Rainy Day Ramblings

Rainy days and Mondays...lalala.....  Mondays have been hubby's worst days the last few weeks, and today was no different.  He never should have gotten out of bed today  However, we were 450 miles from home, so he didn't have much choice.  That meant I had a lot of driving time today, and a lot of time to think.  The above picture is a good representation of what we saw for most of the drive.  Except when it was so foggy that we could barely see the front end of the car.  Or when it was raining so hard that we could barely see the front end of the car.  Or when we were stuck in traffic for not one, but two separate accidents.  Or when we stopped at a Dillard's store.


cruising right along...

 Hubby loves Dillard's.  He's the shopper in our family, not me.  I only like shopping when it involves fabric, crafts, or books.  But I digress.  Hubby wanted to stop at Dillard's so we did.  Which brings me to my first ramble.  We were in the store approximately 15 seconds before a sales associate spoke to us.  And more associates continued to do so.  I felt like I had landed on a foreign planet.  Why should it be the exception rather than the rule to get good customer service?  I would guess that at least 7-8 employees spoke to me, asked how I was, if I needed help, took my selections to a fitting room while I continued to shop, etc.  Is this the norm at Dillard's?  Or was it because we were in the south?  Because it sure ain't the norm around here!  (yes, I deliberately used the word ain't)  Why isn't it the norm everywhere?  I fault management for poor customer service, which often includes allowing employees to talk on their phones and be rude instead of waiting on customers.  I plan to call Dillard's tomorrow to congratulate them.

We have made this trip to North Carolina for Labor Day weekend for 6 of the last 7 years.  If you live on the east coast, you know that Labor Day falls during prime Hurricane season.  Last weekend Irene made her way up the east coast, and for the next few days, the remnants of Lee are making the way north after drenching parts of the south with a foot or more or rain, along with tropical storm high winds.  Last Saturday, we saw about 25 power company trucks gathered just outside our town, heading east.  I'm not sure where they came from, but they were moving in to be ready to help out as soon as the storm passed.  Early today, I saw what I believe to be those same trucks headed south.  I wish I had counted them, because as the day went on we saw hundreds of power trucks heading down the highway.  Where do they all come from?  How long has it been since they've seen their families?  Do they just go from storm to storm to help restore power?  We see something like this every year.  Who are these angels?  I didn't need my power restored today, but I thank these wonderful people who gave up their Labor Day holiday to help strangers in need.  I actually get teary-eyed to see all these trucks heading down the road.

A special thanks to our wonderful hosts for the weekend.  It was good to get away for the weekend, spend time with loved ones, and be pampered at the same time.   Thanks B&J!  These 'quilt squares' are starting to show up all over their town.  If I had done more of the driving, instead of being chauffeured, there would be more pictures.  For some reason, not everyone gets excited by this sort of thing, and their cars don't automatically pull over to take pictures.

And lest you think I didn't get any stitching done, I say "ha!"  I wasn't planning to pack any hexies, but I only had 4 more to make for my black eyed Susan quilt, so I tossed them in at the last minute, and got them finished.

I always take yarn on road trips to crochet rectangles for the rectangle group that I belong to.  They're the perfect project for the car.  I was so happy to learn that I could crochet without getting car sick.  The times goes so much faster when I'm stitching and not just staring at taillights. 

So now you know what was on my mind as I spent my day driving. Oops, I just remembered something else, but I'll save it for tomorrow, because I'm sure I've put everyone to sleep by now.

Counting my blessings....Sunny