Playing Sommelier, Trailer Park Boys, Playing with Fire, First Time Camping!

A few weeks ago, fancy pants wine rep Shawn had an event called Wine on the Water. I think she thought she only had one table to staff and gave all of her employees the night off. She had three tables. And a lot of wine to pour. So Amanda and I pitch hit for her and helped her out! We got free food. And wine. I faked a lot of wine intel to a bunch of drunk slobs. It was fun. 

slightly oaky, a hint of vanilla, and just the faintest whisper of cherries

That week, I made good on Tommy's birthday present! In July, I asked if he'd like me to go see the Trailer Park Boys with him as his special birthday treat. I even offered to find and buy the tickets. He agreed eagerly! But then I couldn't find good tickets. So, he went and bought the tickets (for his birthday) himself. But I still was promised to go! Off we are, to see the Trailer Park Boys High, Drunk and Unemployed Tour! Right on!

but first i take a pic with the man in the rowboat while tommy gets cash

tommy is excited about him some trailer park boys!

Yeah. I left at intermission and caught a cab home. I tried. Sorta. 


The East Tennessee Society of Professional Journalists decided to break out of the mold and have a social event as opposed to a learning session or meeting. We decided a bonfire would be just the ticket! 

journalists, artists, pr professionals, executive directors, executive assistants, veterinarians UNITE!!

Adina was kind enough to invite us all out to her beautiful farm! Um... she created a blazing inferno. Seriously. Almost no one ate because you couldn't get close enough to the fire. It was like the surface of the sun. 

ETSPJ Board President, Amanda, intends to rule this year with a big stick. Well. Rather with a pitchfork so watch out! Robert's Rules of Order WILL be followed!

rawr!

and tommy.... well.... tommy... he says DEVIIIIIIIIILSSS!!!!

Next, I go CAMPING! I slept in a tent for my very first time!

It's Amanda's birthday weekend and we went for a camping trip with a big group of gals over in Hot Springs, NC. On the way over I remembered from past trips that we pass by a biker bar right around the state line, and about ten miles before we crossed I mentioned this little tidbit to Amanda and dared her to go in for a beer with me. After a few miles and minutes of "should we/shouldn't we?" we decided to brave it and never tell our parents what we had done. 

Ahem. They were closed. I found out because when I opened the screen door to see the hours of an eatery (closed at 2 PM on a Saturday) and the inner door was snapped open and was told in no uncertain terms that they were closed. But, while we were taking this picture a few steps away at the state line:

a biker came up and was immediately invited inside. well i never! in my life! that's a case of profiling if i ever saw one! PLEASE.

We recovered from our snub, and we were off to Hot Springs! Camping was fun... but I was scared to spend the night outside. Especially when I saw THIS: 

yeah. and it's almost halloween. and walking dead is back on THAT'S RIGHT. still hating on the zombies. truly, tonight on my way home from work i saw a man standing in the middle of the road holding (of all things) a leaf rake with his back toward me. as i approached him i kept thinking, what's he doing? what's he staring at? on the ground? with his hunched back and all defeated like? it's almost as if he's.... and YES FOR LIKE TWO SPLIT SECONDS I THOUGHT HE WAS A ZOMBIE. but then i remembered zombies aren't real. right? not real, right? zombies? 

Continuing in her pyro tradition:

amanda makes a fire. i was a good assistant and stocked her up all night on firewood from the woods! seriously, i'll never get voted off of survivor for not helping gather wood.

And we ate food cooked on a FIRE!

i only worried a little about botchulism and ptomaine poisoning

These girls are serious outdoor-type. I merely fake it when in the wilderness. When it came time to gather round the fire to settle in for a good old hen talk, I bashedly toed a cooler to the circle while the girls all spread out on comfy camp chairs. When someone noticed, I had to 'fess up that I hadn't brought a camp chair. Because I didn't have one. And I was sharing Amanda's tent. Because I didn't have one. And... that tonight would be the first night that I'd ever spent the night inside a tent. To a person, they were all astounded to hear me make such a declaration. Please meet the whole motley crue:

sandy (i can't find you on FB, BTW), helen, amanda, belinda, stacy, kim and moi

Amanda and I "toast" her birthday weekend, HAHAHA puns are funny.

mum, i love my sweater that you made for dipsey back in 19-tickety tick that i stole from him in high school! i think you will agree that it has been put to good use.

look how perfectly toasted her marshmallow is!! mine are always half burned, half raw.

me and belinda snug as bugs in rugs in our warm gear and by the fire!

And if you can see through the woodsmoke:

here we are all gathered by the fire talking about BOYS! if you're doing the math - i spent two consecutive evenings at fires. sunday when i woke up hacking up a lung and complaining that i felt like i smoked a pack of cigarettes, amanda made the comment that well... two nights, two fires. do the math.

I was very brave! Even when I went to use the facilities and found this: 

AAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!

Despite my mother's warnings that I would wake up with frostbite (Mama!) I woke up toasty warm to wish Amanda Happy 33rd Birthday. 

first night in a tent! i hit the pillow snoring and didn't wake up till sunrise. ok, i confess, it was 9.

Then, as if SUPPER on a fire wasn't enough, we had BREAKFAST on a fire!

scrambling eggs with stacy's itty bitty whisk

Then time to break down camp:

break down camp.... i sound like a pro, don't i? i forgot to take a picture of the tent from the outside, but here is where we slept.

And then we went to the Hot Springs!

glub glub glub, fun in a tub!

Amanda's off and running into 33 with wild abandon! 

Thank you ladies for including me on a fun new adventure. Next girls camping weekend is going to be me teaching everyone how to sew! I didn't know how to camp, they don't know how to sew. We all can learn from each other something new, right? And YES I KNOW how high school musical that sounds SHUT UP. But we're all in this together. And it shows. When we stand. Hand in hand, we can MAKE IT! 

10-4,

M