A Weekend to Remember

I was going to blog about all the Christmas festivities in my life... putting up my first Christmas tree in my new house, playing for my church's Living Christmas Tree, my birthday, going to the WHITE HOUSE CHRISTMAS PARTY. But all that's going to have to wait. I have a story for you that you won't believe! Sorry it's kind of long but I promise I'm not making any of this up. Trust me, I'm not that creative.

Let's start on last Friday. The day after my birthday. I had to be at work at 3a because POTUS was in Copenhagen for none other than a climate change conference (which obviously I did not go with him). As I'm working very early in the morning, I keep looking at the weather forecast and realize that the DC area is going to get more than two feet of snow on the exact day I was planning to drive to the 'Noke for my Christmas vacation with my family. The last time we got a lot of snow, I was inside my house for about four or five days and I didn't want to miss out on quality time with the family!

So I decided to forego the much-needed afternoon nap and run home and pack and get on the road as soon as possible to hopefully beat out the snow. Unfortunately, things with the global warming deal were not happening as quickly as I thought they should have and I didn't get home until much later to start the packing process. I hadn't even begun to get ready for my trip home but I started throwing things into a suitcase and even did something I haven't done since college... I brought a basket of dirty laundry in my car. Time was of the essence. I gathered all the Christmas presents from under my tree and threw what seemed like half my possessions into my car for the trip home. After running a couple of much-needed errands, I was on the road by about 2:30p.

Things were going great. Traffic was somewhat moving and I was somewhat awake (minus about a ten minute stop for a power nap) until I got to Harrisonburg. That's when the first flakes fell. I was determined to drive as long as possible and hopefully get really close to home (my sister's house). Luckily I had enough sense to stop and get gas before things got really bad. That happened rather quickly. It got so bad so quickly that when my phone rang, I couldn't pick it up. For the record, I drive a VW Jetta. Not exactly a car known for its snow-maneuvering abilities. But my nameless car (I think I originally named her Judy the Jetta but it never stuck) did fairly good as long as I was following in the tracks of a big truck and was only going 15 miles per hour. It took me about an hour and a half of gripping my steering wheel so hard that my knuckles were really white and a lot of praying before I was actually scared of driving. I couldn't see anything in front of me and at one point I realized that all the trucks were getting off the road. I thought that was a sign for me to do the same. So at milepost 195 in Lexington, VA, I made a game time decision and pulled off the interstate.
There were three hotels to choose from although it was an hour wait to see if there were any vacancies on the ones right on the street level. So I parked my car in a random parking lot and repacked the essentials into a bag I could carry and hiked up a mountain (I am not exaggerating) to the Howard Johnson's hotel. I would hardly consider myself a hotel snob (except when traveling with POTUS) but at that moment, I was just very blessed not to be sleeping in my car on the side of the road like many, many people were forced to do.

The next morning was when the fun started. I woke up to about two feet of snow on the ground and instantly knew I wasn't going anywhere any time soon. So I went to breakfast at the HoJo's and was looking forward to real (relatively speaking) food. All I had had the day before were grapes and chocolate covered pretzels. And a chicken salad sandwich with an expiration date of January 2011 (it was the best option!!) from the gas station at the bottom of the mountain. I have never seen a lobby of a hotel so hopping. And I've been to a lot of hotels in my life. Hundreds of people were sitting in the lobby, each with their own story of survival! As I was in line for the waffle machine, I started talking with the people around me. We all shared our stories and quickly bonded. I sat down at a table with a girl named Karen. We chatted while we ate our waffles and eggs (in a completely unnatural form). She mentioned she had all wheel drive and was willing to drive me to the bottom of the hill to check on my car and estimate exactly how long it would take to dig out.

The next thing you know, I'm going to Walmart with virtually a stranger. The roads were horrendous (the interstate was closed so I really wasn't going anywhere any time soon) and I was just happy to make it to the Super Walmart to get some food. When we got there, it was a virtual ghost town. I've never seen a Walmart so empty. As we were going through the aisles, Karen decided to get some things she had forgotten so we were roaming the store. That's when I saw a sight that I will never ever in a million years forget. I saw a large overweight man with a long white beard who was only wearing a pair of dirty black pants. No shirt. No shoes. Oh and when I looked closer, I noticed his hands were handcuffed behind his back. And then I noticed that he had three or four armed sheriffs guarding him and walking him through the linens department. I nearly peed in my pants I was laughing so hard. Clearly this was not a good day for this could-be Santa. I got out my blackberry to take a picture but then I made eye contact with one of the armed sheriffs and knew that was probably not a good idea. It will truly go down as one of my life's regrets and a complete missed opportunity to be a part of peopleofwalmart.com. Before I could realize my mistake and try to take a picture, the sheriffs were putting clothes on him. Seriously. I cannot make this up.

After our lengthy trip to the Super Walmart, we headed back to the hotel. Karen received a phone call from her boyfriend and I could tell she needed her privacy so I went back to my room. A few hours later, she called me and wanted to go to dinner (despite getting food at the Super Walmart!) It was one of those times where I knew the right thing would be to go. On our way to find a restaurant opened, she asks if we can stop by Walmart again so she can get some paper or a card to send to her boyfriend who is serving 10 years in the state pen! They had had a fight. What do you say to that? Again, I can't make this stuff up!!!

We ended up eating at the Country Cookin' (which I haven't eat there since a young child with my grandmother) with a waitress named Cookie. Karen and I had a great conversation- she's quite the interesting person and I don't have time to share all the cool details of her life. I enjoyed the banana pudding and we ventured back to the HoJo's. Oh we met people at the Country Cookin' who had gotten stranded in their car and had slept overnight with two small kids in a snow covered snow. At that point, I realized how truly protected and blessed I was. Not only did I have a warm bed and hot shower, I had made a new friend and had quite the adventure!!! When I finally left on Sunday morning, I thanked Habeeb, the HoJo's desk manager who had taken such great care of all of us. He said the past two days had been life changing because everyone had been so polite and patient and working together as a team to help people get on with their journeys as quickly as possible. He said he saw the best in humankind. I wouldn't go as far as life changing but I did see the best in mankind and heck, it is definitely a weekend that I will never forget.

Nearly 48 hours after my journey began, I finally made it to my sister's house. The interstate was virtually clear and traffic was moving at fairly normal speeds. I got all the way home and my car got stuck in the unplowed street just feet away from the house. I just got out of the car and ran through the snow. I was close enough! Several of her neighbors helped get my car out of the middle of the street and I was just soooo thankful to be home!! I love my family but they are so normal compared to my unforgettable weekend!!