Trip to Charleston

“Zach, get your lazy butt up!” my mom yelled from her bathroom as she was blow-drying her hair. Even though I wanted to stay in bed and sleep a few more hours, I remembered all that we had to do today. Reluctantly, I dragged myself up.

That’s when I thought I’d kindly do my mom a favor and wake-up my twin brother. I dashed into his room and threw a pillow at him, “Get up!” I said. Then I made a hasty retreat into the kitchen for some breakfast. After I finished my breakfast, I got ready. Pretty soon we all piled in our automobile. Of course my mom told me to bring a book, so I would have something to do if things got tedious (a word that means “dull or boring.)

After about thirty minutes on the road, I realized that I didn’t really need my book. I wasn’t bored because I was in the back seat talking and laughing with my twin (and also making fun of our older brother and his girlfriend because they’re always holding hands and hugging.) Finally, we made it to Charleston and stopped at Five Guys for a delicious lunch. Ah the aroma of hamburgers cooking!! Now, this only made me hungrier, so I couldn’t wait to sink my teeth into a nice, warm, juicy hamburger. Five Guys is the BEST!

After lunch we headed to The Fire Museum. Luckily I’m not thirteen yet, otherwise we would have had to pay for me. Kids under thirteen get in free! Apparently my big brother really adores gift shops, because he shot right to it as soon as we got our tickets. Soon, there I was at the display room. I couldn’t believe my eyes. There were tons of fire truck on display. They had models dating from the early 1900’s all the way up to now. They even had a fire “enjin” that dates to 1785, was pulled by humans and is one of only three in existence.

The best part was the fire truck simulator that consisted of a real engine cab with lights and sirens and all the controls a real truck has. Inside it had real fire truck controls and a virtual reality screen. With the push of a button, kids can respond to a fire call and drive through city traffic with sirens wailing! Of course I got in and drove to the “fire.” They also had a firefighter dummy with full bunker gear hung on a scale and the goal was to try and lift the gear off the ground. This was to show how heavy the turn-out gear is. My dad and big brother succeed in getting the dummy off the ground as high as he could go. I lifted him halfway off the ground (witch meant I was lifting about fifty pounds!) Later, I watched this show about “fire safety” and “fire hazards”.

Soon we left the Fire Museum and went for a walk through the Market in downtown Charleston. It was HOT there! It was over 100 degrees and the heat index was more than that. That is not a good time to go walking though a crowded market outside with no air-conditioning. While were there we shopped in a store to look at necklaces and wooden swords. Next we went to the mall…which was fine with me because it had an air conditioner! We found a store that had a display of really comfortable mattresses. The saleswoman told me I could try one out, so I plopped down and relaxed. I didn’t want to do anything but lay there and cool off. Unfortunately, it was time to leave so we could pick up my sister and head home. Dad promised some ice cream on the way home, so I was willing to get up and trudge back to the car. But first, we went to the Battery.  The Battery in Charleston doesn't have anything to do with Energizer or Duracell.  The Battery is a huge seawall that surrounds a park with cannons and looks out over Fort Sumter.  (That's where the "Shot Heard Round the World" happened and started the Civil War.) We drove home through a thunderstorm, and my sister didn’t stop talking until we got back in our house!

All in all, it was a busy day, but it was a lot better than just sitting at home doing nothing!  I enjoyed our trip to Charleston.