Waking up for our second full day in Florida, we were expecting another dose of tropical weather with plans for more beach time. To our dismay, the weather was overcast and windy. We toughed it out though and sat by the pool in sweatpants and sweatshirts and covered ourselves with towels. (As chilly as it was, it was still warmer than Maine!!!) Picture this: 12 girls sitting by a pool, sipping hot chocolate in sunglasses. Each time the sun would reappear through the clouds, we would throw off our towels and as Boo said, “Let the sun hug us.” After lunch, we boarded the bus to Fort Lauderdale to get ready for the tournament. We left Miami with fond memories of the pampering and first-class accommodations, but also focused on the games ahead.
We went straight to our pre-game practice, which involved some running and a lot of shooting. For dinner, we explored Fort Lauderdale. Some of us went to Outback Steakhouse, while others ate Mexican or went to Bubba Gump’s Shrimp Factory. After we checked back in with our coaches, we sunk into bed to get a good night’s sleep before our game against nationally-ranked Medaille. We knew we’d need to be on top of our game to compete and all wanted to make sure we were well-rested and ready to play!
2 comments:
Hey Abby, great blog. I’m Mr. Braden, Julianne’s 6th grade basketball coach.
She might have mentioned that I saved her life once. We were canoeing deep in the Maine woods on the Moose River when her dad tried to make her brother his sole heir by capsizing their canoe over Attean Falls. She thinks it was an accident. Not hardly. Jules had difficulty swimming to shore do to the many injuries she sustained over the previous 2 days. Mr. K continuously tried to impale her on the trees that lined the banks of the mighty Moose! Jules was navigator and Mr. K steered. He never did figure out which was his “other left”. During the final leg of our journey across Attean Pond, it became very windy and her dad abandoned her for another canoe. Jules could not paddle against the 30 mph wind so I had to tow her the final 2 hours back to camp. I am telling you these things so you can keep your eye on her. If she shows any symptoms of BDS (battered daughter syndrome), please get her immediate attention. Good luck the rest of the season.
Mr. Braden
Hey Abby. I agree. Great Blog. However, don't believe a word that Mr. Braden says. What he does not tell the reader is that he led the expedition down the Moose River, and that he is geographically-challenged (aka he cannot read a map). At a certain point along the river (in the middle of nowhere) he insisted that we reached our designated campsite. After he had Jules carry her canoe and all her possessions (which weighed well over 100 pounds) over two miles of treacherous terrain (swamps, snakes, bugs, boulders, steep drops and inclines, and of course, wild moose), we found out that we had exited the river too early, and if we had paddled down the river for another 15 minutes, we could have liesurely floated to our campground which was on the shore of the river. Jules "paid him back" by flipping his canoe when she abruptly jumped into his canoe from the shore when he wasn't looking. Mr. Braden resembled a very wet rat when he re-surfaced.
I am organizing a return trip to the Mighty Moose River this Spring. Any takers? Just Kidding.
Good luck the rest of the season, and stay healthy. Go Mules!
Jules' Dad
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