Sometimes Life Throws Us Curveballs ……..
I’ve known Poo for most of my adult life. I first met him at a couples bridal shower, for my former husband and I, hosted by the friends of my soon to be in-laws.
Our in-laws ran in the same circle. They and their friends were staunch supporters of our local high school, mainly the basketball team, and have been season ticket holders for decades. Many times their gang would get together, for dinner or a cook-out, during the season and on occasion the “kids” (us) would be invited.
Over the course of the next 20 years, that is primarily where I would run into Poo. Our interaction with each other was limited to the obligatory, “Hi, how’s it going?” or “Hi, how are you?” or just “Hey Dave,” (before he got stuck with the nickname “Poo”). Our paths crossed very few times over the years.
Enter the pitcher ………
After 23 years of marriage, I decided to make a change in my life. I walked away from the only adult version of a life I had known. It took me several years to admit to myself that I needed to move on, as I wasn’t just fracturing the only nucleus my children knew, but also a business that my former spouse and I had built together.
Pitch delivered ………..
With a bit of courage in one back pocket and spot of resolve in the other, I followed through with my plan to move forward, not envisioning what the outcome. Unbeknownst to me, Poo had been contemplating the same kind of move.
Here it comes ………
Sometimes I wonder if God’s plan, all along, was for our two souls to align. If I had never met my former spouse in dental lab school, I would have never moved to his hometown and, subsequently, never met Poo.
Yep, it’s a curveball!
Of course there were whispers and false commentaries that swirled around us, but Poo and I survived. And at the end of the day, if all four people involved in those two unions are happier in their lives, then the growing pangs were worth the idle talk.
That was ten years ago!
A couple of weeks ago, we celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary.
Every year we take turns planning a little get-a-way. Sometimes it’s just one night, most often it has been a weekend, and one time we spent a week at the lake. Every year being different and a time to look forward.
This year I planned a long weekend in Nashville, Indiana. It has all the great makings of a quick mini vacation as it’s only a 2 hour drive. Nestled in the rolling hills of southern Indiana, I’m sure their tourism sparks a small fire in the fall when the leaves begin to change color but, I was happy with our quiet and relaxed trip in the middle of August with no worries about crowd control.
We checked into The Allison House, a B & B downtown in the middle of all the action, surrounded by locally owned restaurants, gift shops, coffee shops, candy and fudge shops. Although perfectly delightful and peaceful, it took awhile for me to reach a state of tranquility but, the side porch of the bed & breakfast and a cold drink in hand was just the place to do it.
Rocking chairs, an adult beverage and people-watching can slow time in an instant.
I haven’t stayed at a lot of bed and breakfasts but, I found it fascinating that this B & B did not have a “Host” in sight. Is this a new trend?
We were given a code to the front door to check in and used that same code to come and go from the house as we pleased.
The kitchen was stocked with the essentials and open for all guests to use.
I reserved the “Alonzo Room,” which had a small fridge but, we noticed other guests were using the kitchen refrigerator to save their leftovers.
Upon entering our room, there was a folder on the bed with pertinent information to our stay. Among other things, it included two “breakfast certificates for 2” at a number of local eateries, all within walking distance.
This must be the new trend with B & B’s.
I loved the concept and we had two fantastic breakfasts of our choosing!
I’m not a big “shopper” but I did want to find a beautiful wind spinner for my back yard and this is the place to find one. There were so many to choose from, I think my head was spinning. 🙂
By Sunday, we did finally decide on one, plus another small spinner that reminded me of the baby birds born this year in our back yard.
After settling into our room and exploring the beautiful old house we were staying, we set out for a walk around town.
We stopped in the Nashville Fudge Kitchen where they made every flavor of popcorn you can imagine. I picked up a bag of dill pickle flavored popcorn and, after drooling with just the thought of each perfectly seasoned kernel melting in my mouth, realized I had to put it down, as it would not conform to the Low FODMAP Elimination Diet. 🙁
We did pick up a bag for my MIL, who loves the orange creamsicle flavor. Apparently, this little shop makes all the candy flavors from scratch, which then is added to the popcorn.
Friday night we headed out for dinner to a local pizza shop. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Big Woods Pizza Co. offered a gluten-free pizza crust.
Ohhhhh. Myyyyyy. Goodnesssss. YUM-MEEE! The homemade pizza I had at Eataly, downtown Chicago last summer, has been the best gluten-free pizza I’ve had but this one comes in second place. It was outstanding!
One of the local wineries had advertised musical entertainment that evening so our next stop was Chateau Thomas Winery. We did a small wine tasting at the bar with Chris, the bartender …………..
………… Then went upstairs where we could watch the musical trio perform below. More people-watching …………..
One of the things I really wanted to do on this trip was go horseback riding. Coincidentally, Poo and I were both thrown from a horse when we were children and we both have been hesitant to engage with them ever since.
If you want to get over that kind of fear, Schooner Valley Stables is the place to do it. Saturday, we headed about 4 miles south of Nashville to experience a trail ride. Luke, the owner, was extremely attentive to individual preferences even though it was a group setting.
Poo was paired with a horse named, Splash. Tori, our guide for the hour, said he was given that name because he was always splashing the water with his hoof, in the creek, when they stopped for a drink.
Soon after we hit the trail, it became evident that Splash’s only real desire was to eat. Every time we stopped, Splash found a feast.
I was paired with the best horse ever, a mare named Babe. She had an attitude! Babe was used to being a “Lead Horse” on the trail rides but, on this particular outing, she had to ride shotgun, so to speak. They were breaking in a new horse that had only been in their care for 2 weeks and training him to be in that lead position.
Babe was not happy! She DID NOT enjoy being second in line and continuously tried to pass the new kid on the block.
Babe made it clear to me, as I used the appropriate commands we were taught with the reins, that she was reluctantly adhering to my authority.
It was an hour-long power struggle between the two horses and between Babe and myself, as well.
The trail ride winds through the scenic hills and valleys of Yellowwood State Forest and was quite breathtaking, as well as peaceful. There were also flat areas where we were able to experience trotting on this animal that we both decided wasn’t as threatening as earlier perceived.
By the time we arrived back at the stables, Babe had become less surly. She was acknowledging my commands with less hostility and even rubbed her head against the Lead Horse’s hip. (That’s code for his butt – because that’s where her nose was the entire trail ride!)
It was remarkable to witness the change in Babe over that hour and it gave me a sense of calm. I’m not a proponent of drama but I adored what Babe was throwin’ down. A mare with attitude saturated with spunk and ……… after my heart. It was quite amusing!
Later that evening we attended The Brown County Playhouse for the last showing of “I’ve Got The Music In Me,” a Branson-style live music revue featuring songs from the ’60’s and ’70’s.
The cast members had to rely strictly on their musical talents as there were virtually no backdrops or theater sets. At $20 a ticket, it was an economical source of entertainment for the evening.
It was a short walk back to The Allison House where we retired for the night in our king size bed.
It was a super place to get away for an anniversary weekend.
Happy 8th Anniversary to the love of my life and hopefully, we’ll be blessed with 28 more!
“If I know what love is, it is because of you.” – Herman Hesse
xoxo, Katy