Home alone(ish)

The weekend before last, Erica went to the lake with some friends. Norah and I were on our own for nearly 48 hours, a new record for us. Saturday was particularly eventful. Here is a brief(ish) synopsis.

On Saturday morning Jeff Killingsworth called and invited us to the zoo with his girls Laura Beth and Abbie. Admission was free that day, and Norah was very excited about going to see the animals and her friends. We arrived at the zoo and were greeted by a 389,578 razorback fans. The entrance to the zoo was blocked by a large woman with a sour face who informed me that the zoo parking lot was closed. When I inquired about the “free” zoo day she said “admission is free, but you’ve got to pay $20 for parking”. It’s worth mentioning at this point that zoo admission is normally $8 for adults and $6 for children. I hope that you don’t need a calculator to understand why I was more than a little frustrated. It didn‘t help that I didn‘t even have $20. My father has always been frustrated with me for not carrying cash, I guess I should have listened to him. After failing to bribe the parking attendant with a $25 best buy gift card, I fought traffic back across the highway and managed to slip under the yellow caution tape at an abandoned restaurant that had recently been repaved.

We arrived at the zoo after a ½ mile walk past the empty parking lot. I was sure that the Killingsworths had bailed on the whole thing at this point, but the two of us still had a good time. The best part was the lion exhibit. There was only a plexiglass wall that separated us from a couple of very large lions. I watched Norah walk over towards a full grown lioness that was standing only inches away from the glass. After staring at one another for a few moments, Norah then put her hands on the glass and gave the lion a kiss. It was awesome.

Despite having a great time at the zoo, Norah was disappointed about not getting to see her friends, so I was determined to keep the second half of my promise. I called Jeff and agreed to let him plan the evening, thinking that if his girls were having fun, Norah would be too. With great power comes great responsibility. He took us to Chuck E. Cheese. Holy crap, I am never going there again. I cannot find the words to describe how horrible is was. When we finally escaped, Jeff took us to Chili’s. Keep in mind it was Saturday night. Two dads, three kids, one recipe for disaster. After Abbey threw up, Jeff announced that we were leaving for Tunica. Next time, I am planning the evening. Norah and I both agree that it’s very good to have Mommy back.