So as usual it's been quite some time since we've really updated the blog and of course there is no good excuse as for why...So far this semester on the road has been quite eventful. Since our near drowning in IL mother nature has yet to give us break. We've already mentioned the record lows in SD and Chicago style blizzard that left Leroy under about a foot of snow. Since then we've survived an Arkansas tornado, prairie winds, and torrential downpours. We have yet to let the weather get us down, and are pleased to inform you that the southern sunshine has finally found us here in Austin, Tx. We are currently blogging from a city park where we are one with mother earth:) as our new hippie friend Athui would say, "Thank you earth for being such a solid mother!"
PLEASE PUSH REWIND TO VIEW THIS BLOG:) REWIND REWIND REWIND.....
So we left the windy city for the dirty south, and to be honest we weren't sure what to expect having never really spent much time in Arkansas!
We were sure to make a stop in Bentonville, the home of the Wal-Mart corportation finding the headquarters was a task we didn't accomplish, but we did get a peek at the first wal-mart store in the downtown district. Our school tour took us to Ozark AR, where our schools were located on both Bear Paw Rd and Hillbilly Lane! The drives from the hotel to the schools put a whole new meaning to the term "dirty south." However the students that we met while doing the shows were some of the most helpful and nicest groups we've encountered thus far. Our second day in AR, brought with it torrential rains, and severe thunderstorms. The schools in AR or at least those that we visited had gyms that weren't connected to the school. So the rainy day called for some last minute rearranging and configuring of where the assemblies would be held. First we would be setting up in the "old gym" which had a connecting canopy, so once this was decided our Junior High helpers came in to help us and then the Thunderstorm storm started! It was raining so hard on the metal roof that we couldn't even hear each other talk! The storm came right over us and the boys told us with certainty that the lightening was striking the parking lot right outside the gym, and that last year the gym was struck by lightening! Melissa and I were seriously scared, but didn't let on:) Of course that wasn't the end of our problems because during the show our middle projector just up and quit on us! This of course required a pause in the show while we troubleshooted the problem. Frantically we got it to work again only to have it quit a few minutes later! With it back on once again the show ended without any further problems. Much to our surprise we opened the gym doors to a beautiful Arkansas blue sky! With the problems behind us we took a little break and then headed to Hillbilly Lane for our afternoon show. Of course the blue skies didn't last long and with the increasing clouds came the possibilities of more Storms. Once again we found the gym across the parking lot, and another concerned principal! This time the county was under a Tornado Watch which was news to us! We set up under the understanding that if the weather conditions changed or if it began raining the show would be cancelled and we'd pack it up. The gym of this school out in the Ozarks was like none other that we had seen! It had stadium seating, a megatron score board, special student seating, a practice gym, indoor track, cheerleading practice rooms, locker rooms just like the pros, and so much more! The show went on, but of course during the show it began to rain! We finished the show and the students waited out the rain before going back over to finish the day. We packed it up and began to head to Little Rock under a light drizzle. This is when our already crazy day took a turn for the worse!!! While on Interstate 40E it began to downpour like we had never experienced before this made for some slippery road conditions! In a matter of seconds we found ourselves with a front row view of an accident! Seconds after being passed by a conversion van we saw it hydroplane, slide, spin, and almost completely roll out of control from the middle median to the shoulder luckily being stopped by the guard rail which we later discovered was there because of a very big drop off! My defensive driving skills were put to the test and my adrenaline shot through the roof! The strangest thing was the whole time Melissa and I were both temporarily mute! I think it was the surreal shock of what we were experiencing. I am thankful to God to report that we are fine and so is Leroy. We were able to stop in time and pulled over to help. To cut to the chase we called 911, got soaked while checking on the man who was in the van, waited for the police, gave them a quick statement, and then off we drove to find a place to change and wait out the rain! If you thought this was the ending you'd be wrong!!! While getting our happy hour drinks from a Sonic drive in the city's tornado warning siren went off!! So we sought shelter at a McDonald's nearby:) We went into use the bathrooms to change only to find that all of the employee's were seeking shelter in the bathrooms and the kitchen was closed! So with the whole place in a buzz we calmly got online to check the weather and see what was going on. We found out that the area was under a Tornado warning and a tornado had touched down about 2 miles from where we were. With still like two more hours to go we discussed waiting out the warning and driving a little more or just getting a hotel where we were and getting up early in the morning to finish the drive. Getting a hotel won that debate, and thank God it did because as soon as we checked in and turned on the news we found out that a tornado had touched down and crossed over Interstate 40 just about where we would have been had we not witnessed the accident and had to stop to change!!! We were glued to the coverage and so thankful that God had taken control of the situation without us even knowing he had! So yes we survived the Arkansas Tornadoes which you can check out by googling them if you wish:) The next morning we woke up early and drove to Little Rock and actually got to see some of the devastation along the way. We then had a short stint in Oklahoma before we made our way to Dallas to hang out with our "ol' gang" for the weekend!
After that ordeal a weekend in Dallas was exactly what we needed! We spent the weekend with Becca touring her new digs in Ft. Worth, stayed the night with the Busch Clan and their new addition Zion, whom we met for the first time, and immediately fell in love with! We had lunch with Jed and his girlfriend, who we also met for the first time, and must say she is Erin and Melissa Approved:) ha ha. We met up with the always fun and random Rachel for a free night stay in the Candlewood Suites, Dallas. Finally finishing out the weekend with haircuts by our favorite stylist, Stephanie, and a birthday celebration dinner at Chuys for the always entertaining Rocky and his wife Lisa! It was a crazy quick trip, but fun nonetheless!
