The Rum Runners: A Pre Trip Report - UPDATED: 8/2/10

[TarzansKat]

Hey, folks!

Tink had planned to update today, but unfortunately, is having to limit her typing. She took a bit of a spill and may have a sprained thumb in addition to a swollen right knee.

She's doing okay, but just not up to par, and wanted me to let you know. Let's send her some so she feels better soon!

 

[All7OfUs]

One dose of coming right up!! Tink, hope you feel better really soon!!!

 

[Tinkerbellarella]

Love your planning! I would SO love to do this!! I can do a 16-minute mile, I know I can! (I'm just not sure how many of them I can do in a row right now....).

Yeah, that's about where I'm at myself.

But you killed me with the two 2nd-worst words in the world: Peak Season.

There are discounts for those partaking but, let me tell you, it's still a tough pill to swallow, I know.

Have a great time in TN!!......and don't get lost in StuffMart..

We only went twice. And one of those times someone was giving away free puppies in the parking lot. FREE! I begged BF with my eyes and it almost endeared me to the Mart...well their parking lot, at least.

It's so sad, but I love all the restrospectives on TV. I've been able to catch some music videos I haven't seen since I was a kid.

BF and I jammed out to some MJ in the car. Twice. Good times.

On a side note, this is one of the reasons I love walking / exercising so much. It is that unencumbered time to think...and the adrenalin rush...that I'm addicted to. And oddly enough, I use it as trip planning time as well. Great minds and all that.

Perhaps if I'd have been planning less in my head I wouldn't have taken a tumble yesterday...sigh.

Alright, I'll do it. I've outed myself about so many other things: obsessive love of Jack Sparrow, addiction to Casey's Hot Dogs (and ALL that that entails), preservation through poncho wear, I might as well say it loud and proud.

I hope to join Tink and see her cross the finish line. Since I'll be about 6-7 months post partum, it's not realistic for me to join in on the race, but dagnabit, I want to be there!

And sweet Pete, I SO want you there.

However, I can tell you without hesitancy that if my mom were still alive, she'd have already booked everything, and would be the first person waiting at the finish line.

I'll be thinking of Momma every step of the way.

Think of it like the rain on the first night of our May trip.

Oh, so you'er saying my first visit to SAB should be...apocolyptic?!

I'm seriously debating ordering just potatoes. Is that wrong?

You're asking the wrong gal that question.

Um, yes, I'd like the Quattro Formaggi Potatoes. No, no entree, just potatoes, thank you very much. Now what do you have for dessert?

Reason #587 why you're awesomeness embodied.

I find that when I'm walking I think about Disney too. It helps me stay motivated for sure.

Just watch where you're putting your feet...more on that in an upcoming post.

Ahhhh, Riverside. Not that I have stayed there yet but I spent lots of time there in January and I find the vibe so very relaxing which will be great for after you race.

Well, all of the race weekend details are up, as well as the rates so I'll be spending more time at POR than I originally planned...and I'm perfectly ok with that.

It may be peak season that week but the crowd calendar is calling for mostly 1's and 2's! (down from a 9 on Marathon Saturday). I'm praying for a pin for that week

You and me both!

And YES, there WILL BE DISmeets !!!

I especially like the "leisurely" day you have planned for the after-race-day. Spa treatments are EXACTLY the ticket!! I'd be very interested in seeing what you end up doing- I'm still on the fence on whether to do it or not...

The spa day was the very first thing that I knew I'd do for sure when I started thinking about this trip.

Me? A princess?

Never.

All of your plans sound great. I hate though that they are having this during peak season. I so want to go for the Princess, but it's going to depend on the kind of rates they are offering. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Yeah, the rates are pretty gross, even with the race "discount". I'm going to have to switch things up a bit and play the wait and see game until they release any other discounts they might offer.

We are driving. god. help. us.

Having just spent 21 hours in the car over two days, twice, in one week, I feel your pain. And we were sans children (in our car, anyway).

The one and only time I have ever been to WDW we drove. It wasn't just my family either. We drove down from Maine to Florida in one conversion van with our pastors family. There were 4 in my family and 8 in theirs. So we had 8 kids ranging in age from 2 to 17 and 4 adults. Oh and by the way the pastors wife was 7 months pregnant at the time. I don't know what the adults were thinking but we all have great memories of that trip.

Holy. Cow.

Hope you've had a good vacation down here...you guys probably timed it just right because the heat down here has been unbearable lately and it has just now cooled down to somewhat normal temps. We've all been wondering who turned up the temperature on the sun. LOL

We had a fanTAStic time in your neck of the woods. I'll be posting a little mini-update today, I hope.

One dose of coming right up!! Tink, hope you feel better really soon!!!

Feeling better today, just sore and stiff.


Folks, I'm hoping to give you a little update today on my TN trip and my, er, accidents yesterday. I'll also be doing an update, probably tomorrow or Thursday, on the amended trip plans, now that the schedule for the race weekend is posted and it's different from what I thought it would be.

 

[All7OfUs]

Looking forward to it, Tink!

 

[Lady Lallie]

Can't wait to hear all the details!!!

 

[TarzansKat]

There are at least 587 reasons why I'm awesomeness embodied?

I'm feeling super special all of a sudden.

 

[Tinkerbellarella]

There are at least 587 reasons why I'm awesomeness embodied?

I'm feeling super special all of a sudden.

Oh no, my friend. You've got it all wrong.

There are thousands of reasons why you're awesomness embodied. That just happens to be reason # 587.

 

[If U Had Wings]

Was that an "accidents" plural I saw????

What in the world are you doing to yourself Ms Tink?

 

[TarzansKat]

Oh no, my friend. You've got it all wrong.

There are thousands of reasons why you're awesomness embodied. That just happens to be reason # 587.

Let the love fest begin!

I could seriously use the ego boost right now, believe me!

I feel like Jafar in Aladdin. "Tell me more about.....myself."

 

[Tinkerbellarella]

NOTE: The same update is being posted on both of my PTRs.

I've never been of the mind that the ONLY vacation is a Disney vacation. I enjoy every waking (and sleeping) second in the World, but I can also see the benefits of NOT spending time with the Mouse.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder and all that.

Besides, as a child I didn't have the opportunity to fall in love with the 'Disney trip ever year' mentality. Because, frankly, I went twice in the first 13 years of life. We didn't grow up with a lot of money in our house and so the two trips with my grandparents were truly treats. Instead, vacations were spent skiing in the winter (I could write a book solely about the now-hysterical family trips North) and either doing day trips or a week in the Lakes Region of NH in the summer. With a trip to Six Flags in NJ, Cedar Point in Sandusky or to Riverside in Agawam (NOSixFlags) thrown into the mix for variety.

So, whenever talk turns to vacation in the Tinkerbellarella household, I rarely think Disney when it comes to vacations that BF and I take together. And not just because he's been a proud, card-carrying member of the Anti-Disney Man Society. We simply usually end up doing lots of day trips. We've gone to see Cirque du Soleil shows. We've gone to NH. We've done Busch Gardens, Williamsburg. Last year was the Land in FL NOT belonging to the Mick. We've tried twice to go to Six Flags NJ but the first time got nixed because my car needed 4 new tires. The second time BF's car died. We're beginning to think we aren't supposed to ever go there together. Like, ever.

This year obviously became the Year of the Mouse in regards to one of our vacations, but what to do with the other 3? (BF and I have AWESOME time-off benefits. I get six weeks a year. He gets MORE THAN THAT. Jerk. Sometimes.) Our April vacation was spent dilly dallying around the house and doing day trips. It was wonderfully relaxing. And decided upon only because, well, we couldn't decide what to do. Not to mention the June/July and August vacations that were still up in the air.

We'd been tossing around, for some time, visiting BF's family in TN. If by some time you mean for two years. This year was the year it needed to happen. Yes, needed. BF's family history is fairly complex so here's the watered down, 18-minute sitcom without commercials version:

BF's father is one of 10 kiddos, some biological, some not. BF's grandfather is a self-made very wealthy person. But you'd never know it. They aren't overboard extravagant. He and his wife also have the biggest hearts I've ever seen. They'd had 6 kids of their own. When those kids were old enough, they decided they wanted to give some little boy a chance he'd never otherwise have. When they turned up at the orphanage, the nun in charge said she had the perfect little man for them, only there was a problem...he had two brothers. BF's grandmother (we call her Memere - pronounced "mem-ay" for the non-French) took one look and said, "Well then we'll just take all three of them." They then were surprised with one more daughter later in life. I could write reams of stories I've heard from BF's childhood and from his uncles' childhoods - hysterical, exciting, heartwarming, etc. For most of BF's life they lived here in SE MA. When he was in HS they bought and worked a 600 acre cattle/horse ranch in KY. Then they moved to FL and lived near Cocoa. Now they're on a 120 acre ranch in TN. And though it's been a charmed life it hasn't been without difficulty and heartache. Namely, in 2002 they lost their youngest daughter after a 4 year battle with lymphoma. She was my age. And now, BF's grandfather (Pepere - "pep-ay") is ill. This is a man who has lived more life in 82 years than some people could fit in THREE lifetimes. Knowing that his time might actually be winding down, it was simply TIME. BF hadn't seen them in 5 years.

So, we worked out the time (our June vacation: 6/27-7/5), who we'd travel with (BF's brother, SIL and their two girls) and how we'd get there (21 hours in two cars over 2 days). I won't lie. I was nervous. It would be the first time in our entire 12 years of knowing each other that I'd be spending significant time with this part of his family. And by family, I mean his grandparents and 3 of his aunts and uncles, all of the cousins (there are a lot), all of whom live in TN, and one of his uncles that was coming up to visit from FL. It was a little overwhelming.

Would they like me? Really like me? Even if I'm a self-proclaimed city princess and not the least bit a farm girl? Even if I'm a Yankee who likes Obama? Even if my idea of the perfect afternoon is being comfortably curled up with a good book and some sunshine and not racing around in the dirt on a four-wheeler?

Needless. Worrying.

This was one of the most wonderful vacations we've ever spent together. I could right a 28 chapter trip report to cover everything, but I'm not going to, so here are the highlights:

*21 hours in the car, even over 2 days, could be considered torture in some countries. BF and I considered it 21 hours of quality time with each other. And it was. Even the small hissy fit that was had by someone (if by someone you mean ME) somewhere on the NJ Turnpike because really, could they make that road any more difficult for my GPS to figure out??? We dubbed that our 10 minutes of "team building" exercises. Apparently I win the jobs of "team crier" and "team F-bomb dropper". The most beautiful part of the ride was driving through the Blue Ridge Mountains just South of Roanoke, VA, just after dawn as the mist was slowly creeping out of the valleys. Getting to eat at a Golden Corral also rocked. We heart Golden Corral. The worst part of the ride, other than the fact that I got the muscle cramp of the century on the way back, was the number of dead deer on the side of the highway. 16 on the way down. 3 on the way back. And yes, we counted, mostly because it brings me to tears.

*Bucksnort, TN. We're going to retire there. Because when I saw the exit sign, I just KNEW I was always meant to live in a town called Bucksnort.

*BF's grandparents were simply the best part of the trip for me. I can't say enough about them. They are just wonderful. I heard so many stories, learned so much about them (and myself!) and BF and not once did I feel uncomfortable. His Memere, in particular, touched my heart. We shared so many heart-to-hearts and private thoughts and laughs and tears. Ugh, I'm getting all choked up. I'm not ashamed to say that I shed tears the morning we left. I miss them like they are my own flesh and blood. And apparently they would miss us too. Memere called us 4 hours after we got in the car. And then at the end of our first driving day. And again the next day.

*BF's uncles and aunts. Any questions as to why BF is the way he is or where he gets certain tendencies from were answered in 5 short days. These are people who work hard and play hard. They love fiercely and fight loudly. Oh, and they love to tease. Believe me, I never heard the end of it when they discovered I was afraid of riding the four-wheeler. I DID do it. Once. And screamed the whole way. When BF finally pulled it to a stop in front of the house and I removed my claws from his abdomen he turned his head and said, "You do realize we never even did 30mph right?"

*The July 3rd 4th of July Celebration. Because we would be leaving at 6 a.m. on the 4th to begin our trip home, we had the 4th of July on the 3rd. Complete with lots of food (ribs, steaks, burgers, hot dogs, salad with ingredients fresh from the garden), a bonfire, karaoke, s'mores, sparklers and...FIREWORKS. They aren't legal here in MA but down there they sell them out of tents every few hundred feet on the side of the road. Almost $2K was spent on fireworks. And I'm talking the professional grade stuff. Our display (which was done safely and only by sober adults) rivaled that of anything I've ever seen outside of the World. BF and I were actually standing a good ways apart from the family, tending the bonfire, watching them go off together. Very romantical. I can honestly say at that moment in time I was completely enamored with where I was and who I am and who I was with.

*Watermelon. Sold off the back of people's pick-up trucks. For $3 for a WHOLE watermelon. I'm surprised my mouth isn't permanently stained pink. NOM!

*BF's uncle's dog Sprocket. I won't lie. I tried to smuggle him into the packed car. Part pitbull and part rat terrier, this was the most loveable, brave and intelligent dog I've ever met.

*Watching "The Hangover" with BF's uncle and cousins. As NOTHING in that move is DIS-appropriate, I won't say much. For those of you who have seen it, I can say that it was made even more hilarious when Pepere walked in at the exact moment Ken Jeong launched himself out of the trunk. Awkward!

*Sonic. Why doesn't New England have more Sonics??? I think the closest one to me is in Pembroke. Too far.

*Sitting on the front porch and watching the bats dive-bombing the mosquitos and beetles as twilight settled. Then watching the day really give way into the night with the arrival of the fireflies.

*Driving 45 minutes to have dinner and see a movie. Because really, that's the closest "city". And it certainly wasn't a "city" by my standards (think Providence and Boston). They considered it a city because it had more than 1 set of stoplights. It just really opened my eyes to another way of life. Time passes differently, different things are important, and movies are CHEAP! It cost us $16.50 to see a 7:00 p.m. showing of The Last Airbender. That would've cost us $22 at home! But seriously, the simplicity of life there was refreshing.

*The free puppies outside Wal-Mart. We almost brought one home. If I'd brought out the big guns (read: my big, round, pleading baby-blue "PLEASE" stare), our household would be +1 at the moment. But frankly I was scared to think of 21 hours in the car with an 8 week old pup. ::shiver:: The whole experience almost endeared me to Wal-Mart.........'s parking lot. Other than that, the two visits we had to make there were like Chinese water torture. I was more interested in trying to procure everything we needed from the local Piggly Wiggly. Seriously? They carry your groceries to your car for you. I thought BF's head was going to pop with embarrasment.

*Every single time Memere slapped BF upside the head. She does it to everyone (gently) and I began to recognize it as LOVE. LOL

*"Visiting" 11 states (though we were in the car for almost all of them). Some I'd been through many times (MA, RI, CT, NY, NJ). Some were completely new (PA, MD, WV, VA, TN, MS). And for those of you wondering, we were in MS to see the movie and have dinner. The town where BF's family live is at the very bottom of the state, 2 hours from Nashville and 2 hours from Memphis and only 45 min. from MS and AL. (ZZUB, we "Roll Tide'd" in the car just for you when we saw the sign for Alabama!)

Oh my gosh, I just realized there is SO MUCH MORE I could write, but this has already become a much bigger animal than I'd anticipated. And I still want to share with you my H-E-DoubleHockeySticks day yesterday. So, to sum up, there is NOTHING about this trip I would've changed except to have made it longer. I'm SO GLAD we went, on a million levels. And personally so grateful that BF got to have that time with his Pepere.

Now, this post was supposed to have gone up yesterday. But yesterday had other plans. And I, in retrospect, was not a fan.

I'd had a really busy week. We returned to work the day after coming home and catch-up has been crazy-busy. We had a fairly full weekend as well. As a matter of fact, today is my first day even opening the DISBoards page. I was looking forward to some semblance of normal yesterday.

Ha.

I started the day with a walk, part of my training for the 1/2 Marathon next February. And took a spill. A painful, bloody spill. There is a house on our street that is, well, not well kept. The people that own it have an asphalt driveway but, for some reason unbeknownst to me, they always have gravel spilling out of the bottom of their driveway onto the sidewalk and into the street. Big gravel, not the tiny, sandy stuff. Actual rocks. I'm always careful when I walk by there. Yesterday, though, the gravel had my number. A stone turned just so under my foot and had my flying forward and down. My phone and keys went skidding out (cracking my phone's face...grrrr), and I land first on my right hand and knee (I'm right handed) and then skidding on my left hand and knee. I've got road rash to the nth degree on my left palm, though my left knee is only lightly bruised. My right palm, the meaty part near my thumb, landed hard right onto the sharp edge of a rock. While it didn't break the skin, I also couldn't move my thumb all that much. And today my palm is a lovely shade of lavender. My right knee got pretty scraped up and a little bruised.

Not a nice way to start the day.

After BF helped me clean up, ice my hand, convince me NOT to just go back to bed, and get ready for work (he's such a lovey...mostly) I continued my day. Where I promptly missed my train by 30 seconds and had to sit in my car for a half hour waiting for the next one.

I wish that was the end of the story.

When I finally got into the city and was walking through the outside part of the train station, I was doing so very carefully as the platforms were still wet and very slippery from the weekend's rain.

Mhmm.

I know you see where this is going.

Despite all of my care, I soon found myself hurtling toward the pavement for the second time in almost as many hours. And guess where I landed?

Yes, on my right hand and knee.

I would describe the pain as....EXPLOSIVE.

Thankfully some kind people stopped and helped me limp into the station. One woman stayed with me to make sure I was ok and she even stayed and listened as I practically incoherently babbled about how I'd already fallen once that day. She offered me cab fare to get to work when she found out I was going to walk. I thanked her but declined.

I should've taken her up on that.

While limping pathetically to work, I stopped into CVS for bandages and bacitracin. At that point I was feeling so pitiful, had just fought with BF on the phone and figured what could possibly happen next?

Figures.

NEVER THINK THAT.

And no, I didn't fall.

The CVS I was at is a very small, compact store. It's in the Financial District and really just sells the essentials. All the aisles are short and cramped. It just so happens the aisle that houses the band-aids also houses the home pregnancy tests. I reached the aisle to discover a young girl, seated on the floor in front of the tests, crying hysterically and babbling away in Spanish to someone on her cell phone, boxes all over the floor in front of her.

And guess who needs to ask her to move?

Suddenly my bloody knee and swelling hand didn't seem so important.

I felt so bad as I very quietly said "Excuse me" so I could snatch up my box of "Active Wear", legal-paper-sized bandages and my bulk tube of anti-bacterial medicine.

I'm happy to report that the day went more smoothly after that and today I'm feeling much better, if still stiff and sore. And I'm ready to move forward with everything in my week. Including my PTRs. Now that I've updated you on all things non-Disney from the past two weeks or so, you should have a trip-related update in the next couple of days. I hope everyone had a fantastic 4th and is looking forward to the second half of summer. I know many of you have your own trips just passed or quickly approaching - have fun! And keep stopping in to see what's new and say hi. Lots of fun things in store....

 

[Tinkerbellarella]

Was that an "accidents" plural I saw????

AccidentS. Si.

I feel like Jafar in Aladdin. "Tell me more about.....myself."

 

[If U Had Wings]

I'm so glad that you had such a great vacation. It sounds absolutely wonderful!

I'm convinced that accidents always fall in pairs. At least that's how mine always seem to fall. Hope your able to get lots of rest for that leg and hand!

 

[pooh'smate]

I am glad to hear you had a great trip.
I am sorry to hear about your accidents. I like IUHW believe they happen in pairs because that is how it works for me.

 

[Lady Lallie]

I thought I responded to this yesterday. I did in my head anyways.

Sounds like you had a fabulous time in TN! I would love a warm fuzzy Family vacation like that, kwim? Those are good times.

I'm sorry about your accidents. It just wasn't you day to be walking.

 

[Tinkerbellarella]

Hey all!

I'll be updating soon. I'm just waiting to get my final ok's at work for the time off and then I'll be calling to register for the race and make my initial travel reservations. There have been some changes but I'll fill you all in once things are more definite.

In the meantime, the training and the weight loss are going well!

Sit tight!

(And happy Tuesday!)

 

[Tinkerbellarella]

Question, question who's got a question?



I do.

I've had some ideas rolling around in my head about accommodations for this trip and so my question is this...

Have any of you rented or know someone who's rented DVC points?

I'm looking for any and all info. you might have. I've been poking around on the DVC Rent/Trade boards and made a rather interesting discovery with regards to pricing for this trip. Namely, I could stay in a studio at AKV for the week for less than a Mod, at the current point prices. I could even stay at VWL for less, but AK is an official race resort, which was why I was honed in there.

Thanks in advance for any and all advice!

 

[All7OfUs]

I wish I could help you out here, Tink, but can't. However, being as in the dark as you, I'd love to see the answers that come in, as well!! This sounds very intriguing indeed!!!

 

[Tinkerbellarella]

I wish I could help you out here, Tink, but can't. However, being as in the dark as you, I'd love to see the answers that come in, as well!! This sounds very intriguing indeed!!!

I'll try to share what I learn here.

Gee...if only one of my readers would buy DVC so I could rent from them...sigh. Get on that guys!



Kidding, of course.

Now...off to stalk the DVC boards.

 

[Pollito916]

I rented DVC points from someone on the DVC boards here, about 5 years ago. It was a good experience for me. I think I paid 1/2 up front when she made the reservation (with my room requests), then 1/2 a month later or so.

 

[trixiequilts]

We rented points for our last trip and LOVED it. I found someone here on the Rent/Trade boards who was wonderful to work with. I was very nervous about doing it at first.

There IS risk involved and I would absolutely demand a contract of some sort. But the deals that can be had are amazing! We stayed at AKL and paid significantly less than a moderate would have been, especially when you add in the taxes that you pay when booking a mod through CRO.

I think I gave him a $200 deposit when he booked the room and the rest of it at a later time.

The only reason we aren't doing it for our next trip is because free dining is being offered and that saves us more than renting points does. But it was a tough decision!

If you have more questions, feel free to ask. Good luck!