This will be a long BLOG entry as I will tell all about my day yesterday. Hope that it doesn't bore you all my loyal readers! LOL! You know who you are and I thank you for reading!
Well I was going with some friends to Raleigh to pick up a very dear old friend at the airport for the Christmas Holidays. We went to Boone the night before to stay there and leave for Raleigh on Thusday AM.
I really like Boone and that whole area up there. We left in the pouring rain. I mean it poured rain all the way to Raleigh. Nothing like driving on the highway with all the big trucks in the rain. But we had packed a bunch of Christmas CD's and were playing them all the way and singing along like the fools we are.
Kathy Mathea, Garth Brooks, Judy Colins, WNCS Christmas CD's, and lots of others ones as well including the Chipmunks!
We stopped at one of our favorite Starbuck's in Winston-Salem for a Grande skinny latte and a piece of their really good gingerbread! Then back on the road again!
Near the airport we called the 1-800 number for US AIR to see if the plane was on time. It was coming from Philadelphia. Well it was still sitting on the runway in Philadelphia so we drove down the road to the NC Art Museum. There is a Matisse and Picasso exhibit showing right now. Well it was pretty crowded and it was raining and it cost $12 to get in. Not that we couldn't spend the $12 bucks but when we looked at the time it appeared that there would not be enough so we spent some time in the gift shop cruising around and then hit the bathrooms and checked the airline again and her plane had finally left and was due to arrive shortly so we headed back to the airport.
Wow I had not been to the RDU airport since my college days in the 60's and 70's and it has changed let me tell you. It is not the sleepy little airport of my college memories any longer. We used to drive out there in college and you could park your car at the end of the runway beyond the fence and lay on the hood of your car and smoke a few numbers and then have the planes take off right over you. It was awesome! There would always be a few other cars as well and beer and pot and it was so cool to have those planes fly right over you.
Now it is huge so we drove into the hourly parking deck and found a parking place and went inside to madness and chaos and huge crowds of people waiting and even larger crowds of people waiting in line to get to the ticket counters. Oh how I felt sorry for them especially with all the bad weather out in the midwest!
We waited around and I looked at people. I love to watch people and undress the hot guys in my mind! There were a few of them! LOL! The board kept saying In RANGE for her flight whatever that means and finally her plane landed and we walked to the baggage area and there she was. We all laughed and greeted each other and her our old friend and welcomed her to North Carolina!
Her plane had had to wait for a connecting flight which was nice of them in Phila and then they were stacked up behind about 20 other planes waiting to take off in the pouring rain.
Then we waited and waited for about 30 minutes for the bags to begin to arrive in the baggage claim area. We found her bags and left the airport and found our car and then left. It was fun catching up on all our old friend and all her news. Lets call her Annie for the sake of this entry.
We were going to visit Annie's mom who is in a nursing home in Raleigh before heading back to the mountains. Her mom is looking pretty bad and had dementia but she recognized Annie and some of the rest of us although I think we confused her a bit.
We stayed for about an hour. We talked to some of the other residents and sang them a few Christmas songs before departing. Annie has sort of resigned herself to her mom's condition but I know it was hard on her especially at Christmas.
We then drove to Winston-Salem. The weather started to clear as we drove into Winston and found our favorite Indian Restaurant Nawab's off of Strafford Road. We had a great meal and then went to a shopping center across the street to hit the Borders and Fresh Market for some last minute shopping.
In Borders there was this incredibly awesome hot sales clerk on the check out line. I hung around there just watching him. He looked at me a few times but I am so naive when it comes to all things gay that I have no idea what he was thinking. He probably thought why the hell is that old man hanging around watching me or maybe he did not even notice me at all!
So we finished there and walked up the row of stores to the Fresh Market where we bought some stuff for Christmas Eve that we probably could not find in Boone!
We also stopped in Deweys Bakery where they make those incredibly thin Moravian Ginger Cookies. I just love those things dipped in milk or coffee of hot chocolate. They are the original ones and they have been ripped off by others who have copied their tins and their recipe! Only accept the original!
Then we headed to the Sam's Club for cheap gas and we hit the Starbucks for a last skinny latte for the road to keep us awake. We also picked up a whole gingerbread loaf just for the holidays!!!! LOL! Watch my figure as it grows fatter right before your eyes at the Holidays!
On the road again and we got back to my friends house in Boone around 9:15 PM.
So that is how I spent yesterday. Most everyone is still asleep as I use my friends computer to check JUB. Hope he doesn't come in in the middle of this post! I can't ever sleep late so I am up.
Not sure what my schedule will be so I wish you all the best for a wonderful Holiday no matter what you do.
Thanks for all of your presence in my life each and every day. You all mean more to me than you will ever probably know! peace
If you my loyal readers have any comments to offer please let me know.