Wandering Aimlessly

...Jiggity jig.

[I just typed a WHOLE entry on my vacation and lost it. Argh!! So discouraging. Man. <.sigh> Here we go again...]

It was not a very relaxing week, but it was a GREAT week. I got to see two old roommates of mine! So much fun. I'm going to try to remember all of it.

Ye be warned!

Saturday, Dec 6

First stop, Illinois basketball! The good old Fighting Illini vs. Arkansas. I went with my dad, and what a good time it was. Great to be seeing mah boys in action once again. It was a great game, with a couple fabulous plays. The Illini won 80-something to 60-something, I think. Good times.

After the game, I started the trek to Ohio. I talked to Heather from somewhere north of Indianapolis to somewhere east of Dayton, which made the drive quite enjoyable. I made it to Columbus about 8:30, and Aarti and I headed out for Columbus's version of Dos Reales, El Vachero (spelled... possibly not right). YUM! Good food! After dinner, we headed out to Brothers with Donna and Aaron, and met up with some of their other friends. I was twirled (and twirled and twirled) by Spinny Guy, which was... interesting. And a bit frightening. Aaron had to finally step in and save me, especially when Spinny Guy tried to dip me. A big N-O! Scary! Afterwards, we all headed home to crash in front of Pirates.

Sunday, Dec 7

Aarti and I headed out for some shopping, and the Great H Hunt of 2003. After many unsuccessful trips to malls around here for the perfect Christmas gift, I finally, FINALLY found it. Whew! Then Aarti headed to work, and I headed out on another Great Hunt, this time for fondue ingredients (and gas for my car). One gas station, two grocery stores, a bread store, a wine store, and about two hours later, I returned with all but one "vital" ingredient for the fondue. Discouraged, I took a little nappy-nap, watched some TV, chatted with Aarti's roommate, and waited for her to return with apple juice as a substitute for kirsche. We made fondue (YUM!!) and had a grand old night.

Monday, Dec 8

I'm blanking on Monday morning. Hmm. Anyway. Monday afternoon, I went to work with Aarti. It was very cool to meet all her coworkers and finally put faces to names. I also got to see what she does all day (Aarti is a Very Important part of the whole operation), which was very educational for me, as we do not get trained in that aspect of the bank in my job. An all around good experience. We left around 9 and grabbed some dinner (California Pizza Kitchen) and a movie (School of Rock). Good times!

Tuesday, Dec 9

I had to leave for home, much too quickly. The weather was bad, bad, bad, which did not make for a fun drive. I made it, though, in time for my dress fitting. I was pleasantly surprised for the dress to zip after all the Thanksgiving and birthday feeding frenzy. Whew! It was a monsoon outside all day and all night, which thankfully did not turn to snow.

Wednesday, Dec 10

There was a bit of trauma when, Wednesday morning, I noticed that I was booked on a return flight from Huntsville to Chicago on both Dec 15 and 17. After a phonecall to Travelocity, it was confirmed that the flight my ticket was *actually* for was the 17th. Bad bad bad!!! I have to work on the 16th!! After a looooooong time on the phone with Travelocity, American, and Travelocity again, I was told that to change the flight to the 15th, it would cost $1,100, or to purchase a new ticket, $600. ACK!!! I was stuck between not going at all, or calling in sick for two days from Alabama. Neither of which were grand options.

In the end, I went to the airport in hopes of talking my way out of the situation, being that it was Travelocity's fault, not mine. I got a real nice woman at the American ticket counter who was able to do the switch for a mere $146. Not perfect, but a helluva lot better than the alternatives! The plan was the freaking smallest thing I'd ever been on, with one seat along one side and two along the other, and just enough overhead space for a jacket or small bag (carry-on suitcases were valet checked at the gate... how's THAT for rock star treatment?)

I arrived in Alabama on schedule and met up with HEATHER!!! SO good to see her. We went shopping at the Huntsville mall, where I picked up some Christmas presents (which I didn't consider having to fit into my already-full carry-on suitcase) and ate at Chick-Fil-A! YUM! When we were all shopped out, I went back to meet the fam. Heather's mom and sister are the sweetest things in the whole world. Liked them a lot.

Thursday, Dec 11

A day of running around. First, we went to Heather's school to see where she works and attends classes. Looks like a real nice place, although it was empty of most students, being that it's winter break. We met the lions, Leo and Una, which were so cute! We had Mexican for lunch (yum) and did a bit of shopping at the Purse Guy and a couple of dollar stores. Then we stopped by the pet store to see the kittens (adorable!), and, having Animal Fever, we went by the shelter, too. There were SO many precious kitties and puppies there for adoption, and I just wanted to take them ALL home. I don't think my parents would have enjoyed that nearly as much as I would!

We came home and did a bit of a collaging project. Then we went to O'Charley's for dinner with some of Heather's friends, Jennifer, Joseph, Lindsey and Terry. The service was horrible, but the food and company were good. After dinner, Jennifer, Joseph, Heather and I went for some bowling. Good times!

Friday, Dec 12

Friday is a bit of a blur to me. Oh, Heather's mom took us for lunch! We went to Trowbridge's, a really cute ice cream parlor/sandwich shop that has been in Florence forever. Really good food, really nice atmosphere. Then Heather and I went out to the old railroad bridge over the Tennessee River, which was very pretty (if not a bit chilly). Great place to film a movie, as Heather and I discussed. ;) We had to go back to The Purse Guy so that I could get my "Alabama Souvenir," a wallet with a K on it. The Purse Guy is so nice, I HAD to get something from him. I love my wallet!

Heather's Grandad took us all out for dinner at Ricatoni's (I hope I spelled that right) where I had some delicious chicken parmesan (can you see that a running theme here is FOOD?). It was a really good restaurant. After dinner, we were so stuffed that we went home and watched movies. I finally got to see the first Lord of the Rings movie! That was a long time in coming!

Saturday, Dec 13

We got up early-ish and headed out to Joseph's graduation ceremony. We didn't arrive in time for a seat, so we had to join the crowd in the back. We couldn't see too well, but we yelled for him when his name was announced. It was rainy and cold, and after the ceremony (and once we made it OUT of the parking garage), we tried to eat at Logan's Roadhouse. Too crowded! Lindsey, Heather and I went back to the mall for Chick-Fil-A (can't get enough of that stuff). We went back to Heather's for a bit before meeting Lindsey, Terry and Joseph for dinner at Logan's. Ha. Food really WAS one of the main attractions! Lol.

After dinner, the five of us plus Alison, Kyle (Alison's friend from Disney who was also visiting), and later a couple more people, went back to Terry's for some Balderdash and Twister. I had not played Balderdash before, so that was fun. Twister was a HOOT! We played it the regular way and then in teams, and the most amusing thing ever was when Joseph had to lay himself on top of Kyle to reach a dot. There is photographic evidence.

After games, Alison, Kyle, Joseph, Jennifer, Lindsey, Heather and I went to Sidepocket's for karaoke. SO fun! I miss that stuff. "The Girls" sang Lady Marmalade, and then Joseph and I did Summer Nights from Grease. Everyone had a go at singing, and Heather, Jennifer and Lindsey competed in a Booty Dancing competition while Kyle did Baby Got Back. Hee! Quite entertaining.

Sunday, Dec 14

I woke up a bit before Heather and started watching the second Lord of the Rings movie. I liked this one a bit better, as it didn't take half the film for Orlando to show up. heh. Moved a bit faster, too. Anyway. We took our time in getting ready, and then went to see Haunted Mansion, which was very enjoyable as well. I liked it more than I had expected to. Good movie!

After the movie, Kelly, Heather and I went for Mexican again, and then home to watch Survivor and play some Disney Trivia. Good times!! Then we stuck in What's Eating Gilbert Grape to fall asleep to, but ended up getting sucked in and watching the whole thing.

Monday, Dec 15

The trip was over WAY too soon. After FAR too little sleep, we got up at the butt-crack of dawn to head back to the Huntsville airport. I had SUCH a fantastic time in Florence visiting Heather. Her family is awesome, and I just missed her so much. Hopefully we will live together again someday soon. Everyone in Alabama was wonderful, and I learned to say "Bah!" (bye) in the true Alabama fashion. Hee!

The plane trip home was none too thrilling, as we ended up sitting on the runway for an hour before leaving (why couldn't they figure this out BEFORE we board the plane?) and then circling O'Hare for 20 minutes before landing. Argh. That was a LONG time on the plane, yo! My butt was numb. Ha. But I made it!!

All in all, a fantabulous vacation. I wish I could have spent more time with everyone, but I'm glad I got to at least see Aarti and Heather. Someday hopefully we will ALL live in the same state.