This past weekend I drove to Kansas. Not Kansas City. Hutchinson, Kansas. Nine hours of driving time. I was kindly accompanied by my books on CD and a lot of coffee. The drive there was uneventful, thankfully! I didn’t once get lost. (I am proud to note that I didn’t have GPS or anything! Well, I had a google print-out to follow, but that was it. I am so cool revolting against technology!)
When I got to Hutchinson on Friday evening, I checked into my room, popped on my tennis shoes, and went to the “gym”, which was a small (teeny, tiny) room with 1 treadmill, 1 weight machine, and 1 elliptical. I chose the elliptical. I just needed to stretch my legs out and get some circulation back into my gluts. The machinery was a joke. It squeaked and squealed like it needed some WD-40. It wouldn’t turn on despite the fact that it was clearly plugged in. So I just pushed and prodded and made it work anyway. It only lasted 5 minutes, but that was all I needed to stretch out.
I hit the shower and tried to refresh before driving around the town to figure out where the church was. I got kind of lost on the backroads during that route, but there was no time frame so I wasn’t worried. I have a pretty good internal compass so I knew how to get myself back to the main roads. In my backroading stint though, I chanced across a field of sunflowers. They were beautiful. I pulled right over and grabbed my camera. I felt awed by these flowers, as if they were people looking up to the sun. I could not imagine a more beautiful sight. I didn’t even know I liked sunflowers! (Although, I did have a favorite dress as a girl that was navy blue with yellow sunflowers. I wore it to the death. I even had a matching hair scrunchie!)
Saturday morning dawned so early. The hotel offered breakfast via an adjoining restaurant. If only I had my camera along for that one! This restaurant was like mom-and-pop diner with old, plush carpet, faded, artificial flowers and ivy, tacky teacups on doilies on the walls, and several Sandra’s with over-bleached hair taking orders off of single-page, laminated sheets of paper listing my options: “1 egg + 2 links or 2 strips (I determined later this was 2 links of sausage or 2 strips of bacon) + 1 muffin or 1 bagel + 1 fruit or 1 cup cereal + 1 glass of milk or 1 glass of juice or 1 cup of coffee.” I did the math and placed my order.
Sandra #1 brought me a glass of skim milk and when I took the first sip, which was rather large, I literally spit it back in the cup. It tasted like it had been mixed with carbonated water. I only could hope the rest of the meal would be better.
It was doable. Greasy, as I expected, but I ate a few bites and then paid with my carnival “Admit One” ticket. (Sandra #2 informed me that they needed this ticket to turn into the hotel to be reimbursed.)
I was at the church by 8 AM for hair/makeup. I meandered around for a little, getting my bearings, testing lighting, etc. From that point on though, it was a blur. I had the good foresight to wear a watch layered with my bracelets so I could keep track of the time throughout the day. It was easier to keep tracking via the photo count…500, 600, 800, 1,200, 1,500…
By the time the couple left the church, I was exhausted (but so happy). I got in the car, drove to the hotel, and laid on the bed with my eyes closed. The remote control didn’t work for the TV so I googled the nearest RedBox, which was miraculously right across the street! I headed over there within 5 minutes.
On my way back in, I spotted the pool which was sadly completely deserted. It looked kind of lonely and I wished that I had brought my bathing suit so I could sit and soak. I was tempted to try the panties/bra idea, but didn’t want to risk getting evicted from the hotel. The sign didn’t specify proper attire though…
I went to bed early that night. I woke up Sunday morning with a whole day of driving ahead of me. It was nothing but the blue sky for the first 4 hours, but when I hit Kansas City, the whole sky opened up with a plethora of the most pounding rain you’ve ever seen. I found an exit and pulled over at a Burger King, deciding I might as well eat and use the restroom since I couldn’t drive. I sat in the car for a good 15 minutes trying to get up the courage to open the door and run inside. It was literally raining so hard, I could not see. What is with me, weddings, road trips, and pouring rain!?
After downing my kid’s meal, I decided the rain had let up slightly so I tried the road again. Sure enough, in about 10 minutes, I had driven out of the worst of it and could turn off my wipers. It was pedal to the metal from there out. I finished my Nicholas Sparks book and popped in “Eat, Pray, Love” which kept me occupied (albeit hungry!) for the next several hours until I pulled back into the driveway.
The most welcome sight when I got home was Kevin. How I had missed him! I felt like a teenager giggling at the sight of him. It’s so good to be home.
P.S. For pictures from the wedding, check out my photography blog.
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