Arkansas.......via Tulsa??
So as most of you know this past weekend was April in Arkansas for the girls from the Hyacinth Garden. We had a fabulous time seeing each other again and meeting new "hoes". I feel inclined to share our story as best I can so that others may learn....
Thursday- Arkansas via...TULSA??
I actually get out of my meeting early and head to Jill's around 10am. I have excellent directions, because Jill is made of awesome! So I decide to listen to the mpeg file of North and South that a wonderful person from C19 made. (I can't remember her name...sorry!) I get distracted during the riot scene and totally miss my turn off. Jill finds this funny. I finally get there and so does Dawn after missing the I-465 exit and after several threats not to speed on Super 70. We get Lisa from the Federal Building and we head to the airport. We make it through fine, up until about 10 minutes before we are to board our flight to Chicago. Jill gets an automated message, and just by reading her facial expressions you can tell the news isn't good. Our flight from Chicago to XNA (Northwest Arkansas, ie SARAH!) has been cancelled due to mechanical failure, and please call American Airlines at blah...blah. Begin the major freak out. We are told of another flight to Arkansas, but there are only 2 seats, there are 3 of us! So onto Chicago we go, not knowing if we will make it Arkansas that night, or stay overnight on American Airline's tab and fly out the next morning. We land in Chicago and do as we are told....the gate person was NOT friendly and we thought Jill might kill her. So we head down to the gate that holds the AA customer service people. We stand in line for 20 minutes while Jill speaks to several people at AA trying to find us any flight into Arkansas. None are open, the only options are to stay overnight or fly into Tulsa which is an hour and a half away from Sarah. Sarah being the wonderful person she is, says she will come to get us in Tulsa. So off to Tulsa we go! We realize while we are waiting that our bags are still scheduled to head to XNA, so we head down to our departure gate. We have the nicest guy try to get our bags headed in the right direction. (We must have Buffy, the insulin pump!)We couldn't pronounce his name, so we gave him a new one (BFF...right?) So a little after midnight we land in Tulsa and have a "Love Actually" moment when we get off the plane with Sarah and Maryanne. We head down to the baggage claim and patiently wait for our bags....mine comes off...Dawn's does not. (insert headdesk) After stopping by Sonic and getting Dawn's bag from XNA (from a plane she was never booked for....WTF?!) we get to Sarah's around 2am or so. !!SUPER SECRET SONIC NUMCHUCK SKILZS!! After wine and cake, we collapse, go figure.
Friday- Little Debbie Day!!
The area Sarah lives in is beautiful, the Ozarks are all around, when not clouded by rain, like it was most of the time. We head out to explore, hit up the Little Debbie outlet (scratch and dent!!) and a place called the Wooden Spoon with the best Baked Potato Soup ever! Sarah took us through the University of Arkansas, which is huge and very nice. Then off to the used bookstore......need I say more... We found a very old copy of Dante's Inferno...why did none of us buy it again?! After getting home, it was fanfic time.
Dawn and Sarah
Jill and Sarah
Jill and the cowboy porn! (okay, not really porn, maybe with one more bottle of wine!)
Jill and Sarah
MaryAnne (aka Mrs. Reynolds) giving Jill (aka Darcy) a talking to!
Recipe for great fanfic: several bottles of wine, Maryanne typing an outline, Jill's thinking stick, steak and the best mashed potatoes ever, and much acting out from the rest of us. I've never experienced something quite so creative while being almost drunk! We hashed out 2 fanfic stories......complete with acting! (Lizzy hauling ass down the stairs!) We so rock.
Saturday- Tyra and Train Day
Note- when Sarah is ready to go and we are running late...she turns into Tyra Banks from America's Top Model. You know, when the models have to apply their makeup in 5 minutes.... We head to the train station to take our trip south to Van Buren. The train car was very nice and we had a lot of fun on the way. (wherever we went, we were the loudest....how does that happen?!) Our conductor liked us a lot!
Dawn, our Conductor, Maryanne, Jill and Angie
The inside of the 1920's traincar
Sarah calling the hogs (sorry love, you knew I'd put this on here!) This is a private youtube link, if you can't get it to work let me know!
Dawn and Angie
Sarah and Maryanne
The tunnel in the dark...the Conductor and Jill
More darkness in the tunnel... Dawn and Angie
The view out the back
Mary and Laura
Really?! RA bites for sale? Yum!
L to R Seated: Angie, Jill, Sarah. Standing: Mary, Maryanne, Dawn, Laura
We met up with Mary and Laura there and had lunch and walked around some. The town is very nice with some great shops. After saying goodbye to Mary and Laura we got back on the train and made our way to Fayetteville. We then watched North and South (squee!) We have converted 3 people to North and South and might have some fanfic come out of it! (I can't wait!!) Besides Sarah, my new North and South mate is Sarah's Mom! There is no doubt where Sarah gets her personality! We got in trouble several times during the viewing for reacting (how can you watch North and South and not react!?)
Sunday- Time to go :(
Thankfully we didn't leave until the afternoon, so we got to spend most of the day sitting around talking. Had lunch at Sonic...of course!
Jill and Maryanne before we left for Sonic
Jill placing our order
Sarah
Yes, those are pajamas!
Our flight back was uneventful and I pulled into my driveway about 130 or 2am. I was glad to be home...but now I miss everyone!
So to recap, Sarah is better than Martha Stewart, Jill is made of awesome, Dawn is fantastic, MaryAnne is the best outliner ever, and I loved meeting Mary and Laura!
Oh...and a super squee moment.....I am getting a Mini Cooper on Saturday!! Pictures to come this weekend!
Thursday- Arkansas via...TULSA??
I actually get out of my meeting early and head to Jill's around 10am. I have excellent directions, because Jill is made of awesome! So I decide to listen to the mpeg file of North and South that a wonderful person from C19 made. (I can't remember her name...sorry!) I get distracted during the riot scene and totally miss my turn off. Jill finds this funny. I finally get there and so does Dawn after missing the I-465 exit and after several threats not to speed on Super 70. We get Lisa from the Federal Building and we head to the airport. We make it through fine, up until about 10 minutes before we are to board our flight to Chicago. Jill gets an automated message, and just by reading her facial expressions you can tell the news isn't good. Our flight from Chicago to XNA (Northwest Arkansas, ie SARAH!) has been cancelled due to mechanical failure, and please call American Airlines at blah...blah. Begin the major freak out. We are told of another flight to Arkansas, but there are only 2 seats, there are 3 of us! So onto Chicago we go, not knowing if we will make it Arkansas that night, or stay overnight on American Airline's tab and fly out the next morning. We land in Chicago and do as we are told....the gate person was NOT friendly and we thought Jill might kill her. So we head down to the gate that holds the AA customer service people. We stand in line for 20 minutes while Jill speaks to several people at AA trying to find us any flight into Arkansas. None are open, the only options are to stay overnight or fly into Tulsa which is an hour and a half away from Sarah. Sarah being the wonderful person she is, says she will come to get us in Tulsa. So off to Tulsa we go! We realize while we are waiting that our bags are still scheduled to head to XNA, so we head down to our departure gate. We have the nicest guy try to get our bags headed in the right direction. (We must have Buffy, the insulin pump!)We couldn't pronounce his name, so we gave him a new one (BFF...right?) So a little after midnight we land in Tulsa and have a "Love Actually" moment when we get off the plane with Sarah and Maryanne. We head down to the baggage claim and patiently wait for our bags....mine comes off...Dawn's does not. (insert headdesk) After stopping by Sonic and getting Dawn's bag from XNA (from a plane she was never booked for....WTF?!) we get to Sarah's around 2am or so. !!SUPER SECRET SONIC NUMCHUCK SKILZS!! After wine and cake, we collapse, go figure.
Friday- Little Debbie Day!!
The area Sarah lives in is beautiful, the Ozarks are all around, when not clouded by rain, like it was most of the time. We head out to explore, hit up the Little Debbie outlet (scratch and dent!!) and a place called the Wooden Spoon with the best Baked Potato Soup ever! Sarah took us through the University of Arkansas, which is huge and very nice. Then off to the used bookstore......need I say more... We found a very old copy of Dante's Inferno...why did none of us buy it again?! After getting home, it was fanfic time.
Dawn and Sarah
Jill and Sarah
Jill and the cowboy porn! (okay, not really porn, maybe with one more bottle of wine!)
Jill and Sarah
MaryAnne (aka Mrs. Reynolds) giving Jill (aka Darcy) a talking to!
Recipe for great fanfic: several bottles of wine, Maryanne typing an outline, Jill's thinking stick, steak and the best mashed potatoes ever, and much acting out from the rest of us. I've never experienced something quite so creative while being almost drunk! We hashed out 2 fanfic stories......complete with acting! (Lizzy hauling ass down the stairs!) We so rock.
Saturday- Tyra and Train Day
Note- when Sarah is ready to go and we are running late...she turns into Tyra Banks from America's Top Model. You know, when the models have to apply their makeup in 5 minutes.... We head to the train station to take our trip south to Van Buren. The train car was very nice and we had a lot of fun on the way. (wherever we went, we were the loudest....how does that happen?!) Our conductor liked us a lot!
Dawn, our Conductor, Maryanne, Jill and Angie
The inside of the 1920's traincar
Sarah calling the hogs (sorry love, you knew I'd put this on here!) This is a private youtube link, if you can't get it to work let me know!
Dawn and Angie
Sarah and Maryanne
The tunnel in the dark...the Conductor and Jill
More darkness in the tunnel... Dawn and Angie
The view out the back
Mary and Laura
Really?! RA bites for sale? Yum!
L to R Seated: Angie, Jill, Sarah. Standing: Mary, Maryanne, Dawn, Laura
We met up with Mary and Laura there and had lunch and walked around some. The town is very nice with some great shops. After saying goodbye to Mary and Laura we got back on the train and made our way to Fayetteville. We then watched North and South (squee!) We have converted 3 people to North and South and might have some fanfic come out of it! (I can't wait!!) Besides Sarah, my new North and South mate is Sarah's Mom! There is no doubt where Sarah gets her personality! We got in trouble several times during the viewing for reacting (how can you watch North and South and not react!?)
Sunday- Time to go :(
Thankfully we didn't leave until the afternoon, so we got to spend most of the day sitting around talking. Had lunch at Sonic...of course!
Jill and Maryanne before we left for Sonic
Jill placing our order
Sarah
Yes, those are pajamas!
Our flight back was uneventful and I pulled into my driveway about 130 or 2am. I was glad to be home...but now I miss everyone!
So to recap, Sarah is better than Martha Stewart, Jill is made of awesome, Dawn is fantastic, MaryAnne is the best outliner ever, and I loved meeting Mary and Laura!
Oh...and a super squee moment.....I am getting a Mini Cooper on Saturday!! Pictures to come this weekend!