Never trust your GPS in Appalachia...

[danno_williams]

 OK, so, I'm back! YAY!

I underestimated how long it would take me to get back on track from the Work Camp. Sorry, but I'm back now!

(Let me know if you want stories about almost driving 15 passenger vans off cliffs and 4 inch diameter wolf spiders in the kitchen which spawn babies when smashed. Also? Old style insulation is the DEVIL.)

Mods, I will have my counts up shortly. Everyone else? Looking forward to dealing with the bomb and  the interview plots. So weee!

(I really should have gotten a picture of that spider, it was fucking massive)

Comments

[gruesome]

We want all the stories.

[danno_williams]

It was a blast. Like, in that summer camp 'it sounds really horrible when you describe it to people but when you're doing it is just awesome' way.

The 15 passenger van comment? First thing is that the GPS is just, screwed up in the hills. The algorithm or whatever just does not take into account that some roads just should not be driven on unless you're a local. It took us up one hill, that's labeled in the GPS and such as a two lane road... but it REALLY wasn't. It was barely a one lane road. It was essentially a one lane switchback up and over one particular hill/mountain. And we were going up it in the dark, while it was raining, in 15 passenger vans and an SUV with a U-haul cargo thing.

Not to mention that the road itself was like, road, half a foot, cliff. So, we were erring on the other side of the road. Therefore I got a van with at least 11 kids stuck in a ditch because the other side had ditches that just kinda appeared then disappeared and in the dark I really didn't see that one coming. It was deep enough that we couldn't just drive out of it so it was a bit of a chore to get it out. We did though... But, I got IRON MAN stuck in a ditch!

We named all our vans for ease of reference with the kids and radio chatter. I had Iron Man. It's easier to tell people to go get in IRON MAN rather than saying "The van that me and X drove up, which looks almost exactly like all the other vans.And oh! Neither of us are driving it this time because we're staying back for dinner duty." The others were BATMAN, MYSTERY MACHINE, LOVE BUG and HERBIE. Which the kids quickly renamed HERPIE. Much to our chagrin.

And the Spider... dude. The place we stayed in kinda had that summer camp feel? So, while it was nice and indoors and everything, the bathrooms were outside and it kitchen, while nice, well. At one point a wolf spider wandered in. A biiiig wolf spider. Which, if you didn't know, mama wolf spiders carry their bebbes on they're abdomen or they make like this sac thing they carry their eggs around in. One of the chaps (who is actually one of our pastors) made the mistake of killing it.

Bebbes went EVERYWHERE.

Next time there was one, I took care of it and did the whole trap it in a cup and slide a paper plate underneath and just dump it outside somewhere to fend for itself thing. Everyone was relieved.

And that's just the start? But I should probably stop because I still have to do my AC counts.