Whirlwind Week...

So as of 3:30pm yesterday I arrived back in La Grande from my week of no sleep, study hard, practice, frustrate yourself until you finally get your aha moment, trip.

Last Sunday I started with no sleep, as my last post declared. Arrived at Dulles Airport, met Chelbie at the baggage claim, to find out our shuttle was going to be running a "tight schedule" since my plane was a 1/2 hour late, plus another 1/2 hour to gather bags etc... I couldn't understand the lady on the phone at the hotel to stand at the right shuttle letter, so was standing at 2A not 2H, oops. Luckily it all worked out and we made it to the hotel. The lobby was gorgeous but small, not a big deal as I figured we wouldn't be there often. Got all checked in and up to the room which was also small, also not a big deal. Then I saw it... the thing that got me VERY paranoid. A big flat beetle, crawling aimlessly across the wall. I screeched, not because of fear of the damn thing, but because BEETLES DON'T BELONG IN HOTEL ROOMS!!!! I REPEAT, THEY DO ... NOT ... BELONG! Chelbie threw in into the hallway dying of laughter at my hysterical proclamation. I repeated at least fifty times that they again, do not belong in hotel rooms, and I wouldn't see them on my side of the country in a hotel room of that price!

After that debacle was over I was then worried about bed bugs and whatever else might pop out. Luckily that was the only incident besides an unkempt bathroom floor (maids must have got tired of not cleaning the rest of the room, to clean the bathroom floor). Up at 6am the next morning to a nice but temperamental hot shower and out the door by 8:15 into the shuttle and over the 20 mile trip (one way) to Round Hill, VA to our seminar. Shuttle driver about killed us but we made it in one piece, somehow, and got invited in to only 2 other course mates for the week. 4 for the week meant more one on one time for each of us. Plus some decent coffee in the coffee pot and comfy couches to sit on. Our course mates were amazing and luckily we all were in the lower 20's bracket and got along great. Every day lunch was provided and it was always very appetizing, and we got hands on experience from day one, so all of us were happy to be in the very cold weather down at the barn, but only when the heaters were running. Our instructor was so nice that she even let us take her truck for the week so we didn't have to worry about finding a car rental company that would rent to two under 25'ers without charging an obscene amount. Especially since my record is a little less than squeaky clean. However, I got lost trying to get us back to Leesburg, at least 3 times, if not more. A few gas station attendants later we gave up and found food. We were at least on the right road, and we knew we were, but we were too hungry to drive up and down it 50 times trying to find the right hotel. We found this awesome BBQ joint with amazing food at good prices. I will miss this place. A definite stop in next time I find myself in Leesburg. However, reminder for any who do, DO NOT PUT THE HOOCHIE COOCHIE BBQ sauce on your pulled pork sandwhich. Your mouth will water, burn, and sear in pain, and your tongue will flap out like it has no will to live inside your mouth anymore. Obvious out of towners as we were, we attracted attention of some onlookers at the joint who proceeded to walk over to our table on completion of their meal and offer any help on finding out way around and welcomed us to Leesburg. Very nice people there, but TERRIBLE drivers. Haven't you ever heard of using a BLINKER????!!?!?!?! Our hotel happened to be 100yds to the right, so we tucked ourselves in early for a decent nights sleep.

Day two started much the same way but I had to drag my sorry butt out of bed when the wake up call so rudely did it's job at 6am. Hot shower, awake but not coherent. I am a out of mind person until I have had my nice cup of joe. Found a Starbucks while lost, got lost getting to it, go figure, but once I had my coffee we hit the road and didn't get lost again! Day two was crammed full of learning and good lunch and night two was practice and homework and snoring.

Day three, same as day two except stupid Prius couldn't make up their mind, pulled into a turn lane, then back in front of me like I wasn't there. Almost hit them, cussed them out, honked, finally got them out of my way, couldn't see beyond the semi in the right lane next to me and about T-boned a damn Fire Truck pulling into the intersection. Yes, you read right. In a borrowed vehicle I nearly t-boned a FIRE TRUCK! Scared the living shit out of myself for a split second and realized I really REALLY needed my morning coffee. My exhaustion had obviously hit. However, our lights turn red if an emergency vehicle is coming from the opposite side, and this one was still green! That would have been a fun explanation. "Sorry your house burnt down, the fire truck coming to put the fire out was t-boned by an un-coffee'd driver who had lost her mind." Finally made it the ONE BLOCK (yes you read right again, all of this in a one block radius) and the Starbucks line went all the way OUT THE DAMN DOOR!!! We're talking 30+ people and only one espresso machine in working order. What is with a Wednesday being so special? Huh?!? Whatever, 30-45 minutes later, had my coffee in tow and was ready to hit the road with no more incidences.

Day four, same as day three except we got 2 1/2 inches of snow. You'd have thought the world had ended over there. Every school in the state practically closed or delayed, and they spent their entire "snow" budget to clear the roads... all I could do was roll my eyes at the bizarre world I had landed in. The two other girls didn't want to drive in the snow, granted one was from Texas, one from Mississippi (thought we were bunking together), and the other had to go down a mountain, so we all piled into the truck, I hit it into 4-wheel and we trudged down the freeway to the hotel for a sleepover. Didn't make it to bed until about 12:30am if not later.

Day five, NO WAKE UP CALL!!! The girl who worked weekday nights was not very good. My wake up call was supposed to arrive at 6am, luckily Chelbie had set her phone for 6:15 and woke me up. Super exhausted, running on empty, needing coffee and a good nights sleep. Grouched out for waking everyone up so early, but reminded them of the bad roads and the lack of studs on the tires and weight in the back. Nobody understood me as apparently I am the only one with snow experience. Go figure again. But they all snapped out of it, and I, still without coffee, tried to put on a good face until my lovely Starbucks greeted me again. No more incident, and passed both my tests (written and practical) with flying colors. Yay for being a Certified Equine Sports Massage Therapist (ESMT). My name can now be written Jaci Weishaar ESMT. Said our good-byes to the other two who weren't dog certification bound and headed home to rest.

Day six and final. Wake up call ONE HOUR EARLY. Was able to sleep in an extra hour supposedly as class wasn't to start until 10am this day, but nope, the hotel had other plans. Luckily I realized that it should not be so dark for 7:15 and checked my phone. 6:15. AHHHHH I wasn't very happy and they were told so later that morning. Got to school and passed all the Canine portions, one of the girls had to run her practice stuffed horse back to the house so we made plans that night to go to the Racetrack in Charles Town, WV to watch our instructors horse run. Gave the truck keys back, shuttled back to the hotel, and piled in a rental car to drive 30 miles to West Virginia. Horse took 4th, the other two lost their In Person Horse Race virginity and we called it a night after race 3 because it was too dang cold to proceed. Got back to the hotel, didn't get to bed until 12 to 12:30am, up at 3am. The weekend lady is always on the ball and made sure we had a reputable taxi company at our service and a proper wake up call. Good driver picked us up at 3:59 (a minute early ... kudo's to him) and dropped us off at Dulles to catch our flights.

Dulles is a pain in my butt airport. Things are NOT where they should be. Found my check in desk, behind the first row of check in desks, yes behind, and found the security check point below at the baggage claims ... bizarro ... and then slipped on somebodies sick joke of dumping their water out of their bottle AFTER the checkpoint. GRRRRR It's 4:45am, NO sleep, NO coffee, NO breakfast, and on my butt in the middle of Dulles airport and a nicely bruised ankle, knee and butt. How I could bruise three seemingly unrelated areas I have no idea because I seriously just wanted to curl up and go to dream land right there, had I assumed that the clear liquid might be in fact something other than water, I still believe in my head of heads that it's water and nobody will make it grosser for me. Found the "subway" to my terminal, then plopped in the chair at 5am. Noticed a few coffee wielding people. Had to fight my urge to punch them and steal their coffee. How rude are you to flaunt coffee in front of a sleep deprived coffaholic who hasn't had their morning fix?!?!?!?! Nobody got hurt, I just trudged on. Tried to sleep on the plane but never knocked out completely, unusual for me. Made my connection in Denver, right on time, and flopped into my gracious aisle seat, nobody between me and the window seat gal, and we both were knocked unconscious before we even left the ground. Woke up with about 25 minutes left of the flight, she woke up about the same time, and we were peaceful seatmates, her reading a book and me trying to configure a sudoku with my half asleep brain. Got my bag, my shuttle, and kissed my truck hello. Yes, truth be told! Got in, ready to get home, grabbed a hot McDonalds lunch/coffee, gross coffee by the way, but hot food was all I wanted in the way of nurishment. Got all the way to Weatherby on the stupid slush covered roads and then had to park it for 45 minutes due to a stupid truck jackknifing two hours previously. Then krept for another 45 minutes at 10 miles an hour, then nothing but open roads to my home sweet, cold, over a foot of snow covered, home.

That's my story, and I'm sticking too it!