Miss Rosemarie's Tea Room

Good Thursday morning!

To avoid confusion, if you are reading this post after 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon, I'm spending the night at my Mom's tonight, so I had to post Thursday's post a little earlier than normal. I usually post for the next day between 9:00 and 11:00 p.m. Central Standard Time. I don't like posting in the morning because there's too much going on getting ready for school and such. If you ever want to read two posts in one day, you can check around 10:00 and usually you'll get my favorite thing... a "twofer."

Mom's having out-patient foot surgery in the morning, and we have to be at the hospital by 5:30, so Mom wants to be there by 5:00. Spending the night is going to be the best way to handle the early morning thing. Plus, we're going out to eat tonight, (just the two of us) so that will be fun. And I get to go to bed at 9:00 which will be the most fun of all! (Unfortunately, I'm not kidding. A 9:00 o'clock bedtime is something I've been longing for since the kids arrived.) Also, I get to have breakfast in the cafeteria after Mom gets checked in. Another fun thing for me. (I'm not kidding about this one either. I've got a backpack full of magazines, my Esther Bible Study, and my favorite Becky Freeman book. I'm good to go.) It's probably very wrong to be looking forward to spending a morning in a hospital waiting room. My life must seem very pitiful to you right now, but I don't care. If life is full of little moments, then I'm going to have three of my favorite little moments in the next 24 hours (eating supper out, early bedtime and a cafeteria breakfast). Oh, yeah. And did I mention I'm planning on snatching one of the Valentine's Day inflatables Thursday evening? Life is good!

And lest you think I'm uncaring about my Mom's surgery, I assure you I am not. The procedure is supposed to give her relief immediately, and although she'll be in a boot for a few weeks, the foot should be much, much better in just a day.

Part 3 - Skiing Adventure

Skiing In a Blizzard Isn't For Sissies... and I Should Know Because I Am a Sissy

I finished my first day on the slopes exhausted, sore, and more than a little discouraged. Nothing 17 hours of sleep wouldn't fix. I didn't go to the mandatory devotion group held the evening of the first day. I slept right through it. Several of my girlfriends said they tried to wake me, but I would just scream, "Sven! Sven! Is that you, Sven?" They said I never even opened my eyes, and the next day I woke up exactly in the same position I remembered going to bed... face down, sideways, across the foot of the bed, in the same clothes I had on the previous day under my ski bib.

I awoke rested, but very hungry and sore. I had skipped lunch and dinner the day before, but a hot shower and breakfast were awaiting me on this, Day Two, of my dream ski vacation. I assessed my body for bumps and bruises... only 23. Not too bad considering by most accounts I shouldn't have survived the first day on the slopes at all. I put on my ski clothes, and joined my friends in the lobby for breakfast.

They were different than me, telling stories of the various slopes they had conquered, how their skiing had improved as the day wore on, the wonderful dinner they had been served, and how blessed they had been by the testimony and worship music of our guest speaker the night before. It was like we were not on the same trip. I sat quietly... partly because I had nothing to add, and partly because I was trying to figure out how to make Day Two a better day than Day One. "Well, just getting out of the bed shows how brave I am," I told myself. "Not everyone lives through a day like yesterday, and still gets up with a smile and the courage to try again."

"Why do you look so serious, Belinda?" someone to my left asked. Oops! Forgot to make myself smile. Ow! Even my face was sore.

"No reason. Just trying to figure out where I want to start today," I answered. "Is anyone going back to the Green Slope we started on yesterday?" Two people answered yes. That was not good. I had learned one thing from Day One. The way I get from place to place on a pair of skis was not information I wanted people to take home to Alabama with them. "You two head on. I'll meet you at the bottom at the chair lift." Yeah, right.

Giving everyone a head start, I headed out the doors of the lobby. The weather was different. It was dark gray, very windy and much, much colder than the day before. I heard some people talking as they passed me "sideways walking" to the slopes. "We need to get in as much skiing today as we can since they're expecting all the snow this evening."

"We're getting MORE snow? How much more snow do we need?" I asked them.

"They're expecting 7 to 8 more inches by tonight, if not more," they responded. Wow. That's a lot of snow. Of course, my first instinct was to ask someone where the nearest store was to buy milk and bread (that old Alabama snow training kicking in), but I knew I would never get there in time.

My plan was to go to the Bunny Slope one more time and watch the lesson from afar. Once there, I watched Earl teaching several children. Ahh. That's how you stop. I think I remember that part now. Oh, yeah. Turning. That will come in very handy. Okay. Okay. I think I have it now. Off to the Green Slope.

I stood at the top of the Green Slope. My skis were pointed to the opposite side from where I was standing. I pushed off and slowly skied sideways from Point A to Point B. I crossed my skis in the front, and stopped right before I headed into the forest. Success. I turned around and pointed my skis to the opposite side from where I was standing. I pushed off and slowly skied sideways from Point B to Point C. I crossed my skis in the front and stopped right before I headed onto the Black Slope. I think you get the picture. I had a plan and my plan was working. I wasn't necessarily having fun, and I didn't expect to reach the bottom of the Green Slope before midnight, but for me it was skiing.

About an hour into my expedition to the bottom of the Green Slope (I still hadn't fallen), it started to snow. Well, not actually snow. This stuff was harder than snow. It was harder than sleet. It was somewhat akin to mini-hail. I didn't care. I was finishing the Green Slope. When you get right down to it, what choice did I have? The mini-hail continued to fall and even at the snail's pace I was going, it stung and hurt when it hit my face. Head down, I continued on my quest.

Finally, I reached the bottom of the Green Slope. Again, no gold medals, but the sense of accomplishment was enormous. Visibility was getting worse and worse as the mini-hail had not gone away, but was now mixed with gigantic snowflakes. I started my sure-fire way of getting to where I wanted to be, and "sideways walked" over to the line for the chair lift. The line was much shorter today, and over the howling wind I heard people talking about the chair lift closing in just a little while because of the blizzard-like conditions. Wow! A real blizzard. And me at the bottom of the slope. I had no idea how to get up if the chair lift closed. I wished I had gone to the worship service the night before. The day before a blizzard on the slopes is not the time to be skipping worship services! I said a little prayer and waited my turn.

Conditions worsened, but the chair lift continued moving. I rode alone this time. I got on with no problem. (For some reason, sitting down in a chair was the only successful thing I did with regard to skiing.) I began to devise a plan for my dismount. And then it happened. The chair lift stopped. "Oh, no. Oh, no. Oh, no. Please, please, please help us get to the top," I prayed. And just as suddenly as it stopped, it started again. The weather was so bad now it felt like BBs hitting my face. I had learned a lesson from the day before, and I had put two dry washcloths in the top of my ski bib to rub my face off before I entered the hotel lobby (just in case something unladylike was frozen to the front of my face), so I reached inside my bib and got one to protect my face. Big mistake. A few seconds later when I tried to remove it, I found it had frozen to my face like a tongue to a flagpole. Now I had a green washcloth frozen to my face from my nose down to my chin. I looked ridiculous. However, there was no time to worry about that. (And since we had determined there was no Sven in Snowshoe, West Virginia, my appearance meant very little to me. I had to survive.)

I was next to get off the chair lift. My head was clear. My body was ready. My washcloth frozen to the front of my face did not match my ski bib. (I know that really doesn't matter, but it bothers me now and it bothered me then!) I slid from the chair and not even attempting to ski down the icy hill, I used every bit of strength in my body to throw myself to the right. Success!!! No one had to kick me out of the way. And I had landed on my back... another plus! I just waited a few seconds and... yep, there he was. "Are you okay?" the ski patrol man asked.

"Yes, I am," I replied. "Just hoist me up under my arms like you do, and I'll be on my way!"

"You need to go straight to your hotel. They're closing the slopes in just a little while because of the blizzard."

"Not a problem. I'm on my way," I replied almost gleefully. I "sideways walked" all the way to the hotel and once through the lobby doors was thrilled to see no one from my group in sight. I disengaged from the skis, ran to the nearest public restroom and threw water on my face until the washcloth let go. Some minor damage here and there I noticed in the mirror, but all in all, most of the skin on my face was still there.

I made it to my room, showered and changed and ate lunch with the group. Our leader came up and announced, "I have some bad news. Because of the blizzard, there's a very good chance we won't be able to ski tomorrow."

"Oh, no," I groaned along with the rest of the group. Inside I was clapping and jumping and thrilled.

I knew then and there skiing would never be for me. But I had tried, and kind of succeeded. And that's what makes life exciting, isn't it? To at least try. Step out of our box every now and again and take a deep breath. Take the plunge. Not trying is the sad part.

I will ride every ride at an amusement park (more than once). I have played football (tackle when I was a kid), basketball and volleyball. I like to bowl. I jump on the trampoline now at age 47. I want to swim with the dolphins, snorkel, parasail and zip line before I'm 90. Yes, not trying is the sad part. And I may be a "sissy" because I'm not great at any of the sports I listed, but I'm a "sissy" that skied in a blizzard many years ago... and survived!

DISCLAIMER: Know now that I will never go sky diving or bungee jumping. And if that makes me more of a sissy than the above, so be it!

Miss Rosemarie's Tea Room

If I have mentioned Rosemarie's to you before, I apologize. It is not on my official date list, so I'll give you the specifics and make it a February date that will be easy to look up from now on.

I first went to Rosemarie's for my Christmas Tea a year and a half ago. It is a very pretty tea room off 280. It is run by a lovely woman (Rosemarie), her husband and her sister. They are tea experts. When I was there, I signed up for their e-mails. They give lectures on teas, have tea tastings, etc. They take their tea very seriously.

However, one day something caught my eye in the e-mail. Once a month, they serve dinner. They have three entrees with tea, coffee and dessert. They list the entrees and what comes with them, plus the price. You make reservations for the weekend they are serving dinner, and you go ahead and order the entree. When you arrive, you are seated in a softly lit, warm, beautiful little tea room and served hot tea and coffee. It is small and intimate and romantic. This can be a father/daughter Valentine's Day date, but to be honest, your spouse would really enjoy it, so this one is for all the ladies out there. I received an e-mail from Rosemarie yesterday saying the 14th was booked, but there were still a few openings for the 13th. Whether you go this month, or sometime in the future, it is a delicious meal with a wonderful atmosphere. (Great for anniversaries, too.)

The phone number is 980-8335 and the website is http://www.mrsteas.com/. The entrees and information is listed on the website. The entrees this month are between $28 and $32 each and include vegetables, soup or salad and dessert. The list of everything is on the website. I know that's a pretty big chunk of change, but for a special evening out, it is well worth the money. (I suggest making a "Date Envelope" and putting $5, $10 or $20 every paycheck in the envelope. We've been doing this for several years now and when we have a certain amount, we plan a special couple date or a family date or we use the money as we go on dates with the kids individually.)

For anyone reading this outside of the Birmingham area, I promise next week's date will be "universal" (and inexpensive).

Have a wonderful Thursday. I'll have a read-aloud book for you and your elementary age children to share tomorrow. See you then.