We got up this morning, had breakfast and started our journey to the Atlanta airport. Upon arriving, we checked our bag and started to wander towards the security check-in. We got to the line, I took off my belt and shoes, placed everything in the bins and pushed them through. I turned around and walked through the metal detector. A loud blaring alarm went off and I was asked to back up and empty out my pockets. I realized that I forgot to take out my phone and iPod, so I did that and walked through the detector again.

The alarm blared. The guard motioned me forward to get into the millimeter wave detector or get a pat down. I thought of the “Joey’s tailor” episode of Friends (probably because Becca just watched it the other day) and elected for the millimeter thingy. It was very similar to the big round X-Ray device that they use to get your 3D tooth pictures at the dentist, except it was see-through. I had to stand with me legs spread and my hands above my head, with my elbows bent.

At first, it seemed to go well. Until they discovered that I had my pocket knife and a pair of fingernail clippers still in my pocket. I was surprised that I had forgotten to take them out and leave them in my shaving bag and shrugged my shoulders. That is when the real problems started. Because they were in my “watch pocket”, the guard decided that I must have been trying to “smuggle” them in. He had me get out of the millimeter thingy and follow him into the back room. You know how the cop shows have their interrogation rooms? Well, that is how this one was too; concrete blocks painted a nasty light yellow / off-white combination. A steel table up against the wall with two metal chairs and a mirror that was probably a one-way window. I was told to sit down in one of the chairs and the guard sat down in the other while he made a radio call and we waited for some else to arrive. He was asking me questions about why I was trying to hide my knife and who I was working with. Was the woman I am traveling with in on it too? Were we even married? I remembered a video I saw by a retired police office from Miami or someplace like that, who’s advice was to never ever talk unless you have a lawyer present because the interrogator can get you to say just about anything and make it sound incriminating. I kept my mouth shut.

About fifteen minutes later, the new arrival was a woman with an electronic finger print scanner. He already had my driver’s license, but they wanted to make sure I was who I said I was. I remember getting my prints done many years ago at the Hubbard county fair, so I figured it would be a piece of cake and I would be out of there in a few minutes. Boy was I wrong… I should have known that something was messed up when three more guards crowded into the room and one of them put plastic zip-cuffs on me. Apparently my prints came back as unknown, but my face looks very similar to someone on some watch list somewhere. I was escorted to a different holding room while more checks were made.

The room was the same putrid shade of yellow, but it was slightly larger and had a bench along the wall opposite the door. There was a window on the other wall and a metal table and chair under it. I wasn’t the only one in the room either. A large black man named Tyronne was there waiting to be transferred to the Fulton county jail. He is about six-foot-six and three-hundred and seventy pounds I would estimate. Apparently he went to the airport to see his teen aged daughter off to somewhere, only his ex-wife has a restraining order against him. He wasn’t supposed to be within 300 feet from either of them and she saw him. The airport police grabbed him and since this was his second time breaking the order, he was taken into custody. He also had something else happen back a couple years ago that he didn’t want to talk about, only to say that if he gets into trouble for this, he was going to jail for quite a while.

He was really a pretty nice guy though and after talking to him for a bit, I mentioned that if he had already broken the restraining order once before, he was probably going to get into some trouble for this time. I shouldn’t have said that because he started freaking out and yelling that he didn’t want to go back and that he had to get out of here. I sat on the bench in shock as he picked up the chair and smashed the window above the table. I didn’t quite know what to do. Somehow he squeezed his considerable bulk through the hole he made. I snapped out of my shock when he started screaming, jumped up on the table to see what happened to him and realized that we were about twenty feet above the ground and he was holding on the the ledge. I grabbed his arm and tried to pull him in, but he was almost twice my weight and I wasn’t able to get anywhere. I started maneuvering myself more out of the window so I could get a better grip on him. Just then a guard came in, saw what was going on and rushed towards me. He grabbed onto me and started pulling my leg; just as I have been pulling yours!

I am sitting in the Econo Lodge in Dahlonega, GA while my bride is at a “Natural Hoof Care for Horses” class about 10 miles farther into the mountains.

Apparently Dahlonega was founded in 1833 and was the site of the first major gold rush in the United States, or so the sign posted proudly upon entry claims. Wikipedia claims otherwise… Who is right?

As I was driving back to the hotel from dropping Becca off this morning, I stopped at the little Native American burial site, a pile of rocks right in the middle of the road.

Legend has it that Trahlyta, a Cherokee princess, drank from a magic spring near her home each day. The spring was a fountain of youth and allowed her to stay young. Apparently even Desoto heard about the fount and sent soldiers to investigate. While she lived on the mountain, a warrior named Wahsega courted her, but she rejected him. So what did the mighty, spurned warrior do? He kidnapped her and by doing so, kept her away from the spring. She started to lose her youthful beauty, but he did not relent. Eventually, on her death bed, she asked to be buried near her home. He finally followed her wishes and did so.

The legend continued when people passing by picked up a stone and dropped it on the grave. Apparently the person’s heart-felt wish would come true. The pile of stone is now almost as tall as me. I haven’t been able to verify this, but since that time, the Georgia department of Highways had tried to move it at least twice. Each time one or more persons working on the project have died. The rock pile remains where it was and is.

Back to Dahlonega itself, the name of the city comes from the Cherokee word “Talonega” meaning “golden”. The city reminds me a lot of Stillwater, MN. Old (well, for the US at least) looking buildings, quaint little downtown area, shops with antiques, good food. It is a college town, but we didn’t see too many students while we were out wandering around.

Like both of the other cities we have spent some time in so far, Atlanta and Chattanooga, the people have been very nice and somewhat surprised that we are from Minnesota. Becca’s class gets over tonight sometime, I have to check out at 11 and we are staying at a bed and breakfast about 15 miles west of where I am now, but I can’t check in until 3. It should be interesting!

Please.

Thanks.

Becca and I have been sick the last few days. I feel better today, but she is still out. Sinus headache and runny nose, etc. Ick.

Chloe is good. Cowboy is good. Cricket is good.

Gizmo and Shale are doing fine and preparing for a long vacation at their friend Nate’s new house. Becca is allergic to something. We don’t know what yet. We changed laundry detergent and soap. Cat’s are next, but we don’t want to get rid of them unless we have to.

That’s all for now I guess.

So, after talking to Charlie about it, I found out that they have them up to size 12! After finishing up the last part of our refi paperwork we went to Journeys and got some. They didn’t actually have the ones I wanted in stock, so I am getting them shipped to our house this next week.

These are the ones I got.

In the Xbox game, the Vikings kicked off to the Eagles just like in the real game. At the end of the Xbox game, the Eagles had won 20 to 17, which while not exactly the same, was close enough.

I am curious now how well Madden 09 will predict the winner. I am half interested to “spectate” the other games through and see… If I do, I will make a post about it.

Anyway, his secret identity works for a company called “Janus”, while his alter ego works as an efficiency expert at “AJ Sun”. I just realized that Janus is the two-faced Roman god of doors with one face looking forward and a second face looking backwards. I thought it was clever.