Nashville to Gatlinburg

            Though checkout wasn’t until ten (according to Mom and Karl… the sign on the hotel room door said noon, but whatever), mine and Alyssa’s phones were buzzing cheerily at eight.

            “Time to get up!” they read.  Mere seconds later, “Are you up, [sic] Kari’s flight has been cancelled because of a bird.”

            Ah.  So it all makes sense now.  Mom’s stress and feelings of hopelessness towards Kari’s situation of being stuck on the other side of the country had to be remedied by asserting control over the morning routines of her 20 and 17-year-old daughters. 

            “Give us an hour,” I text back, “Alyssa just hopped in the shower.  Obviously, I’m next.”  Putting my cell on silent, I rolled over and closed my eyes until it was my turn to prepare for the day

            Shortly after leaving our lovely hotel and all those blissfully soft pillows, we arrived at the Cracker Barrel for breakfast.  Not only was it loud and over-crowded (making my claustrophobic self freak out more than just a tad), but also the food was revolting, a fact which my younger sister didn’t hesitate to point out.

            “Don’t be ugly,” my mother chided.

            “The only thing ugly here are these pancakes,” Alyssa shot back.

            One bathroom whose quarters were terrifyingly close, two catnaps, and four hours later, we finally pulled into Gatlinburg, Tennessee.  The quaint tourist town was blanketed in an inch or two of fresh powder and looked every bit like the picture perfect place for a Christmas card, all decked out in holiday array.

            Upon our arrival at the cabin just at the top of one of the small mountains surrounding Gatlinburg (small as in Appalachian vs. Rocky Mountain small), we discovered our driveway had not been plowed and there was no way two vehicles without 4-wheel drive were going to make it down the steep grade.  Nonetheless despite our protests, my stepfather was determined to try.  Luckily my sister was smart enough to catch it on video.

Obviously it was an unsuccessful endeavor and now the SUV is stuck.  At least this meant the end of our mini road trip and Alyssa and I could finally set up the Christmas tree and watch Breakfast at Tiffany’s.