Christopher and Nico in Gatlinburg, TN
March 5, 2015
My son Nico turned 7 this past February. The only good thing
about him being a Leap Year baby is that he’s technically only 1 and half.
So basically, I haven’t aged either between the 2008, 2012, 2016 years. My son
is on the Summer Olympics’ 4-year rotation.
He will keep me forever young because when I’m in a nursing
home at 80 I can brag I have a 12 year old! They'll never let me out of there.
This years’ birthday, the Florida boy, wanted to see snow.
Snow isn’t an easy thing to come by in the Sunshine State and it’s no easy task
finding it living anywhere in Florida. Had we’ve been living in the northeast, around
the Massachusetts area; he’d have had his share of snow to last him a lifetime.
I think most of those people in the northern states have has their fill during this 2014- 2015 snow year.
Starting a new year out, as Snow Angels, may help give us good luck throughout the year, so we were going to go find that glistening white snow!
Starting a new year out, as Snow Angels, may help give us good luck throughout the year, so we were going to go find that glistening white snow!
It’s about a 13-hour drive to Gatlinburg,
Tennessee and the area just had snow dumped on them a few days prior to the 28th.
I decided on a whim we’d go drive up there so him in his brother can roam the
land on the ice.
We left on a Friday at about 12:30 PM
“Dad, we forgot the phone,” my son said.
Okay, we left the house at 12:40PM.
The minivan trucked up interstate I-95 on our way to see
some, “snowmen,” My kids reference to snow is considered, Olaf. Thanks, Frozen,
thanks, Disney.
By 7PM I realized my GPS had taken me too far east, not
China, and I had to make my way back to the center as we drove through South
Carolina to get to Tennessee.
At 2:30 AM on Saturday February 28, the GPS had me on some
road called Crooked Branch Road, a little one-lane mountain road, and none the
closer to Gatlinburg. Talk about a crock not crooked!
At about 3:30AM, there it was! Our Hilton Hotel, squeezed
between a tired old lodge, a parking lot garage and a view of the trees where
the view of the river was obstructed.
I checked us in, carried the boys to their room, and settled
in for a nice sleep-in.
7:30AM February 28.
“Oh my God! Snow! Come on dad, get up, get up, get up!” my
son’s yelled.
It was a Christmas morning nightmare all over again.
By the time 9 AM came we were downstairs. The boys ran to
the double automatic doors, exited the front lobby, and wasted no time,
stopping short, and simply reaching out and touching the snow. Both my sons
studied it. Peered at it. Poked at it. And when they finally realized it was
real “Olaf” threw each other into it.
“Come on dad, let’s go, snow! Jump in it!”
I know if you’re wondering if I did? Of course I did!
I hadn’t seen Gatlinburg, Tennessee in about 10 years. I
hadn’t stayed there in about 20 years. And nothing had changed. Which is bad.
The buildings appeared old and dilapidated with no real charm. Everything was
squeezed into a little space and stacked like Checkers in a game of
Connect-Four. The area seemed dirtier and a little dumpier. It was a shame
because when I went there as a kid it seemed majestic. Now, here visiting here as
an adult? Not as much. It was like trying to relive my youth and being as disappointed as those guys in the movie, 80's Hot Tub Time Machine.
Thankfully our Hilton was new and up to date.
By 12 Noon we had made our way up the mountain, on the cable
tram, and reached the summit. For my son there was more glorious snow! And on
top of that snow, there were these people. And these people were on ski’s.
“Dad, that is amazing! What are they doing on top of Olaf?!”
“They’re skiing guys. It’s like a back rub for Olaf.”
By 3PM they were on Skis.
By 4PM they were in ski school.
By 5PM I was apologizing to all the skiers that crashed on
the slope due to avoiding my boys who were zig-zagging there way downhill. They
were fearless!
By the time 10PM came around the boys passed out in their
bed. Shortly after I passed out. We were on the road by 1130AM March 1st.
Headed back to Florida.
This time I took interstate I-75, hoping to shave some drive
time off the 804-mile trip. We stopped several times we weren’t home until 2:30
AM March 2nd. What a whirlwind.
My sons keep me young. Too bad my oldest birthday is on the
Summer Olympic rotation instead of the Winter Olympics because they tackled
Olaf with all the skill of a northerner. And I kept up with them the whole time,
which proves my theory of my son, both of them, keeping me forever young. They're such angels.
https://twitter.com/FusaCmee
Christopher and Nico (near) skiing
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