omaha, denver, omaha, denver, desmoines, omaha. . .

from wendy. . . .

at one point in the craziness, you suggested the possibility of me writing a blogblog entry to add...so, here it is...in case you want to use it...see you soon. :)



Wow...2006 has been an eventful one already. Dallas and I headed to Colorado on the 30th to attend the New Year's Eve show with the Nadas at the Soiled Dove. We had a relaxing evening on the 30th, and got really excited when we realized that there are liquor stores in Denver that actually deliver...what a brilliant idea...so, the 31st, we headed out to meet up with the guys and pick up our tickets around 6:00. We made it to the venue and the computer systen was not working properly apparently, and had no record of our reserved tickets, so we bought two more...and are awaiting our refund that was promised by the very nice, apologetic man at the Dove. Soundcheck was interesting as it always is...nothing can go perfectly...if it did, life would be too easy. Then, dinner on the bus and some random conversation before we headed inside for the show...

The show began and the opening band was very excited to be there with the Nadas...they told Dallas and I so a couple of times before they went on...it was awfully sweet. Anyway, so, with the purchase of your tickets ALL drinks, ANY drinks all night long were "free"...so, needless to say, we had to make sure we got our money's worth...Dallas was not only celebrating New Years...but his birthday also...so, he drank his money's worth, half my money's worth, and people kept bringing him drinks and giving him drinks all night long...I believe the final total was 35...not counting all of the random glasses of champagne he was given at midnight...but bless his heart...he was still walking, not puking, and rocking out through the end of the show at about 1:20 in the morning...then I went to get the car to bring it around so he could just hop right in, and we could get back to the room...in the process of that, apparently someone at the club across the street was worse off than anyone at the Dove and an ambulance showed up...some jackball behind it decided he didn't want to wait, and tried to drive right on around...taking off the ambulance back door and almost taking out a paramedic...I parked the car, got Dallas, headed out...a long night ensued.

Check out time on the 1st, we got in the car and headed home...with many random stops between Denver and Lincoln, we made it back to Lincoln about 9:00 Sunday night...I was getting ready to head out from Dallas's when my phone rang at approximately 9:20...it was Mike...saying they didn't even want to call us since we had just been out there, but they desperatly needed to know if I knew anyone with a vehicle that could carry 7 additional people and tow a 5,000 pound trailer...I told him I would make some calls and get back to him, it isn't like we would leave them stranded out in the middle of nowhere...so, two phone calls later, we had an option...my wonderful mechanic/friend Warren was willing to let Dallas and I drive his suburban out to Colorado to get the band and the trailer...I called to give Mike the news, and he was worried that the trailer might be too heavy and was concerned about the wear and tear on the vehicle...but I assured him that Warren had just redone everything so it was able to tow their 6,000 pound boat to and from Okoboji on a regular basis...so, no worries. Mike said he would call back after discussing with the band if any of the other people they had tried to get ahold of would be able to do it because they didn't want us to have to turn around and make the drive again after having just made it home...ten minutes my phone rang and it was Mike with a simple message for me, "Pull the trigger Wendell"...so, we were off.

I told Dallas to take a nap while I ran from Lincoln to Omaha to get the Suburban...at this point, he was running on about 5 hours of sleep, and I had had a whopping two and a half...we left Lincoln about 1:00 on what was then, Monday morning. After making it out of the rain and wind, the roads were clear and there seemed to be nothing in our way...so, Dallas drove so I could sleep a little...I woke up in Kearney as we were getting off the interstate to grab some food...we called Mike to let him know where we were, that the weather was clear and that we were about 2 and a half hours out, we would be there as soon as we could be...then...20 minutes outside Kearney...we hit ice...fun fun fun...so much for making it to the bus in two and a half hours...but we were still moving forward...and nothing could have stopped us...we made it to the bus at about 7:00 in the morning...greeted by hugs and thanks...we loaded up the absolutely needed things into the trailer and the back of the suburban and were on our way with Jon at the wheel by about 7:30 or so...I have a beautiful picture of the sunrise as we got there and were getting things organized, just a little beauty to remember in all of the stress and chaos.

So...there we are...all nine of us...headed back to Nebraska along I-76...leaving behind the bus (I really thought Justin was going to cry) and mile-marker 155. At this point, I had added about an hour or so to my two and a half hours of sleep, and was wide awake with all of the talk about the first possible toilets (remember, the bus potty only receives #1, EVEN when she is broken down) and coffee...

I will spare the details of the ride home...but let it suffice to say that we all made it alive...and learned new little quirks that we were not aware of before...for the most part...it was actually a good time...I can't think of another group of people that would have been this over-all relaxed about such a situation...and been so light-hearted and good-spirited after being crammed in a Suburban with eight other adults for hours and hours on end.

We made it back to Des Moines about 4:15 Monday afternoon...unhooked the trailer, cleaned out the Suburban, and said our good-byes...then I started the solo drive home around 5:00...so, from 10:00 in the morning on Saturday to midnight on Monday I had about 5 hours of sleep...but I don't regret it...and I know Dallas doesn't either...it was absolutely an experience...a story to remember and tell for years to come...I like to believe that anyone would do what we did for a group of friends...

here's to gasoline, coffee, real toilets, good music, laughter, love and friendships...
hope to see you soon...
~Wendy