Home for the Holidays!

Well, I finally made it back to Arkansas for the holidays. It was quite the headache getting here, but I made it in one piece, and I'm happy to be here with the Colonel and Camille enjoying a glass of white wine by the blazing hearth watching Mysteries of the Bible on A&E. First, let's discuss Northwest Airlines.

My flight was scheduled for 4:30pm yesterday, but it got delayed to 4:55, then to 5:32, then to 5:55, then to 6:56, then to...6AM the next morning. Vomit in my mouth. It wasn't delayed for weather reasons during any of this, but instead for required crew rest, but I guess they were just downright sleepy, because I wound up hopping in a cab and heading back to Bed-Stuy and sleeping for four hours before leaving my house at 3 this morning to head back out to LGA. However, they didn't start giving any of us Memphis flyers gate passes for our 6AM flight until around 5:45, so needless to say the flight was delayed again. Then we sat on the tarmac for an hour and a half. I made it in to Memphis around 10 something Central time. I was grumpy. But seeing my parents at the gate made up for it. We stopped at a Cracker Barrel on the way back to Batesville and had a nice brunch. I don't remember what time we got into B-ville, since I slept in the back seat for half the drive. Dad hollered at me to wake up when we got onto Big Pine Road, and I got to see all the changes that were made on the block since I was last here a year ago. There's a new house at the bottom of the hill, and the folks are doing an amazing job painting the house by themselves. It's lovely and looks like they are about halfway through. It's red, and the roof has been redone and it is a bluish grey. It's lovely. I'll take a photo.

They went all out with the decorations and put up a tree on the front porch and in the living room. There's a little table top Dickens-style village on the game table in the living room, and there is holly and garland all over the place. We all stumbled into the living room and took naps when we got home. Then Camille made some dinner and we all sat together at the table chatting and chowing. Then I taught them how to play Mexican train dominoes. I dislike when I teach someone a game and then they kick my ass at the aforementioned game. Really, kicked my ass. 152 to 54. Ouch. Ouch.

More later. This will be a two parter.