I26

After the mud run, I hit the road to head to Mary Alice's bachelorette party.  3 hours and 45 minutes later, I arrived at the gorgeous house we were staying at in Cashiers.  As I drove through Clemson, I randomly got behind two people I had classes with when I was in grad school.  It was one of those surreal, unexpected moments that caught me off guard.  I was behind them for many, many miles as he drove the speed limit or below.  Sometimes that is just painful and it was one of those times.  The pain may have been increased by the mud caked all over my body.  Finally, an opportunity presented itself for me to haul it around them and I took it!

When I got to the house, everyone else was out shopping and eating lunch -- so I had the house to myself to SHOWER.  I drove up to the mountains in my dirty clothes on a towel.  I had to wash my hair TWICE.  I had to SCRUB my body.  I'm not sure I can convey how much I had to scrub my body.  I felt like a 5 year old.  Ha!

The girls came back to the house and started to celebrate Mary Alice with fun drinks and food: cupcakes, brownies, baked brie, guacamole, artichoke dip, and supper of lasagna, salad, and bread.  Seriously, food is such a theme in my stories.  Mary Alice got a lot of lovely things and I think she had a great time.  We hung out on the back porch and told stories: old and new.  Every time I get to hang out with my girl friends, I'm reminded how blessed I am to have them.

Sunday, I got reacquainted with a familiar friend: I26.  My trip home was beautiful as I drove through Brevard and Henderson so that I could make a pit stop in Spartanburg to see the Sheltons.  Then I headed to Columbia to see my friends the Caldwell's and meet their super sweet and precious newbie, Mary Cate.  And then, then, I loaded up my car with gas (again) to hit the old familiar highway I know so well to make the trek Back to Charleston.  Eight and a half hours after I said goodbye to Mary Alice and the girls, I made it home.  Clearly, I wasn't up for cooking dinner that evening so I swung through the Bell.  It was the perfect way to end the drive and the weekend.