded and shrugged it off. The sun still had twenty minutes or so yet to descend anyway. But sure enough, one by one, every few minutes someone would sneak the phrase “still there” into conversation, just to make sure they were holding the proverbial baton when it finally set. Nobody managed to do it without the others noticing, and the attempts to work it in slyly always got a laugh. This coy style of play only lasted until the sun began sinking into the horizon, though, at which point all bets were off. I still remember the last edge of the sun flickering out behind the hills accompanied by a violent flurry of still there’s.

I have no idea who won that first game, but it wasn’t me, and I think I’ve been trying to make up for it ever since.

While Still There is indeed simple, it brings out an edge of competition in players that almost never resolves peacefully. The winner almost always has to fight for their title and, until slow motion audio-synced telephoto replays become widely available, this fight for the win will define Still There for generations.

Don’t say I didn’t warn you. And if the sun hasn’t set yet when you read this, I definitely said still there after you did.

Originally published at www.lafieldguide.com on August 30, 2021.