Sunday and Monday with the Crystals

My friend Crystal (married to Nathan) loves Nicholas Sparks books. She mentioned being excited that he had a book coming out the same weekend his movie was released. So when the marquee in Berryville announced that Nights in Rodanthe would be the weekend feature I asked if she wanted to go and we would leave the menfolk and young-uns behind. She thought it was a great idea. So did the menfolk, who aren't really fond of chickflicks.

We stopped at a sandwich shop to eat dinner, where thanks to genetic affiliations and friendly associations we can eat for next to nothing. I pulled my camera out and Crystal started laughing and asking what I was doing. She hasn't spent enough time with me yet.

After a laugh-filled meal we headed on down the street to watch the movie. It is a good movie, but there came a point where I figured out the ending and it irritated me. (slightly) I am one who thinks that fictional love stories should have happy endings. That is why they are fictional, right??? lol... anyway, I don't want to indulge everything in case you plan on seeing this or reading the book, but I seriously have to wonder why Sparks writes stories that generally end this way? It is depressing, I tell ya!

We did find a couple of moments of hilarity in the movie, though. Hey, Crystal... who's your postmaster????
Then on Monday morning the other Crystal (not married to Nathan)called with "a slight emergency." Zach had started his car, got out while it was running, and locked the keys inside. She asked me if I could come get him and help him get a spare key before he ran out of gas. Unfortunately, nobody had the key in town so I drove him over to the police department and they made arrangements to come unlock it for him. (I might have had some experience with needing a locked car unlocked recently that caused me to learn that our PD will do this for people in their precinct.) (Do we even have a precinct in a town this small???)

I brought him back to his purring vehicle and once again pulled out the camera. Crystal didn't know the plan, and I was hoping the chief (it is the chief of police who handles these calls) would arrive before we did. He didn't, so I snapped a couple of shots and then had to get back to work. Here they are reflecting in the windshield towards the incarcerated keys.

Crystal asked the chief if this would appear in the police report in our paper and her assured her it will. She wants me to make sure it gets posted on the church bulletin board. My kids aren't the only ones who make it in the paper around here!

I feel bad for Crystal (not married to Nathan). She is finding herself surrounded by people who appear to have escaped from looney bins lately. It makes me grateful to have a house surrounded by farms. The only escapees I usually encounter are four-legged critters of the bovine and equine variety like this guy who found an open fence to wander through today.

Thanks for the laughs, Crystals! Let's do it all again soon!