Jam Packed Days...

I left Thursday for NC. To save my family a lot of driving I chose to take the bus from W. Ossipee to Logan Airport. It really is the best way to get to Logan, even though this trip had a few surprises. Surprise 1: There is another driver like my Grandfather - who was a trucker in the Worcester/Boston area and lived by the motto "I'm bigger than they are; they will get out of my way!". There was a lot of horn honking once we got to Boston. Surprise 2: A 22 year old can reek of moth balls and garlic at the same time (as did the young woman sitting next to me). Surprise 3: Shivalry and a Saroong can go together...let me explain - 2 couples in their 60's got on the bus to have a day trip to Boston. One of the women headed to the restroom on the bus and was still in their 45 minutes later - let's just say double catastrophe had occurred. When we got to South Station she needed to get off; however, there really was no way for her to do it - she requested an ambulance. While waiting for the ambulance, one of the men on the bus offered to get a saroong from his suticase for her. As much as I speculated about the saroong, I thought it was very sweet of him to offer it. He got the driver to get his luggage and in a few moments reappeared with the beautiful saroong. The woman's friend took it to the damsel in distress. The rest of us passengers could not leave the station until she had disembarked. Her friend left, carrying a garbage bag and then this poor woman gracefully, and with more dignity than I think I could have mustered at the time, walked down the bus aisle wrapped in this gorgeous saroong and headed for the medic station. I don't know who the man was, but it was a very shivalrous thing to do. By the time we got to Logan I had a migraine coming. I grabbed some lunch and popped one pill. After an hour and no relief I headed for Starbucks (and a luscious Raspberry Mocha Frappucino) and did another codeine pop with a caffeine chaser. Once on the plane I tried to rest - we had a crew change and had to wait on a new first officer, so the place left 1-1/2 hours late...however, by the time I arrived in Charlotte the headache was just about gone. I had a delicious supper with Lindsey and my sister, Melodie, and after we visited quite a while - I headed to be to sleep off the codeine and caffeine.

Lindsey has a LOVELY apartment in a great location. I could live there, temporarily, without any problem. She has been afraid to hang anything on the walls, so we put up a few things and went shopping for more ;0)! That's what Moms are for, I guess. I don't know if you have ever eaten at Chick-fil-A or not, but it is my favorite fast food place. I begged to go there for lunch. What I didn't know was that Friday, 7/13, was National Cow Appreciation Day (so that you'd eat more chicken...) AND if you came to Chick-Fil-A dressed like a cow you would get your meal FREE! The place was MOBBED with lots of cows...old cows, young cows, black cows, white cows, gray cows, baby cows...);however, that noise and crowd did not deter me from enjoying my wonderful sandwich. Once again my sister made a wonderful supper and we enjoyed a walk through her neighborhood. Lake Park, where she lives, is like a small "Mayberry" town. I love it there and it is a wonderful place to walk.

Lindsey and I found a great mirror and a few Spanish looking pictures to hang in her apartment on Saturday and she attended her first Pampered Chef party. I will say I never thought about MY daughters going to Pampered Chef parties back in the days when I attended them. She had fun and did buy something...I wandered around Matthews and her apartment complex while she was away. I even got a tour of one of the larger apartments - very nice!

Today was a real treat in many ways. I got to go to Lindsey's church - Elevation Church. It is amazing what God is doing there - Lindsey works with the 3-4 year olds. After the 10 AM service (they have 3 there and 1 at a satellite campus), I took her car and went wandering all over the place. I eventually ended up visiting my other "family" in Monroe. They are people who love you, warts and all, and are always there for you - we've been gone 15 years, but it is like we never left when we are together. I LOVE them!

This area has changed quite a bit, but I can still find my way around; however, on the way home I ran into 3 roads that had detours...let's just say I took the scenic route to Walmart and then to grab a late lunch and go home. I don't like detours, they are time consuming; however, I got to see some things I would never have known were in the area. I don't like it when God sends me on detours either; I feel like that is what my life has been about the past few years. I guess I need to remember He is trying to show me things too. God also has a funny way of turning what seems to be an annoyance to us into a blessing. I had stopped at one Walmart to get a few things and some peanut M&Ms for Melodie (her favorite). When I got home I realized the bag I had grabbed only had a newspaper in it. I headed back to Walmart...muttering all the time about going out again...only to meet up with a friend I had not seen in 15 years at the entrance of Walmart. God's timing is SO much better than ours - it was a blessing to visit with her and her husband. Lindsey went to SC with friends for the day, so I'll pick her up in her car tomorrow and we'll head to our mountain retreat tomorrow night. HOORAY!