Yesterday was a lovely, relaxing day hanging out with my cousin in his new home. He left for work a little after noon (it helps to be the owner of the business) and I caught up on some of the inevitable chores associated with travel. Dinner was even nicer than the night before and he introduced me to the new lady in his life. Great company, wonderful food. (more…)
Archive for July, 2014
July 30, 2014
Posted in Heading West, tagged broad horizons, El Paso, Fort Stockton, I-10, San Antonio, stormy skies on July 30, 2014| 3 Comments »
July 28, 2014
Posted in Heading West, tagged cousins, Houston, San Antonio on July 29, 2014| 4 Comments »
Tickets were bought last week for the movie Hercules in 3D and IMAX, so my hosts loaded grandchildren and me in the requisite Texas pickup for the 10:15 am showing on this Monday morning. The 3D effects were much better than the movie we saw last week. At that hour of the morning, we had the theater almost to ourselves and enjoyed the movie without the noise and interruptions that might have been.
I’d loaded the car before we left, so said my goodbyes and headed west about noon. Down the road past the neighborhood school to a left turn on Main Street, past the big tree where we watched a parade a couple of years ago, and onto I-10. If I remember right, I-10 eventually runs into the ocean at Santa Monica, but that’s far away. I just need to get through Houston first.
Houston seems to sprawl almost as much as Los Angeles and the traffic, even at noon, is way beyond what I’ve grown used to in the sleepy Shenandoah Valley. It was an hour at least before I was away from city and could see even a bit of open space. Eventually the lanes narrowed down to two on each side and traffic moved at 80 mph.
I managed to stop for gas before the need became acute, unlike the first time I made this trip a few years ago. A phone call to my cousin directed me to his office, a place I can find without difficulty. From there I followed him a few miles NW of San Antonio to his new home where we relaxed and cooled off then went to dinner. We returned to his most comfortable home and talked until midnight.
We have little family other than our own immediate families and neither of us sees the other cousins, so over the past few years we have grown closer. It is so nice to be able to share memories and insights that we cannot find anywhere else. At some point we decided that one night was not enough, so I will be here for another day before beginning the long, hot stretch to El Paso.
July 18, 2014
Posted in Heading West, tagged Birmingham AL, driving in the rain, home, Houston TX on July 21, 2014| 6 Comments »
I left Oxford, AL a little after 9:00 in heavy overcast that looked like rain. Sure enough, I’d no more gotten back up on I-20 than the light rain began. Fortunately the road was dry and the rain light, so there was no spray from trucks and other cars. I was late enough to miss the inbound rush hour for Birmingham and despite the rain, I could enjoy the trip. (more…)
July 17, 2014
Posted in Heading West, tagged Columbia SC, driving alone, interstate travel on July 20, 2014| 2 Comments »
At last the rain clouds were gone, the sun was shining, and best of all, it was at my back for I was officially Heading West. Barbara launched me on my westward trip by leading me to Oleander Drive which was signed US 74 and 76 out of Wilmington. Somewhere along the line, (more…)
July 15 and 16, 2014
Posted in Heading East, tagged North Carolina, science education, tapas, Wilmington on July 20, 2014| 2 Comments »
Too much traffic, too much rain, and a GPS I still wasn’t communicating with well dissuaded me from driving the Outer Banks. Instead, I took US 17 through lots of little towns almost the length of North Carolina and arrived at Don and Barb’s house in Wilmington in late afternoon. (more…)
Slippin’ Out of Town
Posted in Heading East, tagged Edinburg Gap, Fort Valley, Luray VA, Norfolk, Piedmont, Richmond, Sperryville VA on July 14, 2014| 1 Comment »
A little after 9 this morning I had stuffed the last of my belongings into the Little Blue Car, said my goodbyes to our hosts John and Susan and to my husband, and headed to town. There are probably lots of branches of my bank everywhere I’ll go, but (more…)
The Care-Free Travelin’ Lifestyle
Posted in At Home, tagged carefree lifestyle, trailer repairs on July 13, 2014| 3 Comments »
“Oh that would be so cool!”
“It would be so nice to just take off into the sunset [or some other direction] without a care in the world.”
“You’re doing WHAT???” (more…)
A New Chapter
Posted in At Home, tagged California, road trip, Shenandoah Valley, Wilmington NC on July 12, 2014| 3 Comments »
A few years ago I drove from Virginia to Iowa by way of Tennessee and Texas. It was the first trip I had driven by myself and I loved it. My little blue car and I went cheerily down the road, radio blasting most of the time. And now I’m ready to roll again. (more…)
At Home...On the Road 