I grew up in Paducah, KY, which has two large lakes conveniently located nearby. In high school, my family got Sea Doos and a lake house. My sister and I spent lots of time on the water, but I never attempted to water ski. When I went to college at GaTech, I met Jamie. Her family also spends all kinds of time on a lake, and her’s is much closer than mine. The difference is her family is big into water skiing. Her dad quickly taught me to ski and by the end of the summer I could also Slalom. The wakeboard, however, kept alluding me. I would try and try but never quite get up.
Well, after moving away and then back to Atlanta, I am once again spending time on the lake with Jamie. Wade, Madison, and I went this past weekend, and I was determined to wakeboard. After a few unsuccessful attempts, I did it! What an odd feeling. Water skiing feels a lot like snow skiing except that my back starts to hurt after a while. Wakeboarding is just awesome. I can’t wait to go back and try again soon. Jamie is a pro at the wakeboard and her brother, Jason, is awesome to watch on Slalom. I can get up, but I am definitely not impressive. Wade can ski, but he wanted to try wakeboarding. He didn’t quite get up this time, and after what happened to him this weekend, I don’t know if he will be back.
Wade has tried repeatedly to get a tan and is never successful so he decided to forgo sunscreen for the first few hours. Because of that, he is now a bright pink color. He tried to wakeboard for quite a while, so his arms, shoulders, and back are sore from the jerking. Then the good stuff happens. Jamie, Madison, and I were taking a nap and Wade decided to go out on a big inner tube with Jason and his friends. The tube holds two people and was pulled behind the boat. When I woke up, Wade is standing over me with a bloody head and telling me he lost his wedding ring. Evidently he collided with one of the other guy’s knees while on the tube and busted his forehead up. The ring he lost while slowly letting go of the handle on the tube. It was definitely a hard day for him – he spent all of Sunday recovering.
This was Madison’s first trip to the lake, and we weren’t quite sure how she would do. We bought a lead on a stake and put her in the lot next to Jamie’s family. I was a little worried she would bark while we were out in the boat and annoy Jamie’s mom. Madison was on her best behavior and only whined when her lead got tangled in the various pipes, poles, or picnic table. The funniest part of the day is when we put Madison in the water. She was okay as long as we were there, but she didn’t do too well on the Jet Ski. We thought she would love the wind (like sticking her head out of the car window), but evidently the water in her eyes made the experience horrible. Wade came back from the ride with scratches all over his legs. I guess it was a rough day for Madison – she has slept all of today!