The Events of Tuesday, January 4, 2011

            On our last day in the amazing beach house at Holden Beach, we woke up earlier than ever before, had breakfast, showered, and began to pack everything back into Harvey, the exact same process we went through last week in Williamsburg. Only, this time, it was so much more relaxed, not at all stressful.  We had no time constraints; only the desire to do something tourist-y today, rather than just drive, and shop, and then boondock at Costco in Charleston. Also, we put the slide-outs out right away, so that we had more space in which to move around. Furthermore, last night, we had organized mostly everything to go out into the RV into boxes or bags sorted by where in the RV it goes. With Mom sending stuff down from the house, via Ben’s and then Abby’s athleticism up and down the stairs, Daddy, Lindsey, and I put away everything inside in a timely manner. And we sadly bid goodbye to our little piece of heaven by the sea.

            Next, we stopped at a Walmart to return Ben’s shoes, then drove south through Myrtle Beach. Myrtle Beach, that famous beach that everyone’s heard of…we saw only shops, commercialism, and materialism. It was quite a contrast from the amazing peace, family atmosphere, and non-commercialism we so enjoyed in Holden Beach.

            As we drove, I noticed some odd, funny-looking, gray, beard-like growths on some of the trees. When I asked Mom about it, she informed me that it’s called Spanish moss, but it isn’t Spanish, and it isn’t moss, either. It’s actually related to the pineapple, and it’s an epiphyte – a plant that grows upon another plant without taking any nutrients from it. Legend goes that a Spanish soldier fell in love at first sight with an Indian chief's favorite daughter. Though the chieftain forbade the couple to see each other, the Spaniard was too love struck to stop meeting the maiden in secret. The father found them out and ordered his braves to tie the Spaniard high up in the top of an ancient oak tree. The Spaniard had only to disavow his love to be freed, but he steadfastly refused. Guards were posted to keep anyone -- the chief's daughter above all -- from giving food or water to the poor Spaniard. The Spaniard grew weaker and weaker, but he still would not renounce his love for the girl. Not only would he refuse to disavow his love, but his love would continue to grow even after death. Before long, the Indians began to notice that the Spaniard's beard continued to grow. The Indian maiden refused ever to take a husband -- unless the Spaniard's beard died and vanished from the tree. Which it never did and now it covers tress all over the region, continuing to proclaim his love. Awwww.

            After a lot more driving, we took a little tour around Pawley’s Island looking for a scenic spot for lunch, with no such luck. Instead, we had lunch at Hobcaw Observation Point and Fishing Pier. There was a wide assortment of very tall marsh grass just outside our window, along with many different birds (including herons and hornbills) and a couple beer cans. During our otherwise uneventful lunch, two cats appeared from out of the grasses to watch us eat. The first was gray with dark gray stripes and white paws. Mom said that it reminded her of her childhood cat Mittens. Hence, we dubbed it Mittens. This cat Mittens came out of the grasses and sat in front of the RV, staring at it like her life depended on it. After losing the staring contest with the odd, abnormally large, white vehicle we call home, Mittens stalked away into the grasses. Then a Siamese cat appeared, with piercing blue eyes. This cat we christened King of Siam, and watched curiously as he, too, went through the same staring contest with the RV before slipping away.

            After lunch, we drove s’more until we arrived in Charleston. Our first stop was a Factory Brand Shoes store in Tanger Outlet for Ben’s enormous size thirteen feet. He got a pair of a $60 pair of shoes 50% off (that’s $30 for our non-mathematicians).

            Our next stop was a AAA office, to obtain our subsequent round of maps, to acquire Mom and Dad’s international driver’s licenses, and to purchase our Disney World Resort tickets. After getting lost in a quaint, quiet, suburban-like neighborhood, we found ourselves at an address at which there was no AAA! We then got lost again trying to find the right office! Mom and Dad had to get their pictures taken for their international driver’s licenses, so they were grateful for their recent haircuts. Meanwhile, we kids enjoyed exploring the wide range of travel supplies the AAA office sells to make traveling more comfortable. From luggage to driving organization tools to books about traveling, they had it all! I picked up a thick book about the 1000 things we should do before we die. By coincidence, the first page I flipped it open to was the page about the Iowa State Fair! We’ve been there! Done that!

            After our AAA visit, deciding that it was too late to do any of our tourist attractions, we headed for Costco. Upon arriving, we got gas, and the kindly gas station attendant informed us that our back left tire was looking kind of low on air. So we drove it across the parking lot to the Costco Tire Center, where they took a look at it, while we shopped inside, and ate dinner and dessert at the Costco food court. During dessert, we were entertained by one young shopper pushing an oversized, overfilled cart with an office desk chair mat flopping over towards him. The poor guy was holding the mat up with his neck and strutting like a peacock with his neck stretched out, slowly towards the exit door. We laughed silently at him as he passed us, until he looked over at us and smiled, probably realizing how absolutely ridiculous he looked. By the time he was out the door, we were all laughing out loud, and falling over one another in hysterics.

            At another point in dessert, a Costco employee came over to us, with a big smile, and said, “You’re really giving the tire guys out there a fun time! They’re trying to get that thing up on the jack, and they can’t!” Glad to give them such an adventure, we waited inside while Daddy hurried outside to retrieve the RV. The Costco folks were very apologetic that they couldn’t help us, but we understood they had done their best.

            After some crazy circles around the Costco parking lot, we finally picked a spot to boondock (with permission) and started on our math time with Daddy. After math, we read, relaxed, and readied for bed. It is so much warmer here in Charleston than in Williamsburg, Virginia.