Day Eight

10:40am: After checking out of the hotel, went to try and find a church for Mass, but was never able to find it, due to faulty directions from a hotel clerk. (What a huge surprise that was.) So we parked way early at the Arena and walked across the street to the Ticket for our final meal in Spokane.

11:30am: Lunch. I’m glad that our last meal in Spokane was at the Ticket. It really is a fun place, with great service and reasonably-priced, tasty food. Audrey and I ordered tea and Bailey’s coffee, and when we admired the cups they served them in, the waitress sold them to us for a buck each. That epitomizes the friendliness and beyond-the-call-of-duty service we got everywhere we went in town. Spokane should be proud.

12:35pm: Walked across the street, but found that they weren’t letting people in until 1pm. Yeah, it was cold, but the people in line were good-spirited about it, in spite of the nippy weather. As my mother-in-law would say, “Gotta dress for it.” Again, we met some neat, friendly folks.

1pm: Found our seats. It felt strange to be in different seats than we were in all week, but they were better—not so nosebleed section-like. Actually, our seats weren’t all that bad.

2pm: Watched the Exhibition. Great fun, and a great way to end the week. Everyone who earned a major medal skated. Caroline Zhang and Mirai Nagasu were darn cute.

I’ll briefly say something about Johnny Weir now, and when I have more time and after I’ve recovered from my vacation, I’ll write more extensively about him. For now, Johnny’s performance at the exhibition was marvelous. The last group of skaters, all biggies, received standing ovations, mostly to congratulate them for doing well at the competition. Johnny’s ovation, however, was sincere, because he was being true to himself—finally. More about that later.

5:30pm: Got on the road, since we had decided to leave early. Lots of fog, but got home safety about 8:00. The kids were asleep, but I arrived home to a big surprise—my wonderful hubby had done some much-needed home improvements while I was gone.

Going to the Nationals was the most fun I’ve had in a long, long time, but I’m glad I’m home. I’ll probably write more as I review the re-broadcasts.