Okay, so my husband had his surgery. It was quite the day. That morning as we were driving to the hospital I found out one of the partners from my agency had suddenly passed away the night before from a heart attack. So to say I went into an already emotional situation feeling even more vulnerable is a bit of an understatement. Six screws and a plate later the surgery was over (see picture). The surgery was successful except for pain management and a dropping pulse but things were finally under control and I was able to take him home.

Sadly, it is Labor Day weekend and most of my friends and co-workers are off doing exciting things, but I am at home taking care of a husband who is sick and in pain. It’s okay though, I know we soon will begin traveling like crazy and I cannot wait. Then my blog posts will get a little more interesting…

I wasn’t sure what to name this post, so the name derived from the fact that Knoxville has a lot of trees and the two words sounded good together.

I visited Knoxville this past weekend to visit my cute sister in law and brother in law and their adorable new baby. Spending time with family was a great break from every day life and took our minds off of the impending surgery.

I like to call Knoxville the city of orange, because if you have ever been to Knoxville during a game day you know the whole city turns a bright orange. Knoxville is the third largest city in Tennessee and was home to the World’s Fair back in 1982. Which is the reason for the city’s most well known landmark, the SunSphere. The SunSphere is 266 meters tall and the windows are dusted in real 24-karat gold. That’s a little impressive right?

The University of Tennessee is located near downtown. Dating back to 1796, this university is built on tradition and pride. Last year we had the pleasure of attending a Volunteers football game which changed the way I view college football. We were definitely converted and are now huge Volunteer fans. Neyland Stadium holds over 102,000 fans and is more often than not sold out on game days. The stadium becomes a sea of orange and exudes energy and excitement. It’s quite a sight to be seen and I urge you to someday experience it for yourself.

It’s a city that has much to offer. Scenic views, beautiful lakes, friendly people, quaint downtown and close proximity to many other southern destinations including Gatlinburg, the Smokey Mountains, Biltmore Estate, Atlanta, Nashville and many others. Although I have been to Knoxville three or four times now, I always find new things to see and explore. Maybe it’s because we always have such great tour guides.

It was all set up. We had a condo with our friends, they were going to pick us up from the airport and we were going to spend the day at the beach. Surfing, tanning and building sand castles. Then we were going to get some of the best clam chowder in the world at the Splash Café. Yes, I was very excited about our trip to Pismo Beach this past weekend. The only problem was- it never happened. My husband plays ice hockey for a local league. He grew up in northern Minnesota, and has been playing hockey since he could barely walk. Chasing after a puck, he bumped his opponent (it’s a non-checking league) and it set him off balance which caused him to fall and slide really hardly into the boards. As a last ditch effort to keep his head from hitting the boards, he turned and took the impact with his shoulder.

We spent the next few hours in the Emergency Room. The doctor knew by looking at his shoulder that he had definitely broken his collar bone. Apparently, the collar bone is the first or second most commonly broken bone. The X-Rays came back and we realized just how badly it had broken. It was in three pieces with the middle piece turned on its side, making a z. Following up with the orthopedic surgeon yesterday confirmed that he will indeed need surgery to fix that mess. The doctor also believed that he had broken a few ribs while he was at it. So…. basically what I am trying to get at- no beach for me.

I spent a few hours this weekend wallowing in self pity but tried to make the best of it by going to a movie with one of my best friends. It also helped knowing my husband was in a great deal of pain and discomfort and was also sad that we had missed our beach trip. I busied myself waiting on him and focusing on making him comfortable. I found this article yesterday on CNN. It lists stories of people who had the worst things happen to them on their vacations. Realizing it’s not the most upbeat post I have written but, I am writing about it because it makes me feel better about not going to the beach. Hey, it could have been worse right?

Read the rest of this entry »

I often ask myself why I love to travel so much. I have yet to come up with a definitive answer to that question. But why do we like anything? What in our brain allows us to like and dislike…stuff? Totally random I realize. When it comes to snowboarding and wakeboarding, it’s obvious why I like it, it’s fun. So I like to travel because it’s fun? Is it really though? I mean think about all the stress that comes with traveling. Planning, rushing, waiting, packing and often times in the nature of my travels- even disappointment. So, why do I do it to myself? I guess the reason I am writing this post is because this summer has been the worst. I’ve had a handful of trips that I have planned and gotten excited for, and then to have it fall through- only offers disappointment and frustration. As of now, another trip is on the verge of great disappointment.

But then I look through my pictures, and I remember why I love to travel. Traveling for leisure is by far one of the most satisfying inner victories (other than winning the Olympics of course).  Had I not gone through the stress and the agony of some of these trips, I would not have been able to see glaciers in Alaska, enjoyed baseball and football games with family, or relaxed by the beach and enjoyed the sunsets.

Traveling is truly a zen like expirience. Once you leave your stresses behind you and vow to not let a simple thing like missing flights get you down, is when you truly live, learn and love. I urge you, sit down and plan a vacation. Your mind, body and soul will thank you. If I didn’t travel, I would have gone crazy already.

Staying at hostels are a great way to save some money while also receiving a unique traveling experience. It’s also the adventure of the unknown that can be quite exciting. Some hostels are so nice, some are in unique buildings, and some are a little scary. The people you will meet will be different then those you would run into at a hotel- and I would challenge you to interact and learn from those individuals.

There are plenty of websites out there that can help you locate a hostel to stay at- one including hostels.com which also helps you book online as well.

Here are some things to consider when determining whether or not staying at a hostel is right for you:

1) Are you ok without having a private bathroom and sharing with complete strangers?

2) Are you ok to live without luxury for a few days in sacrifice to visit somewhere amazing?

3) Do weird people creep you out?

Putting that aside my first stay at a hostel I was scared. I had no idea what to expect except for what I had seen on TV. But it was fun, clean and more importantly cheap. For more adventurous travelers I would definitely recommend it, however I do offer this advice:

Bring your own towel and in some cases you might have to provide your own bedding so find that out ahead of time

Don’t expect HBO in your bedroom (although I have stayed in hostels with cable tv before)

And finally just in case bring flip flops to wear in the shower- because you just never know!