Our first challenge came on our arrival in Milwaukee. I had made arrangements weeks previously to rent a car from Enterprise. Now I had never dealt with them before but they had the best rates and they offered Toyotas which is what we drive. Well their rates must have been great because I think half the people on our flight were lined up at Enterprise for a rental. Hardly anyone was at the other rental booths.
So after a very long wait we got signed in and I asked if the Corolla which I had requested was available. The agent didn't know but said he was certain that they could fix me up with a Toyota that would satisfy me. Then I was told to go to their garage where I would be met by another agent who would find us up a car. So we waited in another line. Dianne asked me what we were getting and at that point I was frustrated and said "maybe a horse". Well when our turn finally came I was told that they only had two cars left in our class - not my Corolla - and I didn't like either of the two. He said they did have one Camry but that it would cost us more. When we went to look at it the agent found that somebody else had just rented it.
Then he offered us a Rav4 at the same price as the Camry. Since that is what we drive at home, I agreed. It was an ugly burnt orange and did not include any of the nice features that we have on our Rav4. But you could easily spot it in a parking lot. So we took it - at least it was better than a horse.
Several hours later, while booking along at 70 mph, a truck in front of us threw a stone that put a crack in our windshield right at my face level. We just thank the Lord that it did not actually pass through the windshield or it would have hit me in the face. The truck did not stop but we were able to gather license numbers and the address from his truck. However, we later found out that by Wisconsin state law the driver could not be held responsible. Since the stone did not actually pierce the windshield we drove on to Rhinelander.
There we had it checked out by a glass company and by Enterprise. They both said it was safe to drive so we continued our trip with it. We did contact our insurance company. Thankfully, for some reason, the Lord had led me to take my insurance card along this time - I've never done that before on a trip. But He knew that I would need it. As it turns out, we have $50 deductible on our comprehensive, so that is all it will cost us - unless our insurance is raised.
The next challenges came at our hotel, the COMFORT INN in Rhinelander. One afternoon while we were trying to take a nap somebody with a child checked in above us. The child must have thought it was a gymnasium. For about 30 minutes he ran and jumped so much that our room shook and the pictures and hangers in the closet rattled. I finally went to the main desk and reported it. They said they would take care of it - 30 minutes later it finally stopped ... that is until 6 am the day that we were to check-out. In the meantime, folks with small children checked in next to us and their kids enjoyed running between rooms and yelling and laughing. The father warned them to be quiet or they might get kicked out of the motel. They didn't listen and they didn't get kicked out. Except for us and these folks with kids, the motel was practically empty and they could have easily been placed away from us where they wouldn't bother us. But they weren't and yes, they bothered us.
But the big problem came the night before we left. I had warned Dianne that the shower was slippery and not very safe. It only had one handrail - outside the shower area. There were no towel racks except for a very small one near the front to hand a wash rag. The wall was plastic and built out so there wasn't any ledge around the tub making the shower area more narrow than usual. And the shower head was so high that you had to stand on your tip toes to try and adjust it. And, it was slippery.
Unfortunately, while taking her shower, Dianne slipped. Since there was nothing to grab hold of, she fell out of the shower and over the toilet. Thank the Lord she did not hit her head and did not break anything. But she was in terrible pain. We did not report it or go to the hospital that night since we were leaving a few hours later. But each day huge black and blue marks began to appear - actually they are almost black. And she aches - the trip back home was not very comfortable. She has been checked out by her family doctor who doesn't believe anything is broken, just very badly bruised.
A few days later we received a survey form from Quality Inn and I told them exactly what I thought. Placing kids above and next to us was a very inconsiderate choice. And their shower/bath combination was a safety hazard and not safe. Unfortunately, I chose not to complete the part that would have gone on their internet ratings for others to read. I wanted to be kind to them hoping that they would appreciate that. I realize now that was a mistake on my part.
The first reply from them was a generic thank you for calling this to their attention - no we're sorry or how are you. That upset me so I replied and outlined everything once again. Their reply to that was that it was our fault and if we had reported it to them, they might have been able to help us out. How ???? They said they had passed safety inspections so the accident must have been our fault. I replied that maybe they and their safety inspectors should actually take a shower there and that all the handrails which they say were there aren't. I am so disappointed that they couldn't even show any compassion or concern about Dianne's physical situation. I know that it will be the last time that I stay at the Rhinelander Quality Inn.
And I won't bother telling you all about the hour of driving rain that we had to drive through to get to the airport or the major accident that tied up all three lanes outside of Milwaukee or the nearly five hours we had to spend in the airport until they could replace our plane. These are now just memories. Thank the Lord that we arrived home safely and had a wonderful time. We know that soon Dianne will be back to normal and her body will return to its normal color. God is good - all the time - even when there are unexpected challenges to face. What a comfort to know that He knows all about them, even before they happen.
And we still love Wisconsin.
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