You get good material on the road...

Of the past 28 hours, I spent 4 of them waiting in airports to board planes, about 2.5 of them actually flying, another hour waiting for my half empty suitcase (containing the requisite toothpaste and hair gel), and about 8 hours in a car with my coworker and blogging buddy Leslie. All of this to visit a Relay at the very tippity-top of a mountain, accessed only by a road that is curvy enough to film BMW commericals on. More on that later...

First, I have to note that you know you've officially become a blogger when something strange happens and the conversation is not about how weird the event was, but what good fodder it will make for your blog.

I never figured Leslie and I would be at a loss for words while traveling together, but just in case the tourism board of the great state of North Carolina was concerned, they peppered the landscape with all kinds of sights that left me repeating, "Well, there's something you'd never see in New Jersey." Most notable were probably the huge water tower supposedly shaped like a peach that looked more like a sunburned rear end to me and some restaurant that had a 10-foot tall set of wooden flatware marking the entrance. My guess is they want to be prepared in case The Abominable Snowman ever makes his way down the mountain for a tasty meal. A not-very-distant third was a "dairy bar" festooned with ice cream cone-shaped lights clearly not intended for outdoor use, yet precariously dangling from the makeshift roof of said dairy bar. I shudder to think of the sparks that probably fly if it rains.

Our destination, the Mountaintop Relay For Life, was worth the crazy ride... Let's just say that the road up the mountain was curvy enough that we were asked in advance if we ever get carsick... and that maybe we should pick up some ginger Altoids just in case. Turns out it wasn't a bad suggestion. We braved the road with nothing more than Diet Pepsi and wound up losing our appetites for the rest of the evening.

I came down to North Carolina to see a Relay that earns top per capita honors in its population bucket every year. Now, coming from a sort of middle-of-the-road Relay area, when I heard this Relay in this little town raises over $200,000 each year, I was expecting a HUGE event. I wasn't surprised to see traffic at the one light in town as we approached the site. Turns out that traffic was because of construction. It also turns out that we sat in it while waiting to go down the wrong road. Apparently pink flamingoes aren't the beacons the event organizers had hoped they'd be.

I digress.

We turned into the event parking lot to find an event that would probably fit into the little park in my neighborhood. In other words, not very big. However, I quickly learned that this "quietly wealthy" (as I was told)community had raised $221,00 already, and Opening Ceremonies hadn't even begun. Only $58,000 was from corporate sponsors. While that's impressive, it was more impressive to me that the funds raised were coming from things like an auction in which a coconut cream pie fetched $250 and a mountain music festival that raised $17,000+. It's stories such as those that make me remember why I fell in love with Relay to begin with. I am also reminded that I have a very cool job!

As much fun as my whirlwind tour of North Carolina was, my favorite sight was still coming home to see Sam and Rob right past Security at the airport. Sam screamed and started bouncing up and down in his stroller. I hope someday he knows how much those little squeals mean to me.