Well. We are just about wrapping up here in Atlanta. Already. I can’t believe the time has gone so quickly. Today is our last day in the Wahoo Headquarters, before we start the trip down the east coast to Orlando, Florida. We will be visiting Savannah for the weekend, and then headed to Disney World on Monday. It may be approximately 20 years later than when I would have most preferred to see Disney World, but I figure you can never be too old to appreciate Mickey Mouse. On Tuesday afternoon we are off to Paris, via Iceland, to start our European adventure. Kicking off with staying for 2 days at a B&B where the hosts do not speak any english. As I can pretty much only say pleasantries in french, the whole situation should be interesting to say the least.

Anyway, regarding our week just gone:

The working week was much like any other. No major surprises. However, there was an in-office marathon to honour the marathon held on Sunday. Two teams were required to consistently have someone on the treadmill for the distance constituting a full marathon. The boss took his turn and then everyone went to lunch. Leaving him no tap out option until someone from the team returned to save the day. Poor Chip.

On a side note: The office has beer on Friday afternoons. I would like to think we could incorporate this into my pharmacy job, but I am fairly sure that there is legislation in place that would expressly forbid this.

Notes from the weekend:

Friday night: We went out to the Porter Bar, which was a lovely establishment boasting a bible-esque quantity of beverages of the beer variety either on tap or cellared. The drinks were fabulous, the food was fabulous. A great time was had. Finally got to try their infamous salt & vinegar popcorn. It nearly killed me from the fumes – every bite was risk of death by inhalation of powdered salt/vinegar flavouring. However, it was delicious, and I made it out alive. Having said that, I may have also cried and almost coughed up a lung from aspirated vinegar. What a classy snack.

We also visited the Wrecking Bar, a bar located in a basement of an otherwise innocuous appearing establishment. It featured having their own beer, and their own beer only. I did not like their beer. It’s not often that I’d struggle through a beverage, and I tried twice and struggle-streeted it to the bottom of the glass both times. At this point we decided to visit elsewhere.

Finally, we visited Twain’s, and this was our last port of call for the evening. A combination bar/pool hall, it featured some other games, one of which was Shuffleboard. Having never seen this before, and having mistaken it for an oversized air hockey table, we made friends with some random locals to show us what it was all about. Nothing like boning in on someone else’s game of shuffleboard. It was very educational. You basically slide a weight down the length of the table, aiming to land your weight in various point scoring zones. The table is slick and finely dusted with sand. Your weight more or less takes off like it was ejected from hell. Much more slippery than I would have ever guessed. So slippery that the weight doesn’t even disturb the sand as it flies across the surface (into the gutter, mostly). It was fun. If we come across one of these things again, I’d definitely have a go.

Saturday we made a trip out to Springer Mountain with a friend from Wahoo. He took us bush bashing the trails up the mountain in his 4×4. At breakneck speed. Thank goodness for good traction (and seat belts). We followed up by doing several small hikes (2-3 miles) to see some of the more accessible attractions along the start of the Appalachian Trail. The scenery was beautiful, even this time of year when most of the trees are still decidedly nude. It helped that the weather was amazing. Fresh & cool but 100% sunny skies.

We passed quite a few avid trekkers beginning their journey to Maine (the trail terminus). I can’t say that I envied them. It apparently takes 3-4 months to hike the Appalachian Trail. That is approximately 3-4 months more trekking than I’m keen to undertake. Maybe a few days to a week, that seems acceptable (maybe even a few weeks, if the weather was acceptable). Hiking for months? That sounds like plan for ages, quit your job and hope you are fit enough (so you don’t die) material.

Sunday was not so great in the weather department. It was rainy and miserable, and no fun to be outdoors. We decided to take this opportunity to try to get a laptop case for my 11” MacBook Air. That turned into a far bigger mission than anticipated. We turned up at the shopping mall at 11am. It wasn’t open. A couple of department stores were open, but all the other retail outlets were all undertaking staff meetings etc. Signs of life, but definitely NOT open. We checked out the department stores that were open and they had nothing. 11.30am came and went and the shops still weren’t open so we abandoned ship. What is with Sunday trading in Atlanta??? When were they planning on opening??? Tried a few other department stores (seems outside the mall, trading hours are normal), similar situation. No love. I’ve come to the conclusion that this is the result of not shopping online.

On our search we decided to visit a pet store, and were wowed by rabbits, puppies, budgies and all manner of fluffy/furry/super cute randomness. The highlight (wish I got a photo) was getting asked by a stranger about a shopping cart that was left in the aisle. It contained cat food, a few other random pet accoutrements, and a puppy dog. An unattended shopping cart, containing a puppy. Like you might have picked it up off the shelf and put it in your shopping cart on your way to the register. I’ve since been informed that someone was buying it. But still. The puppies were behind glass, but most of the other animals you could just walk over an pick up (and put in your shopping cart, I guess). Too strange.

Wednesday night we were offered box tickets to see Fleetwood Mac at the Phillips Arena. Having decided that we shouldn’t miss (reasonable) opportunities when they are presented, we made our way there and may have missed a small portion due to being hopelessly lost while trying to find the correct parking lot. But after actually making it to said venue, we had a great time. The concert was amazing, and the stadium was packed to the rafters (I’ve never been to a concert with so many people). I can’t say I’ve ever had a desire to see Fleetwood Mac, but they are certainly an enduring band with a massive fan following.  They have so many hit songs, even I can appreciate that they have some serious talent. And they’re still going strong, some 40+ years on. Good grief, half the band members are in their 70’s! Saying that I’m impressed does not cover how impressed I am. We had a great night, and I’m certainly glad we went. I’m surprised to say that this was by far the loudest concert I’ve ever been to (and I have been to a respectable number of concerts). I may be slightly deaf today, but it was worth it.

Thursday night we went out for dinner and drinks at Taco Mac with some of the crew from Wahoo. Followed it up with more beverages at the Painted Pin, where we played Giant Jenga and had a crack at something called Skittles. Was a great time, and I’m more than a little disappointed that it took us until our last night in Atlanta to hang out with the Wahoo headquarters staff. Next time, I hope we make a better effort to socialise.

Until next time! It’s time to head off on our road trip to Savannah….