On the 3 1/2 drive from Bartlesville to Eureka Springs, Sunshine was getting a case of nerves, which were getting progressively worse as we got closer to our destination. If you’ve never been to Eureka Springs, it is a beautiful city. It is also just about impossible to get to!
The roads to Eureka Springs, especially from the north and west, are pretty much devoid of any straight stretches, as they are mountain roads that wind their way over the ridges and through the valleys. Let’s just say that maps do not do these roads justice. On the way their, we traveled on the north side of the state line on Missouri Route 90. Let’s just say that is not a good choice when your passenger gets sick on roller coasters.
Route 90 ranks as one of the twistiest and windiest highways I have ever driven, and I have driven well over a half-a-million miles. On the thirty-or-so miles we drove, I think we counted two passing zones; that’s it. It not only twists and turns, it goes up and down some steep hills while doing so. To top of the fun, it tilts as it twists, too, just like a roller coaster. That presented a bit of a problem. As we travelled further and further down 90, Sunshine felt more and more like she was going to lose her breakfast, except that in her excitement she had forgotten to eat breakfast, which only enhanced her feelings of nausea.
There is about a ten mile stretch of Missouri Hwy. 37 between Hwy. 90 and U.S. 62 in Gateway, Arkansas, that isn’t too bad, and Sunshine was starting to feel better when we hit the home stretch. U.S. 62 between Gateway and Eureka Springs is a very pretty drive, but a very curvy one, as well. So here we are driving U.S. 62, and Sunshine is once again feeling a bit green around the gills. In between shouts of “Don’t they know how to build straight roads in this place?” and “We’re above the trees! Don’t they know what guardrail is?”, I kept trying to distract her with the view, which only made it worse, as every time she admired the view, the worse she felt.
We finally made it, got our marriage license, ate a romantic lunch at McDonald’s, got married, and set out to see the town for a couple of hours. What a difference a couple of hours makes! After a couple of hours in Eureka Springs, it was a completely different Sunshine! We went back out U.S. 62 the way we came, and Sunshine enjoyed the view, enjoyed the scenery, and understood why I like the mountains so much. When we got back, we both agreed that even though it wasn’t a fancy wedding, and even though we didn’t get a honeymoon, we both enjoyed our wedding day in Eureka Springs; it will be a memory we will cherish for the rest of our lives!
Moved By Meat Loaf
Thursday, October 29th, 2009Number 1 and I went to Number 2′s fall choir concert last week. As we sat up in the balcony, watching the various choirs performed, we noticed that the all of the boys in the co-ed choir looked like doofuses, with the exception of one boy – a friend of Number 2′s who looks like Meat Loaf. When we met up with Number 2 after the performance, she was with a couple of her female friends, and we relayed our observation, which was greeted with disgust by her friends.
“You think he looks like meatloaf? That’s not nice!”
“Not meatloaf the food. Meat Loaf the singer.”
“Oh. Who’s that?”
Sunday, in need of help moving Sunshine’s heavy furniture from her apartment to the house, Number 2 recruited her friend. When I told him of my observation from the concert, he beamed proudly. As a singer, he knew who I was referring to, and was proud of the comparison. Really, if you’ve ever listened to “Bat Out Of Hell”, you’d understand that to be compared to the talented Meat Loaf is a compliment.
We arrived at the house, and the first order of business was to unload some heavy dressers from the trailer and carry some heavy dressers up the half-flight of stairs into the house and then up the full-flight of stairs to the bedrooms. Number 2 cautioned Meat Loaf that the dressers were heavy and would require two people, and then Meat Loaf proceeded to lift a dresser by himself! Holy crap! Meat Loaf not only can sing, but is built like an ox!
With the much appreciated help of Meat Loaf (and later on, his brother and another friend), Sunshine and I were able to successfully transport all of her big and heavy furniture from her place to the house without either one of us having to suffer back strain!
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