My parents were supposed to be visiting this week. They made it as far as Dallas Friday night before a confluence of events wreaked havoc with those plans. Thunderstorms, diverted flights, planes without crews to fly them. And then, the coup de grace: cancelled flights. They ended up sleeping on the floor of the airport, an unimaginable hell if you ask me.
Flying sucks these days. Add in the fact that they insist on doing it standby, and it’s a small miracle they ever got off the ground in Portland.
Needless to say, they bagged their trip. Their luggage made it to Rapid City, but they’re stuck in Texas until tomorrow. Good thing they have friends in Richardson who graciously put them up.
We’d basically planned out the entire week, stocked the fridge with my dad’s favorite beer, made a lemon zucchini bread for them. What a shame. (Rest assured that the lemon zucchini bread will not go to waste, though neither of us are fans of the Crow Peak IPA.)
Finding ourselves with an unexpected free weekend, we mostly filled it with yard chores on Saturday. It started raining in the evening, so we stepped out onto the front porch stoop to sit and watch it for a while. Came inside, had a couple of drinks, grilled chicken, watched a movie. All in all, it was a very pleasant evening.
Today, we felt the need…the need for a good old-fashioned movie experience, and Top Gun: Maverick fit the bill perfectly.
Man, did it deliver. If you’re a fan of the original—and who isn’t?—you’ll love it. When Harold Faltermeyer’s familiar score kicked in, I got chills. They started multiplyin’ when that was followed by Kenny Loggins taking us right into the Danger Zone. There’s a perfect mix of nostalgia and edge-of-your-seat action in this sequel that took 36 years to hit the big screen.
I daresay, it took my breath away.
We sometimes like to look at houses on Zillow or Realtor.com just for fun. It’s always nice to see what else is out there. We’ll marvel over well-appointed homes with features we like, such as exposed beams and sun rooms and basement bars. Conversely, we’ll snigger over some of the more questionable decorating choices. Hideous wallpaper, carpeting in the kitchen, that sort of thing. We’ve seen a lot of interesting features, but this one takes the cake.
Where to even begin?
I’ve never seen anybody so fully embrace the concept of sitting on the throne. They were probably flush with excitement when they added that bad boy! What’s the big stink, you say? Additional bathrooms add value to a home, I’ll give you that, but I’m pretty sure a fully-exposed toilet on a raised platform has the opposite effect. I’d poo-poo that idea before it ever got off the ground. The worst part of all? The toilet paper looks maddeningly out of reach.
I used to think the worst thing you could do in front of an audience was deliver a speech, but I stand corrected. Number two is number one, if you will.
I’m pretty sure I’d suffer from performance anxiety anyway.
Mark My Words 
Oh, my, when my New York kids were looking for a place out here, we saw some VERY “interesting” decor, color schemes and oddities. We were constantly sending one another links–“DID YOU SEE THIS ONE?” That bathroom (?) really takes the proverbial cake though. Ugh. I’m so sorry about the flying hell; that is disappointing for your parents and you. (not to mention uncomfortable) It is really intimidating to do a one stop these days. I was even worried about my Alaska Airlines non-stop from Seattle to JFK although I felt a little safer. Big plane=lots of pissed off people about a cancellation. I’m not a fan of IPAs and most of the time the ABV is too high for me. Anything over 6 makes me quite silly!
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Apparently there is a “Zillow Gone Wild” Facebook group that a friend sent me a link to. Can’t wait to dive into that one! Reminds me of the old “Best of Craigslist” postings back in the day, ha.
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Oh my goodness, you went from Top Gun to Top Buns. Hilarious! I couldn’t even count the number of puns in those two paragraphs — and I’m a math person. 🙂
Sorry about your parents but it sounds like a lovely weekend. Hope the week is just as spontaneously delightful!
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I laughed hard over “Top Gun to Top Buns.” Tara said I should have used that as a title for the post!
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Yikes! It’s hard to believe that the realtor thought the exposed “bathroom” was a selling point. I think you’ve successfully use up all the toilet puns so I’ll just say Holy S#&t!
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Oh, I’m sure I could ply the depths a little further and come up with a few more puns if I really wanted to!
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Sooooo right about the movie and I’m not embarrassed to say there were tears when someone’s son walked into a bar lookin like his dad- plus a few other scenes as well. Not to mention Val…
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Nice way of saying what you wanted to say without spoiling it for others! I totally agree.
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Well…. thanks but if you know Top Gun you likely got the hint so I just hoped no one would read my comment except you!
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Home decor can be pretty personal, but doors, people! TOILETS NEED DOORS MORE THAN CLOSETS!
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You’d think that would be a no-brainer, right?
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Maverick was a great ride. Sorry your parents didn’t have a Top Gun flying experience. No one should have to sleep in the airport, that’s hell.
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Yep! The only thing they felt the need for was a long nap and a nice, hot shower after a night spent outside the luggage carousel.
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Lol, I’ve got my post ready for Wednesday with Realtor.com photos. But (butt) that one takes the cake! The real question is not why a homeowner does dumb crap (ha!) but WHY a realtor features it on their listing pictures??? You really have to question their intelligence!
Your poor parents. And this is why we’re not flying for the foreseeable future. My husband just had a dinner get cancelled two weeks in a row because the person he’s meeting with can’t get a flight out of D.C. Insane.
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I’m ready to swear off flying for the rest of my life at this point! I’ve never enjoyed the experience to begin with. This just makes it that much worse.
Can’t wait to read your post!
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Not seen Maverick here, but it’s only a matter of time, I’m sure. I’ve seen a few of THAT type of photo and it makes me shake my head each & every time. I mean, boundaries people, what about some boundaries. And having a toilet behind a door is really the lowest level of boundary you can get!
Sorry to hear your parents visit didn’t work out. We’ve been having all manner of travel issues over here in the UK. Mostly it’s being blamed on Brexit, so I presumed you were largely safe 😉 Glad you got to enjoy some stoop sitting…
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I don’t even know what we’re blaming our airline woes on over here any more. Pick any number of excuses, I suppose: COVID, supply chain shortages, labor shortages, the war in Ukraine, a butterfly flapping its wings halfway around the world…
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Ah yes, that damn butterfly…
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Lemon zucchini bread sounds amazing! Have your neighbors over to foist the beer on them. The porch/stoop thing was a nice touch.
We felt the need…the need for a good old-fashioned movie–another nice touch!
And I can’t even begin to comment on the toilet thing and all the puns. I just… words escape me. That is so bizarre on multiple levels. Two, to be exact.
We sometimes go to open houses as a fun family activity. Why just look at the pics when you can see the crazy toilets IRL?
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“Multiple levels”…ha. I should hire you as a backup speech writer!
The lemon zucchini bread was delicious. And, alas, long gone now.
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Years ago we helped friends move into a new-to-them house. The master bedroom featured an open floor plan, including the toilet in the corner. No walls, no separation, no nothin’. That would have been a big NOPE from me. There is no one I love enough to watch/listen to them poop.
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Open toilet in the master bedroom? I think I’d rather sleep in the backyard!
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<—not fan of the original top gun, thought it was cheesy and lame
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I can’t “like” this comment on general principle, because “Top Gun” is brilliant, but I respect all opinions. People always give me the side eye when I tell them I hate watermelon.
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Trust me just because I don’t care for it means I think less of anyone that really likes it. Just my opinion because you stated “who doesn’t like Top Gun” lol. My buddy also named Mark loved both films as well and he was shocked by what I said.
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Haha, good. I’m not the only one!
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Such a bummer for your parents. We’ve all seen the warnings about disrupted travel on the horizon, but I daresay we all think it won’t happen to us. Cancelled my one-way flight to Denver so now I’m driving out with the husband, but I still have a round-trip flight to San Diego in July and I’m nervous the airline turmoil is going to mess it all up! Agree with you on the movie – really enjoyed TG: Maverick. Just re-watched the original this weekend and I like the new one better!
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Ugh…but on the plus side, it’s a beautiful drive to Denver. You’ll see some great countryside that way. And spend a fortune in petrol, but that’s another story.
I agree: the sequel is even better. How amazing is that?
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We are bracing for the fill ups heading out there.
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Air travel certainly isn’t what it used to be; we were stranded in CO and the airline could not give two flips about it. Also, they wouldn’t let us stay in the airport, nor would they find us transportation to the nearest hotel. (35 minutes away)There’s a post in this. Bummer that your parents didn’t make it to see you.
You do have the loveliest skies.
I can’t say the same for that toilet catastrophe.
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Tell you what: it makes me want to travel by Amtrak. The “friendly skies” have been anything but lately!
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I admit that looking at the inside of houses is more interesting to me than the outsides. The color choices baffle me, the lousy furniture, but the most intriguing thing is the oddly designed spaces… such as this throne. What the heck?
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Totally agree! Making fun of people’s decorating skills is a favorite pastime.
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