So Much for a Staycation

Since our lives are on the brink of chaos with a major move, law school and 120-day assignment in Atlanta, Mark and I decided to take a little time off to enjoy our last days in Hot Springs. We had some serious plans, which included catching some rays, grabbing a game of golf and of course eating good food. When we were awakened this morning at 6:00 with a call from the automated weather warning system saying we were experiencing flash flooding, I knew it wasn’t good. So after teaching my last Jazzercise class in Hot Springs (I’m a little sad about that), I drove our one-year-old Jeep in the pouring rain back to the dealership to fix what $456 neglected to do last time. Of course, all Enterprise had to offer was a big bad truck or minivan. (Which do you think I picked?) I then cruised on home to finish cleaning our oven and bathroom, my two favorite projects. Around 5:00 pm, with Sonic drinks in hand, Mark and I jumped in my Dodge Ram pick-up truck and headed to Lake DeGray State Park for what we knew was going to be the best staycation ever. Um, that’s when this story gets really good. The lodge was without electricity, but have no fear; they had glow sticks to light our way down the darkened steps to our un-air conditioned room. No problem I thought, we’ll just cool off in the pool. Forget that, it’s closed until tomorrow along with the hot tub, which was the reason we chose this destination in the first place. Okay, so Plan C, watch a little TV. A flat screen beats our 19-inch any day. Well, not this day, because all we could see was snow. So now, Mark and I have resorted to our usual extracurricular activity, which is conducting work on our respective laptops. Okay so he does work and I search People. Let’s hope Day 2 of the staycation is a little better. It can’t get any worse!

Last Days as an Arkansan

I’m winding down my days in the Natural State. By the end of the week, I’ll be heading west to our new home in OKC. While I can’t wait to step foot on Sooner (or shall we say Cowboy) soil, believe it or not, I am going to miss a few highlights of living in Arkansas. I’ll miss the beautiful scenery, friends who made living far from home somewhat bearable, horse racing, The Pancake Shop and running around the promenade (minus the part where the junior high boys join me). However, Mark and I will never reminisce about the curvy highways, crazy Southern accents, fanatic razorback fans, neighborhood crime and confusing tax laws. Each year, I write a Top Ten to culminate our anniversary. Following are the Top Ten Reasons Why We Must Escape the Natural State…
10. Wal-Mart is sure to run out of Dramamine soon.
9. Everything is plural in Arkansas. Example: “I says, we gots to go to MACDonalds to eats.”
8. Fort Smith is a heck of a long ways to drive to buy decent ice cream.
7. People think we’re cousins just because we’re married.
6. First the beast. Then masked men carrying AK-47’s. What’s next?
5. This Cowboy is suffocating in this razorback-obsessed world. (Is there another school in Arkansas? Didn’t think so!)
4. Two canoes + One not-so-strategically-placed electrical wire = One BIG Oops! (Think the hippy dude will ever find us?)
3. When the right wingers find out we voted for the other guy, we might be exiled anyway.
2. Four words: “You gotta get assessed.” Enough said.
1. God’s Country is calling us home!