2004-10-20

(click on image to see the full-sized version) My mother and the spud slept in a little, not getting up until almost 8. Then the spud and I took turns taking showers (oh my god, I can’t believe I haven’t mentioned the shower yet – the water pressure in the shower was incredibly strong; I thought it was going to fling me against the wall the first time I stepped into the shower. It was AWESOME.) and we sat around and watched TV for a while (my mother does love that Katie Couric) and then we went to breakfast. This time, we did the Shoney’s buffet (no yummy little pastries! Sob!) and I grabbed the check from my father when it came, because there’s no damn reason he needs to pay for EVERY meal, is there? Then, since none of us really wanted to go back to the apartment, we did some driving around, and we hit a strip somewhere in Myrtle Beach that had many of the same kind of shops and arcades that Gatlinburg does. In fact, Gatlinburg and Myrtle Beach both have the Alabama Theatre, the Dixie Stampede, and The Fudgery, among other things. I started referring to Myrtle Beach as “Gatlinburg by the ocean.” After driving around for a while, we went back to the apartment, watched The View (another show my mother loves), and once that was over we decided to go… shopping, of course! There were some shops at Barefoot Landing we hadn’t made it into, so we decided to go back there. We shopped for a few hours – I bought a sweatshirt at Big Dog – and then decided to go into The Fudgery for a sample of fudge. Only they were about to put on a show (they apparently do a whole song and dance while they make fudge, and at the end they’ll give you a sample, but not before you’re suckered in by the sales pitch) so we stayed and watched that, and then because we’re big stupid suckers, my mother and I each bought something like 3 1/2 pounds of fudge because it was such! a great! deal! Buy three slices, get three free! How can you possibly pass that up?! We’re suckers. Because who the holy hell needs six 1/2-pound slices of fudge? I had actually decided I would “accidentally” leave the fudge in the refrigerator when we left Thursday morning, but my mother was on to my tricks and made sure she got up before I left, and took the fudge out of the refrigerator and put it by my purse so I wouldn’t forget it. I ended up tossing it in the trash at the gas station, because like I said, who the hell needs that much fudge? Anyway, we bought our fudge and did a little more shopping, then went back to the apartment, where my father had been spending the day sitting on the balcony and reading.

(click on image to see the full-sized version)
(click on image to see the full-sized version)
We decided to go for a walk on the beach, and for once I left the camera at home, because I didn’t want to drop it in the sand or get it wet. I wish I’d brought it with me, though, because as we were walking back toward the apartment, these two old guys were walking on the beach with their elderly, tiny dog who I swear to god looked like a little toy wind-up dog. He either didn’t like the feel of sand on his feet or was very arthritic, because he was moving very, very slowly. Anyway, we ended up spending about an hour and a half walking on the beach. The spud gathered up another ton of shells, and we found a dead shrimp on the beach (but didn’t eat it). We all got splashed a few times. It was just a really nice afternoon. We headed back to the apartment and got ready for dinner. My parents had decided they wanted to celebrate the spud’s birthday (it’s on the 26th), so they told her we could go wherever she wanted to go for dinner. She decided she wanted Chinese food (it’s her favorite) and while we were out shopping we’d seen a Chinese restaurant with a buffet, so that’s where we ended going.
Highly recommended. In the Galleria shopping center on North King’s Highway.
It was one of the better Chinese restaurants I’ve been to. They had almost any kind of food you could want (except crab rangoon. Sob!). The spud tried fried squid and said it was really good, so I gave it a try. It tastes just like crab to me, only a little chewier, and I liked it enough to go back up to the buffet and get some more. After dinner, we drove around a little more and then went back to the apartment, where my father brought a giant chocolate chip cookie with “Happy birthday!” on it in frosting. He stuck a couple of candles in it, the spud blew out the candles, and then she opened presents from my parents. She got two skirt-and-shirt outfits, and a pair of boots that I just might have to steal for myself.
We ate our pieces of the giant cookie (and ice cream too, of course!), then cleared the table and the spud and my father watched TV in the living room, my mother watched TV in her room, and I laid on my bed and read until it was time to talk to Fred. Then the spud and I were off to bed. Did I mention that the bed I slept in was too soft and that I didn’t sleep worth a crap the entire time we were in Myrtle Beach? It certainly makes me appreciate my own bed, that’s for sure. The last day of Myrtle Beach tomorrow!
* * *
I always imagine that if Spanky were a person, he’d sound like Lenny from Laverne & Shirley, walking into the room and saying “Heddo!” He has that same blank look on his face, that’s for sure. But does that make Meester Boogers Squiggy?
]]>

28 thoughts on “2004-10-20”

  2. I love the Spuds boots! Those are adorable! Which only serves to remind me that me AND the boys need new boots. *goes off to spend money*

  3. I can’t believe you threw away fudge. Don’t you know you could have raffled it off on your site? : )

  4. Ladybug – that never occurred to me. Next time I’ll know better! 😉
    Lex – she turns 16 next Tuesday. But yeah, she was not quite 11 when I started the site! Hard to believe…

  6. So since the Spud had her learner’s permit, why did she not drive part of the way to the beach? That’s the best way to get someone started. The long-straight drive down the highway. 🙂
    Your right, Spanky is Lenny. I’m not sure about Mr Boogers being Squiggy though. I think he’s more like Carmen the Italian Stallion and Miz Poo is most definitely Laverne! Neither would hesitate to give someone the slap down!

  7. Val – ’cause she would have driven 5 mph the entire way and refused to pass anyone (not that you could pass someone on the interstate going 5 mph, but you know what I mean…)
    Maybe Spot’s Squiggy? He’s not outgoing enough, though. Hmm. We have no Squiggy and no Shirley. I think this means we need more cats!

  9. Hmmm. Makes sense. I was a freak when I first started driving. The 2nd time I ever drove a car was in driver’s ed and we were “highway driving” and “passing”. I managed 45 mph with the coaxing of the instructor. When the car I was supposed pass had to hit the brakes for me to catch up, the instructor literally pushed my leg down to get me to go faster. Talk about terror!
    I was supposed to practice driving between my first dr. ed. class and this one, but I feared the father and did not ask. In the end, the neighbor taught me to drive. Mom was a freak and dad bellowed too much!
    I agree on the need for more cats. I have 4 and my condo is much smaller and you clean the litter boxes much more than I do!
    Ok yeah – What did you and Fred break up over on May 10, 1996?

  10. Your mom’s comment about the Great Wall of China not being there anymore just about made me snort diet coke onto my monitor. What did she say when you all corrected her?
    Bwah ha!

  11. There’s a Fudgery in The Riverwalk in New Orleans and my BF and I got sucked in getting 6 pounds also one year. We brought it home, wrapped it up and put it away in the pantry thinking we’d eat a little at a time. But then we forgot about it and about 4 months later I was cleaning the pantry out and found it. It was pretty dry and crumbly and all I could think was what a waste the money was.
    Our local chinese buffet (King’s Buffet) has gotten busted twice now for selling cats and dogs as their food. Yep, how absolutely horrific is that? They got busted once and shut down, then reopened about a month later. In less then 4 months I think it was an alarm went off during the night and when the cops got there to check it out they walk in the kitchen and see skinned cats and dogs hanging in the cooler. Got shut down again. Hasn’t turned me off of chinese, just buffet chinese places. AFter the first time my BF’s dad was told about it and he still went back all the time, shudder!
    On a lighter note Spanky is like my Pogo, just a pretty, pretty boy. I call Pogo my living stuffed kitty.

  12. Laurie: She said “Oh, right. I knew that!” Bwah!
    Anonymous: Oh, don’t tell me stuff like that. I love Chinese food! I’m going to have to force myself not to think about it… (Hmm. Wonder if that’s where Mr. Fancypants went??)

  13. W-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-hyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy would you throw away fudge????
    WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY????
    Now I REALLY want fudge!

  14. Bonnie: Because I’m a godless heathen, OF COURSE. All godless heathens are required to throw away fudge as part of their training, didn’t you know that?
    (Plus, after several pieces over the course of two days, I got really sick of it.)

  16. When I first started driving, and had my dad AND my mom in the car for the first time (my dad taught me how to drive), I got on the highway and was about to hit the guy in front of me. My parents yelled “slow down!” and I said calmly, “I thought you weren’t supposed to break on the highway.” Ooops. Talk about dumb! ps – My birthday is on the 26th, too. Yay for Scorpios!

  17. Hi Robyn,
    Just wondering if you and Fred watched “The Biggest Loser” show last night & what you thought of it!

  20. Wow! I can’t believe the Spud is 16!!! Love the boots btw!! Robyn, your daughter is so beautiful! You are soooo lucky she isn’t one of those low rise jean, low cut belly bearing top wearing teens! I hope one day I can say the same! 🙂

  21. It has already been over a year since I began reading your blog. Sooooo very happy to know your brother and his wife so the connection could be made.
    I would love to see a collage of all of your Bitchypoo headers that readers have sent you for however long they’ve been sending them. Would you consider doing that providing you still have them?

  22. Love the photos of the beach you have been sharing. I saved a few for my desktop. My daughter just may end up having her baby on Spud’s birthday. Her due date is the 30th. But she went to the doctor yesterday and he said her baby is BIG and he wanted her to go home and jiggle it loose before the next visit which is the 26th.

  23. Threw the fudge away? You could have taken it home and put it in the freezer for your “anything goes” Fridays! Geez Robyn, what a waste! Still, sounds like you both had a good time – and you got along with your Mom, too.

  24. Just wanted to let you know that the fudge shop in Nashville Indiana told me to never ever ever put fudge in the refrigerator. The lady says is crystalizes the sugar and makes the fudge gritty.

  25. LoriAZ – Yeah, that would be pretty neat to do. I’ll put it on my list, so it’ll probably be a while. 🙂
    Erin – Jiggle it loose? Is it that easy? Hee!
    Elaine T – That would explain why it wasn’t very good! It was definitely gritty. We couldn’t leave it out, though, because ants were making regular trips into the kitchen to make sure we hadn’t left anything out.

  27. Robyn-
    My sister and I hiked about 6 miles of The Great Wall this summer. You guys should do it! Its awesome and Fred would have a blast! The Great Wall is the ultimate hiking experience (or you could take a tourist bus up the side of the mountain…)
    One of these days I’m going to publish that journal entry and all the pictures.
    http://www.walktheearth.com

  28. Pingback: Bitchypoo » Tending to the left

Comments are closed.