‘Break in the window’ Adventure!

Well it’s been awhile since I was able to write on our blog.  The weather is perfect here…mid 70’s.

Wednesday we did the ‘Alum Cave’ Trail which was a 5 mile (8km) hike.  We ended at the base of a large rock cave and made the mistake of climbing up a 50 foot loose rock face.  After slipping and sliding up the face, we reach the top only be told by others that we went up the wrong way!  We didn’t notice a trail that meandered up the rock face.  I guess we were the entertainment for the onlookers. After catching our breath, we had our lunch, and then came back….pictures to follow.   That evening we went to the ‘Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede’ show.  It was an awesome show to a packed house.  They feed you a meal and it is in an auditorium with a show with horses, wagons, buffalos, pig races, chicken chase, etc…..very entertaining.  The other unique experience of our meal…was we had NO utensils to eat our meal.  Yip…that’s right…eat with your fingers.  What did we eat you ask?  Hehe…first we had creamy vegetable soup, served in a small bowl with a handle so you could drink it,  with a hot home-made biscuit.  Then they came with a tender whole rotisserie chicken, then a herb-basted potato (half of a bake potato), hickory smoked barbecue pork loin, buttery corn on the cob and to top it all off….a flaky apple pastry.  Unlimited tea, coffe or Pepsi (Jerome & Tats…you could eat here…hehe)…no wine or spirits served at this event.

Thursday, we did the ‘Abrams Fall’ trail which was 5 miles also.  We ended at an 80ft waterfall…lovely…pictures to follow.  Jerry did his 12 km run today…hard to get away from hills here; but he got it done. I went for a drive to see Dollywood Amusement Park as it is closed for the season and only opens on March 19^th.   I only got to see her sign and huge empty parking lot (looked like the Disneyworld parking lot).  Then that evening we went to the “Smoky Mountain Opry”.   This was an awesome show…kind of like the shows at the Confederation Centre in Ch’town….but more elaborate and more variety for sure..ie two live tigers and a real horse were on stage..hehe.

NOW….we get to the heading of our blog…..hehe!

We get home around 11pm…walk to our room and CANNOT get in our room.  Both our swipe cards work…ie the green light comes on, but the door will not open.  Thank heavens for ‘night managers’….not so this time….he could not fix the door.  By this time, we found a blanket from our car to sit on as we had white pants on from the show; and we’re sitting outside our room as we needed to wait for him to come back with someone else.  That person could not fix it either…we then mentioned to him that maybe they could enter from our patio door as it was not locked but too high for a ladder (3^rd floor) but then they thought if no one was in the rooms next to us..they could enter from patio to patio.  In the meantime we have some ‘neighbors’ on one side who keep coming to their door to complain about the noise..i.e. the workers are banging on the door trying to open it, etc, and talking loud to each other. Finally I said, do you think we could get in through the window????  So he tries with his chisel and sprung the lock on the window….and VOILA!!  So this guy then says…I won’t be able to go through the window as he had bad arthritis..so no problem, in goes Jerry…I only wish I would have thought to take a picture of this.  I know…I can’t believe I forgot to take a picture but I was so glad to get inside that it completely left me,  to take a picture…hehe.  So Jerry gets inside, no…..the door still won’t open.  So at least we’re inside and they said in the morning they would have to call the locksmith folks.  So then he has to give me a lift and inside I go.  We’re tucked in for the night.  I know…some of you are saying….WHAT….no way out in case of fire…..no worries, we would have gone back out the window..hehe.

Well, now it is morning and they came here to fix the door; the first person comes in through our bedroom window, works at the door, needs to call another person, he has to come in through our bedroom window.  Now we have 4 people in our condo…can’t get out the door.  Too funny.  Finally they get the door off the hinges, replace the mechanism and VOILA we can get out now.  Hooray!  I at least remembered to take their picture while fixing the door…I’ll attach it.

OK…now I’ve bored you enough…hehe.  Today, Friday, will be a relaxation/packing day as we leave for Myrtle Beach tomorrow morning.

ps...the last picture attached is the infamous "Window"!!

Jerry’s Facts

Number of people and time to fix a broken door: four people for two hours

Best way to slide through a window: put blanket on the window sill, suck your belly in and slide, place your two hands perpendicular to your head to catch yourself as you hit the floor.

Some Expenses to Date:

Gas expenses: $205.90 Cdn

Grocery expenses: $369.38 Can (80% of groceries still left)

Toll expenses: $12.08 Cdn

# of wine bottles drank: 3

# of wine bottles remaining: 21

Conclusion: spend less time biking, running and walking and more time relaxing and drinking