August 20th, 2010
Update….finally.
I suck at keeping this website updated. Wow. Anyhow, life is great. I am happy. In love, and loving it.
September 6th, 2009
I’ve always relied on the kindness of strangers…..
….well, not really, actually. I HATE talking to strangers, and besides, didn’t our parents teach us NOT to?
However… faith in my fellow man has officially been restored…at least in this instance.
Let me set the scene for you. I had been out of town for a few days, and had planned to head back home on Saturday morning. My goal was to leave around 5 a.m. to get a jump on any possible traffic and to get home as early as possible. Well, plans changed, as I was stirred from sleep by my hotel ‘neighbors’ fighting….again. I looked at my iPhone and saw the time was 1:36 a.m. I turned my air conditioner up to try to drown out some of the noise, and got back into bed to try to get a few more hours sleep. I rolled over….and over…and then at about 2:15 a.m. decided that I might as well just get the show on the road and head out. I showered, and was outta there by 3 a.m. “Cool,” I thought, “I’ll be home at 12:30 !” Even if I stopped to rest along the way, it would still be early afternoon at the latest.
So, I started out, and it was dark, and misty when I pulled onto I-44 heading East. However, it was soon pouring, with a ferocity that could only be brought on by my luck. “Great idea, Rachel,” I thought to myself. But it was too late to go back to the hotel, and so I just kept going…slowly, but surely. The rain let up after an hour or so, and I realized that I was, in fact, tired, and thought it best to stop while it was still dark out, to get a few zzzz’s roadside. It took another hour before I got to a rest stop. I pulled in at about 5 a.m., and got my blanket from my trunk. I laid down in the back and soon fell asleep. (I’m still surprised how easy it was to sleep in there.) I meant to rest for a half hour or so, just to knock the lull of sleep off….but nonetheless, 2 hours later I woke up.
“It’s still okay,” I thought. Even if I’d just taken all of the time I’d allowed myself to stop, it wasn’t like I had to be home at any certain time. I could stop again. Plus, now I was completely rested, and ready to get back on the road. I grabbed the lock on the back door and pulled up, and also pulled up the lock on the front door, so that I could get my keys and phone, and head into the ladies room. I opened my back door and stepped out into a rather chilly, 65 degree-ish morning. the fog was heavy, and the ground wet. I shut that door, and reached to open the front door, when I heard the most devastating noise possible. All four doors locked, and I was left staring terrified…into my window….at my keys.
Tears came instantly as I realized how alone I was. I looked around and there was one other car besides mine in the parking lot. The rest were all semis. I put my hands to my face, still unable to say anything. I couldn’t believe the ridiculous situations I get myself into sometimes. However, at the moment, this trumped all I’d done so far. I must have looked as horrified as I felt, because a group of 3 men came walking toward me.
“Are you okay?” one of them, wearing glasses, asked.
“No..actually. I’m not,” I said. “I locked my keys in my car.”
I’m not really sure what they said, but one of them offered me his cell phone, and I said, “Thank You,” and called Nick. I figured he’d be able to find a locksmith near the area, and send him my way. And then it dawned on me. I had not the slightest clue where in the world I was. I knew that I was near Springfield, Missouri but that was the closest I could get, and that wasn’t going to help at all. I asked the guys if they knew, and they didn’t either. They also had a few “funny” jokes about how I must be cursed because I’m a Cubs fan.
I gave Nick was meager information I had, and hung up the phone. The comedians wished me luck, and headed along their way. It was a few minutes before I saw another person, and it looked like someone who might be able to help me out. Biting my lip, I walked toward a lady wearing a neon-orange volunteer vest sweeping the sidewalk. She must have seen my swollen eyes and asked me if I was okay. I thought to myself, “Is it that obvious that I’m a complete mess? I gotta get it together!” I told her what had happened, and she gave me much more detailed information as to where we were located, and offered me her cell phone to call home. I relayed that information to Nick, and hung up.
I’d only worn a tank top to drive, and by now, was covered in a light mist and cold. I sat down at a bench under a small covered area and waited, hoping that the information I’d gotten and given to Nick was enough for the locksmith to find me. It was, and at about 8:50 a.m., a white van pulled up. A man got out, and looked my way. He said, “Are you looking for me?” To which I replied, “If you can get me into my car, then the answer is yes.” He laughed a little, and after getting the make and model, went to getting my door unlocked. I was back on the road by 9:00 a.m., still not totally over what had just happened.
Anyway….shout out to the rest stop people. Thanks for helping me out. I honestly don’t know what I would have done.
Conclusion: That totally sucked.
August 10th, 2009
Driving through the Ozarks
On my way to Oklahoma, I had forgotten to set my change a setting on my GPS to avoid toll roads going into southern Missouri/NW Arkansas….A.K.A. The Ozarks. I thought about turning around, and heading back for the highway when I saw a sign that read, “NOEL Pop. 1402.” I thought to myself, “Self, I wonder what a town of 1400 in the Ozarks looks like.” So, I headed into town….or what I think you could call a town. Looking around, it appeared that the only freshly painted thing in town was……oh yeah…that’s right nothing. Nothing was new, or even new-ish. In fact, everything looked like it should have been abandon many years ago.
First, I drove past a motorcycle inpection point that had the most hilarious “motorcycle” parked out front. (Notice the light post is in the way? I wasn’t ABOUT to get out of my car to get a better picture.) At that point, I decided that going “off-road” was totally worth it. HiLARious!
So, I headed down the road a ways, and looked at all the ramshackle remnants of buildings with their broken windows and doors that hung broken and crooked. Not many cars were on the road, but there were plenty broken and seemingly abandon everywhere. If the buildings and houses were any indication, these vehicles may in fact be functional…..barely.
And then it happened…. on my right, I saw the biggest, tallest, reddest shack in all creation. I thought to myself, ” That looks like some sort of old motel,” and in the same moment realized that there were people sitting outside in lawn chairs! I read the sign, and laughed out loud when I saw that they had a sign saying, “Hispanics Welcome” hanging below the super fancy Holiday Motel sign. I guess there was some sort of question?? Anyway, I pulled in to take the picture, and I wanted to get out of my car to do it, but then I noticed that a man was walking toward my car wearing a halo. And I don’t mean the angel kind. I mean the – I broke my neck and now I’m wearing a huge Halo- halo. He was shirtless, wearing cut-off shorts and barefoot…. and so I snapped a quick picture and got the hell out of there.
- CHECK OUT THE SIGN IN THE LOWER LEFT CORNER!!
It was awesome… I think next time, I’ll go again.
August 24th, 2008
Test for Flock Blog
May 26th, 2008
Ouch!
I had oral surgery on Friday, to have 2 wisdom teeth taken out. I’ve been putting it off for a VERY long time because my last experience was HORRIBLE! In a nutshell, I went to a dentist a couple of years ago to have the wisdom teeth on my left side removed, and it ended up being much more difficult than she had planned. In fact, in the middle of the procedure she asked if I wanted her to send me to an oral surgeon right then….not a good sign. Anyway, I was on Lortab for 2 weeks, and totally miserable.
This time around was a zillion times better. I was put under anesthesia and the next thing I knew, I was waking up, and it was time to go. …