Orcas Island Getaway: Day 1

It's always hell trying to get away for vacation. Yesterday we had 3 clients (all from California) with super-rush jobs they had to have immediately. It wouldn't be a vacation if we didn't have things like this happen the day before.

We left our house about 11 am to drive to Indianapolis, and dropped my pet mouse off at Mom's (yes, I have a pet mouse). Rosie's hamster was transported there the previous night. Mom is a good rodent sitter.

First stop: Muscatatuck National Wildlife Refuge in Seymour, IN. I found an eastern box turtle on the grounds of the old Robinson Nugent warehouse a couple of weeks ago and brought him home until we could relocate him. We named him Turd the Third. When Rosie was really little, I found a box turtle on our driveway and she dubbed him 'Turd'. We released him at Clark State Forest. Then I found another one, Turd II, who was released at Muscatatuck.

Turd the Third was about as excited as a turtle can get after having been penned up in a plastic tub for 2 weeks. I think he was beginning to show signs of clinical depression. We found a marshy little area with lots of algae and set him at the edge of the pond. He stuck his head as far out of the shell as it would go, listening to the birdsong and all those great sounds that turtles long for. He didn't give us a backward glance as he swam out, stopping only to take a drink of some yummy swamp water. Live long and prosper, Turd.

After that, we ate lunch at Cracker Barrel and stopped at a small antique mall. They didn't have much, but the owner directed us to the Exit 76 Antique Mall 25 miles north. Now, that's an antique mall. Steve found an old Zenith bakelite radio in great shape, I bought a 60s era Falls City beer ad and some salt & pepper shakers, and Rosie found an old My Little Pony from the 80s. We saw quite a bit of nice furniture, so we may come back to shop here again.

Then, on to our hotel for the night, the Country Inn & Suites off 465 west, about 3 miles from the Indianapolis airport. We ate a good meal at Damon's, then went back to settle in and print out our boarding passes for tomorrow.

Rosie's pretty excited and can't stop bouncing on the beds.