Return To Norris Lake
As I said in "Rules for a Greattastic Life (Taylor's version)," Paige went on a cousin's trip (her dad's side of the family) on June 30th for about a week. She was only back in Columbus for a few days before she went on a camping trip with her mom's side. As a result of her travels and my family trip to Colorado, Paige and I only saw each other three times in July before the Norris Lake trip.
You may recall my cousin's family, the Mitreys (Uncle Andy, Aunt Melissa, Alex, Maci, Nicholas, and Ellie), own a house on Norris Lake in Tennessee. The Mitreys have had extended family over since they got the home in 2021, and my family has gone every year. My family left on Saturday, July 29th, but that was the day of Paige's best friend Nicole's 21st birthday party, so Paige and I planned to go on the 30th. We got to the party 20 minutes after it started, and I spent the entire night socializing with Paige and Nicole's high school friends. The next day after Mass, I finished packing, and Paige and I drove five and a half hours to the lake house.
My Aunt Cyndi, her fiance Jeremy, and her two children, Caitlynn and Cameron, were at the house when Paige and I got there. My Uncle Bob would arrive the following day. The next morning, Paige and I put our swimsuits and sunscreen on and went on an hour-long paddle-boarding date. I know the first thing I did on the trip was go on that date, but after that, the days blurred together, so my timeline is a little questionable. But here are some highlights from the trip:
There was a stray dog that was roaming the area. He was very friendly and liked Mitrey's dog, Daisy. I'm pretty sure the dog is going to become the marina dog.
Uncle Andy took Paige, Cyndi, Caitlynn, Cameron, and me, tubing on our own. On Cyndi, Jeremy, Kaitlin, Cameron, Ellie, and Uncle Bob's last night, we went to the marina, ate dinner, and won $50 from their trivia night.
The day everyone listed above left (Cyndi's family went to Dollywood, and Uncle Bob drove Ellie home so she could attend a track camp), Alex took his remaining siblings, my brothers, Paige, and I tubing. Paige and I were last in the rotation since we had already gone. On Paige's turn, she flew off the tube, did three cartwheels in the air, and continued rolling when she hit the water! She was totally fine, other than a pretty big bruise on her leg, But I'm kind of mad I didn't get the epicness of that crash on video. For the rest of the trip, we either relaxed in the lake, played games with the neighbors, or played Mario Kart.
As you may recall last time I went to Norris Lake (Swimmer's Ear), it wasn't as fun for me as it should have been. Two things went wrong. First, I flew off the tube on my first day, got water stuck in my ear, and got an ear infection. Secondly, on that trip, I had to break up with my ex-girlfriend Gabby. Knowing that I was going on this trip, I preemptively got drops in case my earplugs didn't work, and even though I was in the water every day, I didn't get an ear infection.
Paige coming was excellent too! Paige had already met most of Mom's side of the family, so I already knew that they loved her. But she spent the entire week with my family and got along with everyone the whole time… Like; it's not that I wasn't expecting her to get along with everyone, but actually seeing everyone get along with her the entire week was super cool. I don't know, it was just such a fun trip, and I feel like Norris Lake has redeemed itself from last year!
Have a Greattastic day and be safe!
J. Mitchie Ulibarrri
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