What a strange, strange day...

I write this a few days removed from Jared and I's strange day. This strange day was last Friday, when our small little town of Apex made national headlines. The drama for us started Thursday night when Jared went to turn off the computer before heading to bed. He came into the room announcing the fact that WRAL (the local news station) had breaking news on its website regarding a "mysterious odor and haze" surrounding downtown Apex. I, being the calm person I am, thought nothing of this.......FALSE (to quote Dwight from the Office :) ). I immediately freaked out, reminding Jared that we live less than 5 minutes from downtown Apex, and should probably be concerned. Jared, knowing how my little worries transform into major catastrophe plans, decided he would go watch the 11:00 news while I went to bed (sweet, sweet man:) ). He returned around 11:15 saying nothing had really been said and we should just go to sleep.

Fast forward 5.45 hours, and it is now 6:00 a.m Friday morning, and I am driving to work. However, once I turn onto Highway 55, all I see are flashing blue lights blocking 55 past the US 1 exit. That's odd, I think, all while the radio station in my car is announcing mass evacuations for Apex due to a chemical explosion/fire/"plume" (the most popular word during the entire event). I immediately, "calmly", call Jared to wake him up to prepare him to pack up our clothes, the dog, and our wedding album, obviously our most prized possessions:) Jared, the hard-working man that he is, prepares for his work day as normal, showering and dressing and feeding the dog, etc. By the time I have gotten to work, the full story of the chemical explosion, traveling toxic cloud and mass evacuations is all over the news, and more evacuations are threatened once the "plume" is moved by the changing winds. So, I convince my husband to spend the day at home ("um...I think a chemical fire and toxic air are more important than anything waiting for you at work", says Amanda, obviously in a loving tone). So Jared and Dixon wait it out the entire day at home, waiting for the changing winds and the shifting "plume". No winds shift, rain falls heavily, and the fire is mostly put out. We fared better than our friends Chris and Melissa, who were forced to evacuate their house around midnight...read their story here ( and thanks for the image, Chris:) ) However, it was an exciting day in Apex, and we never felt more loved...Jared's cell phone rang so much it was dead by 10:00 am.

To treat my loving husband, I took him to dinner at one of his favorite restaurants, Red Robin. Mmmmm...good hamburgers. And Jared's favorite, a hamburger with a fried egg on top....disgusting. We arrive around 6:30 and add our names to the list, and are told the wait is around 25 minutes. No problem. We amuse ourselves for around 15 minutes, until Jared points out an empty table for two in the bar area, commenting, "Couldn't we just sit there?" They probably are getting ready to sit someone there I replied. No, no, ten minutes later we are taken to the table that has been empty during our entire waiting period. It is here that we witness the other strange event of the day. Now, I am not a big alcohol drinker, but I do know some of the "etiquette" of alcohol drinking. Sitting in the bar area gave us a nice view of its occupants, namely one couple who looked to be only slightly older than ourselves. Now, this girl is wearing flip flops (and if you remember, the high temperature on Friday was a rainy 55), blue jeans, a Duke sweatshirt and Duke baseball hat with her hair in a elastic band. She is accompanied by her husband? boyfriend? brother who is also wearing jeans but a Carolina sweatshirt. Already an odd couple if you ask us. And then homegirl orders a glass of Chardonnay. Excuse me? Chardonnay? Would you like some caviar to go with it? I feel like if you are going to eat at Red Robin (which they did, they were seated shortly after receiving their drinks), Chardonnay should not be your drink of choice. Just our opinion. And wear some shoes next time...

No wonder reality television is so appealing...

Till next time:) Here's hoping all chemicals are contained in your hometown! Amanda