I Hate Alabama: Part 2

After our outlandish time on the bridge, we were ready to go to sleep. We knew we were only a few miles from the hotel where we had reservations. Whew! We get to the Day's Inn only to be told that they have given our room away. They don't want to see any of the paperwork we have showing that we are supposed to have a room. They don't care if we have a confirmation number or not. They are full and refuse to honor our reservation. Remember that folks. So here we are dog tired and no where to sleep. Oh, did I mention it was Easter weekend and Spring Break for most people and every hotel within miles was booked? Ah, yes, indeed. We had to drive another 200 - count 'em 200 - miles to find a room somewhere. That ended up being at a state park in the middle of no where at 8:00 am. We had to check out at 11:00 am. They were kind enough to give us a late check-out time of 12:00 and a discount. So, I have learned not to book a room at the Day's Inn. I have also learned that I need to start driving to Florida via Georgia or Mississippi. LOL.

I Hate Alabama!

As you know, I went to Florida to visit my Mom and Dennis. I have much to report about the trip, but I want to start with the end. The return trip home...

Laurie and I get a late start leaving PCB. We drive through Florida with little trouble. All's well. Then we get into Alabama. That's when it starts going to Hell. First, an armadillo darts in front of the Jeep to show his dance moves. They are ugly creatures, aren't they? Alas, I was able to avoid hitting the little goofball. Second, here comes Peter Cottontail's son hopping into the road. Yes, I managed to not run him over as well. I told Laurie, "two for two, I'm getting lucky here". She suggested that perhaps with those words, I had just jinxed us. How right she was.

It is now about 4 am and we are traveling at about 75 - 80mph on Highway 65. We have seen so many deer on the side of the road that we are quite paranoid about hitting one. I have been driving in the fast lane to give myself a few extra seconds in case one bolts into the road. So, I am driving along when up comes a very large hill. For those of you that don't know it, I hate driving down large hills. We have traveled up the hill and are starting down the other side. I decide to get into the normal driving lane to continue down the hill. The Jeep lights are shining down the
hill not onto the bridge at the bottom.When we get to the bottom we are immediately on a bridge. Two seconds later the van in front of me careens to the right. All I see is a black thing with a little white speck by it. I assume it is a deer and prepare to veer to the right. Oh no! It's a black car that has been wrecked and a person standing in front of it waving his arms. It is taking up all the left lane and part of the right lane. I shoot to the right and miss him and his car by mere inches. I pull over to the "shoulder" of the bridge to offer him some help. Laurie is calling 911. Several other cars are coming down the hill and swerving around him in many near misses. I hear a terrible noise and look into the rear view mirror. A semi has locked his brakes and has begun to slide down the hill and jack knife. He can't stop in time. He annihilates the parked car and is headed our direction. I slap the Jeep into drive and peel out getting away from there. I pulled over again after getting away from the semi. I fear that the semi has just killed this boy. I couldn't see how he could get out of the way. As asked of us by the 911 operator, we go back to the wreck to see if there are any injuries that need an ambulance. When we get there, we see that where we had originally parked was nothing but wreckage of both the car and the semi. The driver of the car had somehow managed to get away from the semi and was unharmed other than being totally freaked out. He was quite young. The truck driver was also unharmed. When the truck jack-knifed it hit the car head-on and the the car got trapped between the cab and trailer of the truck. It looked like it was just churning it into pieces and I guess it was doing just that. The car-which was a lot larger when we first saw it - looked like a round ball. It was only about 3 feet by 2 feet. The trunk was gone as was the entire front up to the windshield. Only the seats remained and they were toast. The remaining pieces of the car were in an area about 80 feet long and the width of the two lanes of bridge. No piece was larger than a plate. Say your prayers, young man, you were saved today!

We asked the kid why he was standing in front of the car like that in the dark. (With a black shirt and jeans on). He said he was trying to make sure no one else got hurt. The trucker told him he was lucky he hadn't gotten killed. I also told him the same. Get away from the car! We also asked him what happened initially. He said he didn't know. So I suppose it's safe to say he fell asleep at the wheel and woke to hitting the side of the bridge.

Now, you may think that's the only nasty part of the trip. Oh, no. There's still more to come.

Interview This

Someone interviews me, I answer the questions on my blog, and then I offer to interview someone else (or several someones) and the process repeats. So, if you want to get interview questions from me, leave me a comment that reads "interview me" and I'll post your questions on my Blog. These questions were put to me by my favorite son-in-law, Drew.



Question #1: Judging by your movie and book collection, you seem to like a lot of science fiction and horror... how do you think this is affected your outlook on life today?

I have always enjoyed these types of books and movies. They are a nice fantasy away from the pressures of the real world. I realize that the true "boogeyman" is probably your next door neighbor not some freak being from space. I am not afraid of the dark as I know many people to be. I have no problems strolling around outside past sundown. You've been to the house; it's dark out there. So, to answer your question, I think it has affected me only in the way of seeing life for what it is and realizing that fantasy is just that. The true scary things in the world are the quiet guy down the street that ends up being a serial killer, not an alien from outer space.

Question #2: What kind of wisdom did you gain from raising Mrs. Spanky during her important teenage years?

I'm not sure the page is long enough for all the things I learned so I'll reflect on some of the most important things.

1. Never trust a quiet child.
2. A microwave cake can be an amazing gift.
3. Beef Manhattans are always a hit.
4. Unconditional love is only truly learned through a child.
5. A child's smile can make a bad day disappear.
6. Parenting is about letting your child do what you know can hurt them to let them grow, learn, and have fun. (sledding down a hill onto a home made ramp)
7. Never be to busy to play.
8. Always answer any question they have.
9. They are listening to you even when you think they're not.
10. There are many different types of screams. (hurt, excited, boy crazy)
11. Letting your child leave the house with friends - in a car - is the hardest thing you'll ever do.
12. Stuffed animals are forever.
13. Teenage hormones are vicious little beasts.
14. Running through the house can indeed break a toe.
15. Even Doctors are not allowed to hurt our children without consequences.


Question #3: When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up? Underwater Photographer

Question #4: What's the funniest thing you've ever done while "under the influence"? Ever get your name tattooed on your arm?

I have been thinking quite some time about the name tattoo thing. ;) You think "Vicki" or "Victoria" would be best?

I guess the funniest thing I ever did was enter a dirty dance contest with a male friend of mine. The funny part is that we won. Remember, my Mom reads this. ha ha


Question #5: If you could change one law, what would it be?
After just being violated by a seat belt in my friends car, I would have to choose the mandatory seat belt law.

Bad Dogs

Yesterday, while driving to work, I noticed two dogs of medium size by the side of the road. They were lying in a field at the top of a ditch. Both of these pups looked like they had met their last day. They were forlornly looking into the ditch as if it were an insurmountable problem and they had just given up trying to jump across it. Both were wet, muddy and pitiful looking. One of them had what appeared to be blood all over one leg.

I am a sucker for a stray. Ask the herds of cats outside. And inside. Sheesh. So, anyway, I stop the car and try to get these dogs to jump across the ditch to me. No can do. They both just whimpered and looked into the ditch. I assumed there must be another dog in the ditch and that is why they continued to stay there. Silly me. I walk over to the ditch and look down in it. What did I see? A huge dead deer floating in the water. YUCK! I looked back up at these dogs and both were now standing up and wagging their tails. Then I saw that they both had on collars and while they were filthy, they seemed to be in good health. It turns out that the blood on the dog came from the deer. I won't go into detail on how I know that. YUCK! They continued to look at me and at the deer as if I was going to help them get it out of there. I don't freaking think so. I wished them luck and got back into my car and went to work.

Destination: Florida

The time has come once again for the annual sister trip to Florida. My sister and I have decided to travel to Panama City Beach to see our Mom and Steppop. In less than three weeks, we will be on our way. Why we have decided to travel at such a crazy time - spring break - is because my sister is now a teacher and that is her vacation time. (My sister is a teacher! How crazy is that?) Spring break in PCB is always interesting. It takes 3 days to get to the store. It usually takes about 5 minutes. Our intentions are to stay far away from the West end of the beach and hopefully most of the crazyness. We just want to relax. Ah....

I think we will have a wonderful time. Our parents have been planning the days for quite some time now. We are going to go surf fishing for Pompano. You catch these with a little crustacean called a sand flea. In reality, sand fleas are small squishy crabs. Apparently a mouthful of joy if you're a Pompano. We are also going to go deep-sea fishing. What we will catch out there is always a surprise. Last year it was Triggerfish, black grouper, redfish, and sea bass. This year, it looks to be spanish mackeral, redfish, and jacks. It all depends on the fish. We are going to go fishing on the pier at night for some interesting catches and perhaps back in the lagoon as well. Yep, gonna be doing a lot of fishing. With any luck ,we will be having a lot of fresh fish dinners. If not, we can always go to the pier and buy someone elses catch. ha ha.

We are also going to snorkel the days away. This is one of my favorite past times. Just on the other side of the jetties in St. Andrews Park, there are huge fish to see. I mean shark huge. The water there is very deep so the fish get a lot bigger and much more interesting. With any luck, I will find a few creatures to bring home for my aquariums. Last year, I found many hermit crabs, various snails, a purple urchin, 2 file fish, sand sifting clams, pink and yellow shrimp, bright yellow nudibranches and other large crabs. The large crabs, the shrimp and the nudibranches were all returned to the ocean. I didn't know enough about the shrimp to care for them and the nudibranches and the crabs are murderers of other things I already have at home. All that I brought home is still alive and doing well. The filefish are three times the size they were at capture. They are complete chow hounds. I hope to have some new creatures soon. Then I can bore everyone with new pictures. ;)

We will also be taking a boat to Shell Island. Yep, just shells and beach there. Still, a lot of interesting areas to go snorkeling. On one side of the island, there is a bunch of turtle grass in the shallows. Many a seahorse and pipefish can be found here. The other side of the island is mostly for swimmers with the exception of the jetties for snorkeling and swimming.

And if all this gets boring, I will be found lying on the beach reading a book. (With gobs of sunscreen.) Nothing like the sun baking your skin to a crisp to ruin your day. *Shudder* Stay tuned for further updates.