Christmas Days 1 and 2

On Thursday afternoon December 20, Rachel and I set out from Lansdale, PA for Tennessee. The "Reflections" session below will detail why we left several hours late. Suffice it to say that we left the Philadelphia area around 4 PM.

We initially planned on getting a hotel somewhere in central Virginia, but were kindly offered a room at my Aunt Sae and Uncle Larry's in Abingdon, VA, even though we would not arrive until midnight. It was the first time that Rachel and I visited their new home, which they bought in August. It is a beautiful place out in the country. It was also the first time that we had been able to hang out with them in a couple of years, so it was a very nice evening.

The next morning, my parents picked us up, and we went to visit my grandmother in Grundy, VA. We had not seen her since last Christmas. She immediately told us that we needed to get started on "continuing the Kennedy name", as I am the last chance. She thought we should get started this winter, as she is tired of waiting around. Although she is in her early 90's and has emphysema, she certainly has kept her wit and sense of humor.

Laddy and Amy (for those who don't know, they are my cousin and his wife) came up to Aunt Sae's that evening, and we had the 1st Kennedy Christmas that evening. It was a very nice time. We headed for Knoxville at about 10:30 PM, as Rachel and I had to get up early Saturday morning to head for the Fesmire Christmas in Waverly, TN.

Rantflections - Enterprise Sucks!!!
As I mentioned above, Rachel and I did not leave Philadelphia until 4 PM. We planned to leave at 1 PM. We rent an SUV for our annual Christmas Trek to help us make it home despite winter weather and to provide cargo space for Christmas presents. Being a value shopper, I booked an Enterprise SUV through Expedia.com. 1) When I went to pick-up my car, the Enterprise place had a sign in the window stating that they had moved. I called and got directions to the new location. 2) When I got to the new location, I was informed that since I was over one hour past my reservation time that my full-sized SUV had been rented to someone else and that all they had was a smaller Ford Escape (not a problem; just the principal). I kindly informed the young lady that I had never heard of such a policy, even though I rent cars frequently. In addition, no where on my reservation did it say anything about such a policy. Further, I had spoken to one of their reps on the phone the day before, and she had not mentioned this policy nor the office's move to a new location to me. 3) I could not park my car at the rental car facility (STRIKE 3 - ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME!?!). "Enterprise - We'll Pick You Up" should read, "Enterprise, We'll pick you up because we won't let you park at our office, which has moved". So, the pick-up guy followed me back to my house with the rental car. I then rode back to the office with him. Finally I drove home. My favorite part... I had to make the guy dock an 1/8th tank of gas, or he was going to try to hold me to the amount of fuel in the car before transporting me and the pick-up guy all over northwest Philadelphia.

Disclaimer: I have been a very satisfied Enterprise renter in Kankakee and other locations. I think it is just poor management of this office. I received a phone survey from Enterprise following the rental. The lady asked me 3 multiple choice questions and did not give me the opportunity for additional comments. You got the benefit of those comments here. Blogging is therapeutic.