Okay, so the last few weeks have flown by. Lots of work has begun to be due and most of that is group work! So let me catch you up. Of course, it is football season and although we had a rough start, we had a great win again number 4 ranked Ole Miss (though I am not sure how they were 4 because they were bad to say the least). Either way it was an amazing game.
Two weeks ago it was a quick road trip to Atlanta to see The Color Purple. I had no real expectations about the show. Fantasia was reprising her role from Broadway and it was an excuse to see a show. It was torrential downpours in the hour leading up to the show, so we sloshed in and were a little wet to say the least. They didn't hold the start time, so the must have sat more than 150 after the show started, some up to 45 mins late! I know that sometimes things are out of your control, weather being one of them, but don't come in with a soda and pop corn and block my view. To say the least, the show was brilliant. It exceeded any expectations I had and the entire cast was ridiculously talented. I think Sophie was my favorite with her "Hell Nos" and (if you haven't seen it don't read this) when the sister's are reunited at the end, it is a truly magical moment.
There were a few awkward moments where it felt weird being the minority. This is only the second time I have ever felt like the minority, the first being two summers ago in Germany when we were at the Bavarian Film Studio and we had to go on the English language tour, which was walking instead of riding on the cool train because that was for German only.
This past weekend after the Thursday night football game, it was off to the mountain house. So Ashley and I headed up Friday night, stopped to grab P.F. Chang's (which is one of my all-time favorites) and see Fame. I will have to say I was disappointed in the movie. If you haven't seen it, just YouTube the commercials and you will be set. Saturday morning Jordan, Cole and Laura drove up to meet us. We were planning on going hiking and to the corn maze, but the rainy weather stopped us for going on with our plan. So we changed things up, grabbed lunch at Jukebox Junction, a must eat stop and then hung out the house and watched more college football games on TV than I have seen in my whole life! I am looking forward to our game against Kentucky because they are awful, but we have no change against Florida and Alabama. Thoughts might be slaughters.
This is all for now. Headed to bed. As Tigger would say TTFN (ta ta for now).
Where was my head! I almost left out the most dramatic part of the weekend. Saturday night Laura made an amazing dinner and then we played apples to apples and made smore in the fire the we made. Yes you heard me right, we started a fire from wood! So it rained all Saturday, but Sunday was beautiful. We had breakfast at my grandparents house, which was my favorite sausage gravy and biscuits and then went back to the house to plan to the day. Laura had homework, so the rest of us decided to head to the Blue Ridge Parkway to hike and see nature (we were in the mtns) and then we would come back, get Laura and got the corn maze. From there, they would head home and Ashley and I would head to my cousin's third birthday at Chuck e Cheese (which I call chunk e cheese) and then drive back.
It takes 24 miles to get the parkway. We actually have a map, but I am directionally challenge, so one of the cohorts has taken over than task. We drive past a couple overlooks, stop to look at a couple overlooks then finally decided on hiking Graveyard Fields after we couldn't find the waterfall trail we wanted. I had actually hiked this last year and upper falls at the end were pretty disappointing, but with all the rain, we were thinking they might be better. It was a pretty muddy hike, but we had lots of fun and were making fun of Tebow (who got the crap knocked out of him in the Saturday game). It was earlier and we really didn't pass but maybe 4 or 5 people on our hour trip to the top. The falls were pretty cool and we gots lots of pictures. I got my sneakers soaked trying to climb to the other side to get a better picture on the rock and then slide and got my shorts soaked too. Luckily they dried pretty quickly in the sun. We had made it all the way back and were joking about people getting hurt. We are probably 20 minutes from being back in the parking lot when Jordan jumps funny off this dock-like ramp (they had wooden planks like a dock over some of the fields, probably like 5 inches off the ground). On her was off she must have twisted her ankle and she falls to the ground landing on her left side (which is why we figure she twisted her right foot pushing off, sort of jumping the puddle). I was right beside her, having gone through the grass to get around the mud. Ashley and Cole were behind us and at first we thought she was laughing, but we soon realized that was not the case. She had done something to her ankle, she thought it was broken and it had swollen really bad. She immediately freaked out and it took us a while to get her calmed down.
Finally, we were able to get her up and hoping, working to get her back to the car. It was a slow trek and I soon realized she wouldn't make it the rest of they way. The path was really narrow in places, we still had about five steep flights of stairs, a bridge over rocks and a river and a very steep end paved with asphalt before we would be at the parking lot. Cole and Ashley were helping her hop, I wasn't of much use there because I am shorter than her by a bit! I decided to run ahead and called 911. First it took a while to get signal, remember were in the mountains. It was an interesting call because they asked me what county I was in and I didn't know. I knew where we were on the parkway, but not the county. They finally figured it out and transferred me. The guy I got then asked what happen and then asked me if we had overnight gear. I then told him that we didn't and what was he implying by this. If they couldn't come we were still getting her off the mountain that afternoon. We went on like this for a while and then he finally dispatched people.
What you must realize about the mountains is that they don't have people sitting at fire stations waiting to come. Instead they have people with pagers who get called in when something happens, thus it took 45 minutes before any one got there. In the mean time, Cole and Ashley are helping her hop along and I finally get Cole on the phone to let him know that help is on the way. The 911 operator called me back and told me that the emt was arriving. This included a 4 year old who came with his grandmother. He was a great motivator! So off me and this emt woman go running back down the path to find where they were. They had actually gotten pretty far and were waiting for us to get there. The woman examined her foot and put a splint on it. They then brought in a more rugged version of a gurney and got Jordan loaded up. In the mean time, they have put up fire line do not cross tape between two trees to stop other hikers. It felt very official.
The hike back to the parking lot was a bit of a struggle. The stairs were narrow and tall. The hand Jordan's head below her feet for that part, and she gets really motion sick, so I wasn't sure how well that would go. For the asphalt part, they had a wheel they put on the bottom of the cart to push her up more smoothly and then the wheel came off the take her up the last flight of stairs. We joked that she was discouraging others from hiking after they saw her being carried off the mountain! They got her loaded into the ambulance and Cole got in the front to ride with her. It took them almost an hour to get the hospital and the driver talked to Cole about everything from football and the infrastructure of bridges and tunnels. They had been sent to the hospital in Asheville because the Haywood Hospital didn't have an obstetrician to treat broken bones, which was a little weird. Ashley and I meet Cole at the hospital and we waited to see what the doctor would say.
I was with Jordan when the doctor finally came and before he even looked at her foot he said that he had seen this a thousand times and then she just had a sprain. He then looked at her foot and said that her swelling was a little higher than the normal sprain, so he had it x-rayed. It ended up that it was just a severe sprain, which was good news. In the mean time, we were all starving because we hadn't had lunch at it was 5 (she fell around noon), so we had a picnic in the waiting room. It was more like a circus: a prisoner, a homeless man, this girl who weighted upwards of four hundred pounds and would have easily taken Cole out for a brownie. Luckily Jordan got her cast and we were all able to get on the road home!
Two weeks ago it was a quick road trip to Atlanta to see The Color Purple. I had no real expectations about the show. Fantasia was reprising her role from Broadway and it was an excuse to see a show. It was torrential downpours in the hour leading up to the show, so we sloshed in and were a little wet to say the least. They didn't hold the start time, so the must have sat more than 150 after the show started, some up to 45 mins late! I know that sometimes things are out of your control, weather being one of them, but don't come in with a soda and pop corn and block my view. To say the least, the show was brilliant. It exceeded any expectations I had and the entire cast was ridiculously talented. I think Sophie was my favorite with her "Hell Nos" and (if you haven't seen it don't read this) when the sister's are reunited at the end, it is a truly magical moment.
There were a few awkward moments where it felt weird being the minority. This is only the second time I have ever felt like the minority, the first being two summers ago in Germany when we were at the Bavarian Film Studio and we had to go on the English language tour, which was walking instead of riding on the cool train because that was for German only.
This past weekend after the Thursday night football game, it was off to the mountain house. So Ashley and I headed up Friday night, stopped to grab P.F. Chang's (which is one of my all-time favorites) and see Fame. I will have to say I was disappointed in the movie. If you haven't seen it, just YouTube the commercials and you will be set. Saturday morning Jordan, Cole and Laura drove up to meet us. We were planning on going hiking and to the corn maze, but the rainy weather stopped us for going on with our plan. So we changed things up, grabbed lunch at Jukebox Junction, a must eat stop and then hung out the house and watched more college football games on TV than I have seen in my whole life! I am looking forward to our game against Kentucky because they are awful, but we have no change against Florida and Alabama. Thoughts might be slaughters.
This is all for now. Headed to bed. As Tigger would say TTFN (ta ta for now).
Where was my head! I almost left out the most dramatic part of the weekend. Saturday night Laura made an amazing dinner and then we played apples to apples and made smore in the fire the we made. Yes you heard me right, we started a fire from wood! So it rained all Saturday, but Sunday was beautiful. We had breakfast at my grandparents house, which was my favorite sausage gravy and biscuits and then went back to the house to plan to the day. Laura had homework, so the rest of us decided to head to the Blue Ridge Parkway to hike and see nature (we were in the mtns) and then we would come back, get Laura and got the corn maze. From there, they would head home and Ashley and I would head to my cousin's third birthday at Chuck e Cheese (which I call chunk e cheese) and then drive back.
It takes 24 miles to get the parkway. We actually have a map, but I am directionally challenge, so one of the cohorts has taken over than task. We drive past a couple overlooks, stop to look at a couple overlooks then finally decided on hiking Graveyard Fields after we couldn't find the waterfall trail we wanted. I had actually hiked this last year and upper falls at the end were pretty disappointing, but with all the rain, we were thinking they might be better. It was a pretty muddy hike, but we had lots of fun and were making fun of Tebow (who got the crap knocked out of him in the Saturday game). It was earlier and we really didn't pass but maybe 4 or 5 people on our hour trip to the top. The falls were pretty cool and we gots lots of pictures. I got my sneakers soaked trying to climb to the other side to get a better picture on the rock and then slide and got my shorts soaked too. Luckily they dried pretty quickly in the sun. We had made it all the way back and were joking about people getting hurt. We are probably 20 minutes from being back in the parking lot when Jordan jumps funny off this dock-like ramp (they had wooden planks like a dock over some of the fields, probably like 5 inches off the ground). On her was off she must have twisted her ankle and she falls to the ground landing on her left side (which is why we figure she twisted her right foot pushing off, sort of jumping the puddle). I was right beside her, having gone through the grass to get around the mud. Ashley and Cole were behind us and at first we thought she was laughing, but we soon realized that was not the case. She had done something to her ankle, she thought it was broken and it had swollen really bad. She immediately freaked out and it took us a while to get her calmed down.
Finally, we were able to get her up and hoping, working to get her back to the car. It was a slow trek and I soon realized she wouldn't make it the rest of they way. The path was really narrow in places, we still had about five steep flights of stairs, a bridge over rocks and a river and a very steep end paved with asphalt before we would be at the parking lot. Cole and Ashley were helping her hop, I wasn't of much use there because I am shorter than her by a bit! I decided to run ahead and called 911. First it took a while to get signal, remember were in the mountains. It was an interesting call because they asked me what county I was in and I didn't know. I knew where we were on the parkway, but not the county. They finally figured it out and transferred me. The guy I got then asked what happen and then asked me if we had overnight gear. I then told him that we didn't and what was he implying by this. If they couldn't come we were still getting her off the mountain that afternoon. We went on like this for a while and then he finally dispatched people.
What you must realize about the mountains is that they don't have people sitting at fire stations waiting to come. Instead they have people with pagers who get called in when something happens, thus it took 45 minutes before any one got there. In the mean time, Cole and Ashley are helping her hop along and I finally get Cole on the phone to let him know that help is on the way. The 911 operator called me back and told me that the emt was arriving. This included a 4 year old who came with his grandmother. He was a great motivator! So off me and this emt woman go running back down the path to find where they were. They had actually gotten pretty far and were waiting for us to get there. The woman examined her foot and put a splint on it. They then brought in a more rugged version of a gurney and got Jordan loaded up. In the mean time, they have put up fire line do not cross tape between two trees to stop other hikers. It felt very official.
The hike back to the parking lot was a bit of a struggle. The stairs were narrow and tall. The hand Jordan's head below her feet for that part, and she gets really motion sick, so I wasn't sure how well that would go. For the asphalt part, they had a wheel they put on the bottom of the cart to push her up more smoothly and then the wheel came off the take her up the last flight of stairs. We joked that she was discouraging others from hiking after they saw her being carried off the mountain! They got her loaded into the ambulance and Cole got in the front to ride with her. It took them almost an hour to get the hospital and the driver talked to Cole about everything from football and the infrastructure of bridges and tunnels. They had been sent to the hospital in Asheville because the Haywood Hospital didn't have an obstetrician to treat broken bones, which was a little weird. Ashley and I meet Cole at the hospital and we waited to see what the doctor would say.
I was with Jordan when the doctor finally came and before he even looked at her foot he said that he had seen this a thousand times and then she just had a sprain. He then looked at her foot and said that her swelling was a little higher than the normal sprain, so he had it x-rayed. It ended up that it was just a severe sprain, which was good news. In the mean time, we were all starving because we hadn't had lunch at it was 5 (she fell around noon), so we had a picnic in the waiting room. It was more like a circus: a prisoner, a homeless man, this girl who weighted upwards of four hundred pounds and would have easily taken Cole out for a brownie. Luckily Jordan got her cast and we were all able to get on the road home!
