Burnin' Down the House!

Ok, so tonight, I leave work and call the 'Rents to see what they're up to. See, normally on Friday nights, they come into town and we have dinner together (i.e., Rose gets a free meal!) But they didn't call me before I left work, and I thought I'd check in... in case they were waffling about coming in, in which case, I'd try to tip them over into the free meal for Rose side of the fence.

Anywhoo.. my normal route home is Bellemeade Avenue. As I get onto Bellemeade, I notice two (ah ha ha) firetrucks on the road in front of me. I'm talking to dad and I'm telling him that I'm following two (ah ha ha) firetrucks down the road. He says that's fine as long as I don't follow them all the way to my house. Then the conversation disintegrates into to wondering if firetrucks from downtown would cover the area where I live. Meanwhile, the two (ah ha ha) firetrucks have driven off, and I continue meandering home.

I turn off of Bellemeade, onto my street, and what to my wondering eyes should appear? Two (ah ha ha) firetrucks in FRONT OF MY HOUSE! OMG!! WTF!!! Sigh.. My house has three apartments in it. I have one of the two (ah ha ha) downstairs apartments, and some YOUNG single mother just moved into the upstairs apartment. Turns out she was cooking something on her stove, and WHOOSH! FIRE!

I catch the girl who lives in the other downstairs apartment, like me, 40-ish (i.e., adult) and she tells me that all is ok, the fire is out, no damage done, but my apartment may be smokey. She said she'd just realized that I wasn't home and was planning on breaking down the door between our apartments to rescue my cats. Two problems with this...oh, I almost forgot (ah ha ha) ... 1) she's roaming around the front yard with her dog in her arms chatting with people; and 2) even if she got into my apartment, Gizmo (lovable coward that he is) was deep in hiding and she'd have never found him, and he'd have been one fricasseed feline!

It all worked out ok. My apartment doesn't appear to have the same vents as the upstairs apartment and the other downstairs apartments are on, so my apartment wasn't smokey. My Sophie girl was waiting eagerly for me when I walked in the door, but my chicken fricassee (Gizmo) was no where to be found. I'd assume that the sirens and lights of the two (... you know) firetrucks scared him and he ran under the hideabed. He's such a cutie.

What's green and skates on ice?

Ok, so you want the story about the eye patch. Arrgh!

Starting about 9 months ago, I began getting goo in my eye at night, more than your usual nightly eye-goo, and just the left eye. I saw my eye doctor, and he wasn't concerned enough to mention it. I saw my regular doctor and asked her, she said I had conjunctivitis and gave me eye drops.

As the months go by, the goo gets worse, and now it's in both eyes. Occasionally, I wake up with my eye matted together by dried goo.

So I decided to go see a real eye doctor... an opthamologist? Mom has one that she goes to regularly, so I made an appointment.

Long story short (too late! :) I have chronically irritated eyelids, which produce the goo. I had 2 weeks of steroidal ointment to put in - it made it feel and look like I had Vaseline in my eyes - and a $100 bottle (2.5 oz) of eye drops. My second appointment with the opth... he suggested a test - that I wear an eye patch one eye each night when i go to bed. I chose the left eye, as I'm fonder of my right, and now I'm AARGH'ing and AHOY MATEY'ing all over the place each night as I go to bed!

Interestingly enough, while I was in Charleston, no or extremely reduced eye goo in first the eye patched eye and then both eyes. I'm sort of scared that it's going to turn out that I'm allergic to my babies. Never fear, I will suffer copious amounts of eye goo for my babies... as long as they lay off Big Blue!!

So, in retrospect, the story isn't as exciting as I'd hoped. Hmmm..

Finally, in answer to the riddle: What's green and skates on ice? Well, the answer is Peggy Phlegm. hahahaha My sister wrote that joke, along with a drawing of Peggy Phlegm in a letter that she wrote home to us when she was away at college (DePauw University, Class of '83), and it's always struck me as funny. And since it's more appropriate and less offensive, religiously speaking, than my other favorite joke, I felt compelled to share it with you.

Back Home in Indiana

Day Four - 9/23/08:
The plan for the day, first we sleep in, then go have a nice breakfast. I'm sorry to say I can't remember where that was, but it was VERY GOOD, if I remembered, I'd give them a shout out. But I did see a "Stewart/Colbert 2008" magnet on the cash register when we paid our bills. I want one! But the lady couldn't tell me where to get one. Sigh.

We still had some time before I needed to be at the airport, so we went back to Donna's and took a nap. Well, I didn't actually nap, but I did snooze some. I had probably just gotten to sleep when the alarm went off and we hoisted ourselves back into the car and drove to the airport. The entire time in Charleston had been wonderful, but now, as we were driving to the airport, was the prettiest. The sky was blue, the clouds were wispy fluff, and the breeze was cool, and I was having to leave. But that was ok. I had two four-footed sweeties waiting for me.
The flights were unremarkable, the best kind, and after getting back to Indy, I hopped into my car and drove home.

Now it's the next day. I slept in and then cuddled with Sophie and Gizmo, I've uploaded my pics and written my blog, I've dumped the dirty undies in the laundry and unpacked all my free cat food, I've sorted the junk mail from the good and caught up on my soaps. I don't have to go back to work until tomorrow, so I suppose I need to take advantage of the day and maybe clean house some. Later

Charleston - Take 3

Day Three - 9/22/08:

After eating the last of Donna's birthday cake for breakfast, the plan for the day was to do the tourist thing. So wipe the cake crumbs off, tied up our comfy walking shoes and were off!

A girl I work with, Kelly, had recommended going to Magnolia Plantation just outside of Charleston. We had a coupon and we could get a AAA discount, we were game. Of course we forgot to use the coupon and ask for the discount, but neither of us was really surprised. We chose not to tour the house. Once you've seen one old house, they're all the same. The gardens were beautiful. They weren't the type of gardens I'd seen before where everything was plotted out with paths between things. No, these gardens were planted amongst the trees and bushes, you'd walk along a path thru the trees, and then you'd come to an area with some statues, plants, a bench, and maybe a small pond. The breeze blowing thru the trees was beautiful and I could just see myself (because I KNOW I was born in the wrong era) as a genteel southern lady (because I'd have been rich, not poor!) walking thru the gardens and sitting on a bench reading a book as the peacocks wobble by. It was lovely. Sigh.

Of course we hit the gift shop. Because one of my family's many mottos is "Never skip a gift shop." And I'm glad we did. This was the nicest gift shop. In fact I found the perfect thing to get for my friend Jennifer who's mother passed away this past week. Several years ago, when my mother's mother died, my father's sister sent a beautiful angel statue to the funeral. It stands on a shelf in mom's living room, and when I see it, I think of both Grandma and Aunt Mary (who has since passed away), so I thought it would be nice to get something similar for Jennifer - not so she'll think of me necessarily, but ... I don't know.. she's not a plant person, and flowers don't stay for very long, so.. Anyway, the great thing is that the shop ships so I didn't have to worry about how to get it in my luggage for the flight home!

After gift shopping it, we headed back to the car and back to downtown Charleston for more sightseeing. Of course, before taking a walking tour of downtown, we were hungry. So we went to Bubba Gump's Shrimp Company. I'd never been. And honestly, I've never seen Forrest Gump all the way thru. I've seen bits and pieces, but not the whole thing. Still the food was delicious and the atmosphere was fun.

We spent the rest of the afternoon walking up and down the streets of downtown Charleston. Saw some beautiful churches, visited some gorgeous graveyards, and just enjoyed the day.

Before going back to Donna's, we went to Blu Gorilla and made inquiries about my getting my tattoo. I didn't know how much it would be or how long it would take. Long story short, it didn't take very long, it didn't hurt like I thought it would (but then after 10years of electrolosis, I guess I'm immune to the pain of needles), and I'm very happy!!

After finishing at the Blu Gorilla, we went to Barnes and Noble for a little shopping therapy and then went back to Donna's to review our purchases. Tomorrow, I would be returning back to Indiana and real life. Big Blue and I hit the pillow and slept soundly.

Charleston - Part Deux

Day Two - 9/21/08:

After a good night's sleep, I woke up without having one of my furry feline friends pawing at my face and meowing at me. It was nice, and yet I missed them. But I was at the beach, so I decided to make the best of it! HA!

Donna told me about a restaurant that a friend had recommended to her and now she goes there about once a week. She said while it looked like a dive, it had incredible food. I asked, "when can we go?" So we were off and heading to Momma Brown's BBQ. The fried chicken was possibly the best I've ever had, and the bread pudding. Oh, man. If I'd brought a purse, I'd have stuffed a couple of pieces in it to smuggle it out. It was EXCELLENT! I did have some of the BBQ, it was a vinegar based bbq, and I can't say it would be my fave. That would have been the chicken. Oh, and the mac and cheese! Yummers!

After lunch, we hit Wal-mart. For what, I can't recall. But then we headed to the beach. I took a wonderful jaunt down the beach, took the ubiquitous photo of my toes in the sand and water (yes those stark white legs are mine), and had Charleston Epiphany #1. See, I've always known that I'm a beach person. And I'm thinking how is it that I, a true beach person, could have been born in Indiana. Then it hit me, DUH! I wasn't born in Indiana. I was born in Washington DC, just a short jaunt from... get this... a beach! So, I'm thinking that my parents truly screwed up my beach-related destiny by deciding to move me, at the tender age of three, to the Mid-West, hours from a beach. Whew... epiphanies are exhausting, so I meandered back to where Donna was sitting and laid down on my towel for a short snooze.

Post-snooze, Donna and I were talking and the subject turned to tattoos. I mentioned that I'd wanted to get a tattoo for quite some time, but I was chicken to go do it by myself beings as tattoo places aren't usually the nicest place for a girl to go alone. So we chatted about what I'd want and where, we went to her office and used the computer to research some designs. I decided what I wanted, and I was thinking about getting it on my wrist, so it would look like a bracelet from far off. We talked about maybe me going and doing it while in Charleston. After our research session and a car tour of the place where Donna works, we contemplated dinner. I had thoughts of a burger, so Donna suggested Five Guys. It was a A+ cheeseburger!

After a burger, fries, and sweet tea, we headed to Blockbuster to rent a movie. Of course, the problem here is that Donna likes movies that have a redeeming quality about them, you know? And I'm rather shallow in my movie choices, you know, Office Space, Zoolander, Batman, or anything with the Rock in it. But we ended up agreeing on In Bruges. We'd both seen the previews and thought it showed potential. It was great. First, Colin Farrell, need I say more, ladies? It was funny, it had redeeming qualities, though I have to say I would not have ended it quite the way it did, but then it really ended the only way it could. Oh, and we watched the special features. One of which was called "F***ing Bruges" - we didn't know what to expect, but what it was was a montage of every "F-word" in the movie. We watched it once, laughing the entire time, and then we watched it again, this time counting them. For those who are interested, there were 97!

After the movie, I hit the pillow. I tried to go to sleep, but I had a difficult time unwinding, I blame the very good, but strong tea from dinner that I'd taken home in a to-go cup and drank all thru the movie. So while I'm laying there in the dark, with my eye-patch on... (long story, I'll cover that later in a non-vacation-related blog entry).. I had Charleston Epiphany #2... see, I still knew I wanted the tattoo, and I knew what I wanted, but I just wasn't sure about the where. My epiphany was that I now knew where it needed to go. Finally, I fell asleep. zzzzz...

On the Road Again

Day One - 9/20/08:

So my friend Donna moved to Charleston, SC last year, and she told me I was welcome to come down and stay with her if I wanted to come visit Charleston. I made the momentous decision to do it. First I found super cheap airfare, flying from Indy to Charleston and back for $181. Of course I had to drive up to Indy, but that only takes one tank of gas, about $60, and that was much less than what I saved by not flying out of Evansville.

Once I'd bought the airfare, I have to admit to being nervous about going. Not the flying part, I'm ok with that, although I did make the mistake of watching all the History Channel's shows about 9/11 the night before flying out. Yup, that was a mistake, but no. I was nervous because it'd been a while since I'd spent any quality time with Donna, and what if I got there and we hated each other?

Anywho, so Friday (Sept. 19th), I packed my bags in my little red wagon and drove up to Indy and spent the night at my sister Holly's house. She drove me to the airport on Saturday morning and I was off.

Ok, another bit of background... our family keeps gnomes. We travel with them, we give them as gifts. Well, Friday was Donna's birthday, and she had a new home/apartment in Charleston, and she was letting me stay with her, so I decided she needed a gnome. The only concern was getting the gnome past security... (see, I didn't want to have to buy him a ticket.) So, dateline, Indianapolis International Airport. I'm in the security line. I take off my shoes, which fortunately didn't smell too bad since it was early in the morning. I put my Ziploc baggie of liquids, shoes, and carry-on bag (with gnome safely tucked inside) on the belt to go thru the scanner. As my carry-on goes thru, I see the two guards looking at the picture and pointing. One of them hits a button, a light goes off and the machine starts beeping. She asks, "who's bag is this?" I hold up a hand, knowing that Gnorm has got them suspicious. She tells me that they're going to have to run it thru again. Ok.. While it's running thru the second time, the other guard whispers to the first one that it's a garden gnome. I say, "yeah, it's a garden gnome." He comes over to hand me my bag and we had a nice chat which led to his telling me that this wasn't the first gnome he'd seen. Whew! One gnome thru security - one hurdle down.

After a short layover in Cincinnati, I arrived in Charleston International Airport. Now, this airport, considering it is an "international" airport, really isn't all that big. Sort of the same size as Evansville's airport, but the place in the food court sold me the tastiest, thickest Oreo milkshake I'd ever had. It was wonderful. I got the milkshake because my flight got in shortly after 2pm, but Donna didn't get off work to come pick me up until 3pm. So I bought me a magazine and a milkshake and watched people while I waited.

While I was waiting for the milkshake, some woman who obviously worked in the airport was there too, waiting for her coffee. We chatted and she mentioned that I was coming to visit Charleston during a "cold snap." I mentioned this to Donna when she picked me up. She laughed and said that the people down there all think it's cold - (it was in the 70's.)

I'm happy to say that my concerns about me and Donna hating each other were unfounded. The minute we saw each other, it was like no time had passed at all! Whew... hurdle two over..

She took me by Hairy Winston - the pet store where she has a part time job. Despite a decided bias in favor of the canine, rather than feline, populace, it was VERY nice. Me and Sophie and Gizmo had recently had our 2nd Anniversary together and I bought them a nice toy as an anniversary gift. I also got myself a new friend... I call him Big Blue. Technically, he's a dog toy, but he's SO cute, and upon bringing him home, both Giz and Soph have played with him.

Where was I? Oh, so after a wee bit of shopping and meeting Donna's peeps, we went to dinner. Since I'd only had an English muffin and a milkshake all day, I was hungry. We went to Coconut Joe's and sat on the balcony overlooking the ocean. The breeze wafting in was wonderful. And my Jerk Chicken was pretty good, too!

After dinner, we went to Donna's house. She lives in a downstairs apartment of a two-story house, one block from the ocean, on Isle of Palms. And the best part is the screened-in porch. We sat out on the porch for a couple of hours, just talking and enjoying the breeze. Thus ended day one of my whirlwind trip to Charleston. BTW, Donna enjoyed receiving a gnome. Although I'm pretty sure she thinks I'm weird... but then surely that wasn't exactly news to her, right?