Unvarnished Truth Pt 5

 Wednesday May 29, 2024

I finally learned how to deal with Nan's time issue.  

Natalie wanted us downstairs by 8:45am, in order to check out and catch our charter bus.

I told Nan it was 8:30.  

I set my alarm for 7am; she got up and made coffee; I got up and dressed, packing my last-minute stuff as I went.  She finished packing; I made sure we'd gotten everything out of the bathroom, the closet, and any drawers she used, and put our used towels in the bathtub. Double-checked we had all chargers, and we headed downstairs shortly before 8:30.

I had gone down to the desk the night before, because my Kindle would NOT connect to the wifi.  Manager said they were having issues with it, and they had computers downstairs in the business area, but a fee was charged, since it was owned by a private company.  I sighed, mentally rolled my eyes, and said a prayer that someone had a hot spot they'd let me use.  Unfortunately, no one answered my plea, so I changed the prayer to 'let my account NOT be overdrawn!', since there were a couple of receipts I didn't get.

When we got to the lobby and saw Jon, and asked if HE had a hotspot I could use, he said yes.  I grabbed my Kindle and fired it up, and was able to connect.  I was slightly overdrawn, but was able to transfer $30 into my checking, so I knew I had at least $20 on both cards.  Natalie appeared and got in line to check us out; we deposited our cards in the checkout slot.

The bus had gotten trapped in traffic, so it was closer to 9am when we were able to cross the street and board.

Our 1st stop was Battery Park, and we were warned not to take any water bottles with us; just our money and ID. As we waited to go through Security for the ferry to the Statue of Liberty, Nan and I ended up being next to John M. There was a guy playing 'Happy Birthday' and 'My Darling Clementine' on what looked like a homemade cello, and when we got closer, John revealed his birthday AND Joyce's were coming up.  So I started singing HBD to both of them; Nan and the rest of our group joined in as well:) Then we began imitating Huckleberry Hound and singing Clementine. I think we entertained everyone around us, and it made the wait go faster:)

Going through Security was like at the airport. Had to put everything from pockets into a bin and send it through the X-ray machine.  I laughed, because as I passed through w/o any issues, Joyce was getting patted down.  I realized I'd forgotten to take off my belt; her string grommets had set the machine off!

When it was our turn to board the ferry, a bunch of us went up top. There were several people wearing foam 'crowns'....I was interested in getting one.  We arrived at Lady Liberty and had 90 mins.  Nan and I decided to eat 1st, and go through the gift shop, since we'd missed our opportunity at the 911 museum.  I found a keychain with my name on it, but it was $12, and I'd just spent $10 on pizza. So I settled for the $7 black crystal pen with the statue pendant.  Then we walked around the statue, taking pictures.  When we got all the way around, Nan needed to use the facilities again, and I realized we weren't going to have time to go through the museum.  She couldn't find the gift shop, so we hustled to our meeting area, and were on time.  We boarded the ferry to Ellis Island, but stayed on the lower deck.

At Ellis, we had another 90 mins. Nan found the facilities while I went to the gift shop.  Looked up the names of family members (Geis, Katzenberger, Schneider, and McIntire), and completely forgot to look for Grauel!  Bought a $7 Christmas ornament, then went to find Nan.  She was sitting down with some of the group, having a soda.  She and I went back to the gift shop where she tried to find her family's name, but to no avail. Then we went into the museum and did a quick loop; I was snapping pics of the history to look at later, and I really wanted to find the statue of the little girl who had been the 1st one to arrive (according to Nat, it was on the 2nd or 3rd floor), When we didn't find it on the 3rd floor, we scoured the 2nd, and time was beginning to run out. We found our way back to the bottom, and took a brief pit stop, then decided just to go on. We DID find a statue of a little girl while we were looking for the exit, as well as early 1900s medical equipment. By the time we found the exit, and took a picture of the baggage cart, my phone was beginning to blow up! Texted back we were trying to find our way out, and were RIGHT on time.  Got back in line to board the ferry to New Jersey.

It was at this point I told John we needed to sing some NJ song, and asked if he knew any Bon Jovi songs.  Began singing Livin' On A Prayer, but J said he only knew Hall and Oates and Captain and Tennille.  We started singing Shop Around, and again, we entertained our fellow soon-to-be passengers!

Once we boarded, we were near the concession stand, and I noticed the foam hats were only $4, so bought one with my change (saleslady was actually HAPPY I had all those quarters, ha ha!). We arrived in New Jersey and boarded the bus, which took us to the airport. Had a few issues with finding the terminal (I really didn't understand the problem??), but Chris, our driver kept circling until he was able to get there (I think it maybe had to do with the height of the bus???).  Made it safely through Security, though my bucket was once again kicked out....discovered the problem was my Kindle...I was supposed to have taken it out of my backpack (*eye roll*). Jonathan wanted to sit with Nat, so he and I swapped seats, and I ended up sitting with Joyce. (Nan texted she'd found her car, and would see us later!)

Joyce gave me a HUGE compliment.  She pulled out Defending Destiny and revealed she was on Ch 2.....and by the time we arrived in Indy, she was nearly finished!  Said she was really enjoying it AND my writing style; everything FlOWED.

I received a text as soon as we landed; Angie and Co was already here:)  I texted we'd landed and would be there soon.

Kim's luggage was missing, but more began falling onto the conveyor, and hers was one of them.  I texted Angie and asked where she was parked; turned out she was right outside the door we were in front of!  Hugged everyone goodbye, and told Joyce I wouldn't be at practice the next day; I wanted to go to 90s Disney Trivia at Old Chicago.  She looked disappointed and asked me to please reconsider.

Tomorrow:  Argument with Family, Disney Trivia, and Final Performance