My Summer Travels - Richmond

Ok, I have to own up to the fact that I did not complete anything on my to-do list. But I'd rather write about my summer.

My last post came to you from Missouri. I stayed there for two weeks after the Montana vacation sleeping in, relaxing, and spending quality time with family. I made two day-trips to St. Louis - one to visit friends and the other to shop with my mom and grandma. Then I headed back to Virginia to do curriculum planning for the after-school program I'll be teaching this fall. (It still doesn't have a name...) That turned out to be a very stressful trip. So much so that only now, a month later, can I find humor in sharing it with you.

RICHMOND
As I headed to the airport for my flight out of St. Louis, I stopped to get a delicious, calorie-laden beverage from Starbucks to start my day. This is an important detail, because this is where I was cursed. The first thing the server said to me was "man, are we gonna get some rain or what?!" I laughed and said I hoped not because I had a plane to catch and I haven't had the best luck recently with flying. Then I paid and made my way to the airport, thinking that it didn't really look like a storm was brewing...

I was wrong. By the time I found parking, the sky was covered in vicious clouds. I prayed against all odds there wouldn't be a delay. No such luck. I knew I'd be missing my connection in Atlanta, so I worked to get on a different flight once there. That would have me flying into Norfolk, hitching a ride with a nice woman who offered, picking up my rental at the Richmond airport, and finally making it home around 9:30. But, when we arrived in Atlanta, there were storms. (This storm front apparently covered the majority of the continental US that day.) So... my Norfolk flight continued to get pushed back and once it hit a 2-hour delay, I decided to switch my flight again and fly directly into Richmond, landing around 11:00. I spent 8 hours in the Atlanta airport that day. I was so grateful to finally arrive at my house at 11:45 that night, 9 hours behind schedule.

The next day was 7 hours of curriculum planning, which was just as frustrating as it was enlightening and I was exhausted by the time I got home that afternoon. But, our yard had begun a conversion to a jungle of weeds in my absence and it had to be dealt with. So I put on my crappiest clothes, complete with my hot pink bra straps showing and headed out. The details about how I then locked myself out of the house are not important... all you need to know is that it involved a spider. A spider!!! Ridiculous, I know. I told myself that the whole time I was running to my landlord's house between prayers that she would be home. She wasn't, but her husband was. I had never met him up to this point and here I was - sweaty, panting, asking for a spare key in my tank top and hot pink bra. I was mortified. But thankful. Very, very thankful, because he had a key. I thanked God as I ran all the way back to my house, changed my clothes, rubbed my face with an ice cube and drove to return the key. There was no time for mowing the lawn after this escapade. So I settled for cleaning up the indoor mess I'd left unattended for a month.

After another (much more successful) day of curriculum planning, I made plans with a friend for dinner. As I got off the phone with her, I noticed that my rental car had been hit. No note. Lovely... So I immediately called my insurance company and filed a claim. And cried. Because I have a $500 deductible and this would inevitably be on my dime. But I got over it and had a wonderful time at dinner. After eating, my friend was looking at the damage on the car with me. This is when I noticed X's all over the damage. Surely this meant the damage was prior! I called Alamo just to be reassured that was the case. They claimed to have no record of any damage. This was both awful and ridiculous. But I couldn't convince anybody that this couldn't possibly be my fault. And they were getting rude. And pushy. So I called my father-in-law for advice. I took his advice, went to bed, and prayed for the best.

The next morning, it was time to tackle the lawn. After battling with the lawnmower for 45 minutes, I finally got the job done. (I'd like to mention that this time, I not only double-checked all locks before exiting the house, but I also chose more appropriate attire - just in case.) Then I made a quick trip to my school to pick up some materials (although not the ones I ended up needing, of course) before heading to the airport. My insurance agent called to get my new, strange addition to the story as I rushed to return the car. And then God answered my prayers in a major way. (Again.) Upon returning the car, the check-in agent informed me that they did, indeed, have record of this damage. I made him reassure me at least 16 times and then called my agent back to cancel the claim. And with my bad luck behind me, I boarded the plane.