What a great time I've been having here with my cousins. My San Diego cousins are some of the nicest people you could ever meet. They're so open and easy going and have really made us feel at home with them. Not only have they opened up their home to me and my son but they've also welcomed my friends, no questions asked.

Our first night here we went off to the San Diego Wild Animal Park. We had a great time seeing the animals in their natural states on the tram ride. We walked all over the park, had dinner there, saw the African Acrobats, an accapella african group and so much more. I'm still trying to figure out how to take a couple of those acrobats home with me. I just don't think I can sneak them past the agricultural checkpoints.

I think I was especially wired because I couldn't sleep at all that night and spent a good portion of the night/morning on line trying to catch up with all the blogs and the forums and other things I had missed. I finally wandered off to take a shower around 7am.

Later in the morning I got the oppotunity to meet VB. What a great time we had. He came over my cousins' house and we sat around on their patio and talked a mile a minute and laughed a lot. He was a great hit with my cousins as well and they just enjoyed his company. We all went to the In and Out, what a name for a hamburger place. Did a little bit of shopping and then came back to the house.

We picked up my son who had been out with my cousin's grandson and then we went off to the beach. My son got to dig in the sand and I got to walk into the Pacific. It's not as warm as I thought it would be but it's still warmer than New England water! We watched the sunset over the water then we were off again. What a treat to watch the sun set over the water instead of rising.

VB and I got to go out for a few beers afterward and talk the night away. He's a charming gentleman whom I'm pleased to call my friend and I'm glad I had the opportunity to meet him in person. He really has a witty and generous personality. I had a wicked awesome time lol

Yep, I take a lot of ribbing for my speech patterns around here...I have few r's, I use wicked as a descriptive adjective and I'm told I have an accent. I don't know..I think everyone else has the accent, but I could be wrong. LOL

Well, I may leave tonight or I may leave tomorrow morning. I have to cross the desert and make my way towards Las Vegas. The next goal is Estes Park in Colorado. I remember how beautiful it was when I did the trip many years ago and I'd like my son to see it. If he's lucky he may see the mountain goats and the bald eagles like I did.

Well I'm off for the winery with my cousin while the boys go off and do something else. Talk to y'all later.

Man oh man I've covered some ground. I went from Ft. Worth TX to Rosa Linda NM. The next day I drove from there to the Petrified Forest and the Grand Canyon. My son was unduly impressed by the "big hole in the ground". When I asked if he wanted to do the other rim the next morning he said no so I figured I would go a bit further down the road so the hotels would be less expensive and I could put some more miles under my belt.

Seemed like a good idea. Well 18 hours later I was following a truck into Yuma, AZ and seeing visions on the back of it..lol. I ended up pulling into the truck stop with him and just kicking back and sleeping in the car. Turns out, I was 2 minutes from my cousins' house. I refused to call anyone at 2:47 in the morning so I just tipped wolf's hat over my face, tilted the seat back and slept for 3 hours. I called my cousin around 5:30 am, he came to get us and we followed him back to his house.

Hey, the truck stop worked for me! No one bothers you and there's plenty of coffee and food. For $2.00 you can even take a shower. Although at that point that was the least of my concerns.

I spent the next day with cousins in Arizona. We went to Mexico and mucked about. Had some margaritas and some tacos and then came back to visit his sister. We had a good dinner and then watched a movie. I crashed...big time. I woke up around 2 am, looked over and my cousin was sleeping on a chair and I was still on the love seat. It worked for me so I just rolled over and went back to sleep. I got up about 5am with his wife, had coffee and eventually woke my son for another day of driving.

The good news was that we only had to go about 3 hours to get to the next cousin in San Diego.

What beautiful sights we've seen though. New Mexico is red...rugged and beautiful. Arizona is yellow...and sandy...they get dust devils and right now they are in monsoon season so every morning everything is covered in dust. California...this part is cool and comfortable...coming in was hot and dry and mountainous but rocky. The mountains over here are very different from mountains in the east.

I marvel at the geological events that shaped this country. It is so different depending on where you are. And though the people are so very diverse, they are also so very much the same. I do have my favorite spots...as would anyone. But, I must say I love the entire country. You could easily spend a lifetime exploring this country alone. To think how fascinating it must be to go all over the world....

I'll try to be a bit more specific over the next couple of days while I'm here in San Diego but I also try to pack so much in that it's hard to try to condense it for a blog. This may be one of those living documents...lol Y'all be hearing about this trip for months after it's done.

Well, cousin doesn't smoke and I need a cigarette so that's all for now. Gotta run out to the patio and feed my addiction.

Talk to you soon!

Well, it's day 5 of the cross country trip and I'm finally getting to writing some of the stuff down. The first night we ended up staying in Shippenburg, Pennsylvania at a little tiny motel next to a truck stop. I'm a big fan of driving with the trucks. I feel real safe around them. They always know if there are problems on the road. If they're in a rush I know if I'm near them I don't have to worry about my speeding either. (oh I know I SHOULD follow the speed limit but I tend to get a lead foot)

I changed my plans a little and didn't go to Oklahoma City because someone offered to be a tour guide for me and my son if we went to Dallas. So, I dropped down to Dallas, Texas instead. We were met off the highway before we got to Dallas and then were escorted to our hotel. On the way we got to see where Chuck Norris lives and Southfork Ranch, where the TV show Dallas was filmed. Dallas is very metropolitan and not truly indicative of Texas but we had a good time. Of course our host really did a great job of making sure we were happy and got to see what we wanted in the short time we had.

We took the train in to the Dallas Zoo which is quite large. We spent a lot of time there and enjoyed every minute. Of course, my son didn't listen to me and insisted on wearing jeans and was just about melting in the heat. I thought it was hot but not miserable. I'm used to intense humidity so to me the high nineties were just fine because it was dry. I just made sure we drank a lot of liquids. After the Zoo was the ride back to the car and then another drive out to the wax museum and Ripley's Believe It or Not. We all had a good time there and plenty of laughs at some of the displays. If you can believe it, someone actually makes art of popcorn and sells the stuff! People will buy anything I swear.

From there is was another drive out to the bookstore so my son could get the new Harry Potter book and another sci fi novel to keep him occupied during my driving marathons.

The following day we went to Fort Worth to see some real cowboys and muck about. We stayed a couple of hours and then were escorted back to the highway so I could drive up to Amarillo and get back on my original route.

I've always loved Texas for it's big, grand, independent nature. I loved driving through the state and seeing nothing but miles and miles of land. It gives me the same feeling as standing on the coast. When you see nothing but horizon you realize how small you are in the grander scheme of things. At the same time you feel connected, wild and free all at once. I appreciated it even more this time. Older eyes I guess.

Tonight I sit in Santa Rosa, New Mexico, in yet another time zone. Tomorrow morning we'll leave for the Petrified Forest in Arizona and then scoot up to the Grand Canyon. I'm playing it by ear but I'm guessing I'll be at my cousin's house in Yuma AZ by tomorrow night or the next day. My cousin in San Diego has offered to meet me there and escort us back to her house. I'm looking forward to a few days in San Diego, not to mention seeing my cousins.

As for my host, I stole his hat. Thanks for everything wolf, you come up to New England anytime and I'll return the favor. I'll even show you the damn rock the pilgrims hit when they ran out of beer.

ok...it's 11:43am here...I've finished packing, I think... I paid the bills for the month of August and now I'm gonna load up the car and head to rent a center to get a laptop...yep..I caved.

As soon as we get that and hit the bank across the street, we're leaving.

If I read your mail but didn't respond don't be upset...I will get to them...I just want to get going. I'm antsy now...nervous, hungry but don't want to eat. I keep thinking I must be forgetting something, somewhere. Well, I can always pick stuff up on the road...

Who knows, maybe I'll make trivia tonight if I can find a hotel with internet access. If not, everyone have fun! Talk to y'all later.

all right I know I don't usually do two blogs in one day but I had to say how lucky I am. I've been moving my departure time constantly and I kept thinking that Friday night would be a great time to leave. Then I thought...oh no...I forgot about trivia! And this despite the fact that I've had the questions all week..
So...call on the standby..."OH JUICY?" lol
And of course she said she would do it. So I sent her all the questions and now I can leave whenever the opportunity arises!
Thanks again Juicy, you're the best! And you know if I get into Canada you'll be getting a call!

Oh man, I should check rent a center for a laptop to take on the trip so I can keep in touch with everyone! My husband is making bets that we won't get a couple of days out without turning back for our computers...lol

Haha..so the morning did indeed start out interestingly. I slept late..7:30 oh my! I woke up and didn't know where I was and swore it was Saturday. I jumped out of bed ..nude..tripped over the white dog and then realized that it was Humpday.
Calmed my butt back down, let the white dog out of the room, let the black dog in, and then got my tea and such. I went back in the air conditioned room and got on line, of course right. I had my early morning visit with my friend, had a nice phone conversation and then went out to find trash scattered from one end of the house to the other. What is it about coffee grounds and broken eggshells that is so appealing to dogs?

So...lol, its got to go better now. Today I will organize and pack some stuff. I will pay some bills and get this cell phone working. Tomorrow I will do laundry and make sure the car is cleaned and the hubcap put back on, I may even start putting some things in it..like my plethora of maps and tourbooks. The bag for them is almost as big as my bag for my clothes!

Most of you know that I'm going on a road trip soon. It's actually very soon! And I can't wait. I'm leaving Saturday to start a road trip from New England to San Diego, CA.

I started planning this because my son wanted to see the country. I did the trip myself with my parents when I was 10. So it will be nice to do it again as an adult. After much deliberation hubby and I decided now was the perfect time for my son to do it because he's 12 and doesnt' hate us yet but is old enough to remember it all. And the memories are always amazing. I still remember everything about my trip and that was 28 years ago. I'm hoping I'll make new memories on this trip.

So anyway...I figured I'd let y'all know where I'd be...I'd like to try to blog the trip but I don't know how often I'll be able to get on line.

So..for everyone outside of the US this will probably be senseless but I'll try to make it quick... I 'm going down 81 to 40 then switching to 17 in Flagstaff AZ. I'll take 8 around Pheonix.
As for coming back I think I'll hit 5 or 15 to 70 and run through Denver. Then we're out to Mt Rushmore so ...hmmm 87 85, then 90. I'm thinking 94 around Chicago and through Michigan. I'm hoping to get into Canada around there...and if I'm lucky I'll hook up with Juicy.

Now...from Canada I have a lot of options to get home and I'm familiar with them all so I won't bore you with details.

Juicy calls this my NN road trip. That would be nice! If you're along the route feel free to pm me with contact info. I'd love to meet y'all and have coffee or lunch if the time is available.

Whoo hoo! Road trip!

I was talking to Lunna today and I was showing her pictures of the flowers in my yard. Now don't get me wrong, I appreciate the beauty of the flowers that surround me but I guess I also take them for granted as well.
I showed a picture of the daffodils that I get to see every single spring. They put on a showy display of bright yellow, soft white and rich green. It's a fairly large patch of them so it's quite eyecatching. But I expect them every spring and know they will be there. Her reaction to them made me realize I should..take the time to really see the flowers. See, she can't grow them there and she loves them. So she appreciates them so much more.
So for Lunna..


and your other favorite, the magenta daylily

Why is it when you are looking for something you can never find it? I usually have tons of boxes lying around because I do so much shopping over the net. I can't be bothered driving around looking for something when I can just do an internet search and have it right away. Anyway, I need to mail some stuff out to Lunna (her egg of course and some new soaps) and can I find a box anywhere? Of course not. Fear not though I shall come up with something.
Oh and I have this other item I must send out...can anyone say granny?

The nice thing about making soap is that the house smells wonderful and the clean up is easy, because it's..soap. Today my house smells like lavendars and this fragrance oil called Victorian Christmas. And the cats love that I use catnip in one of my bath teas because they always get a bit of it while I'm working. While it drives the cats crazy, catnip is actually a sedative for us so its nice in a bath tea mixed with oatmeal and rose petals.

Mmmm, I'm having a sleepy Sunday. Of course, if I actually went to bed at night I might not be so sleepy. Then again, I might not have as much fun either. I can always sleep when I'm dead.

I had a couple of people laughing their asses off today talking about my exploits with a sand chair behind the barn. And, you all know how much I like to laugh, so I figured I would share this latest Seinfield episode that is my life.

I was tired from lack of sleep so I thought it would be a good day to just go crash in the sun behind the barn. It was such a beautiful day, hot but a nice breeze. So off I go with my three legged goat and my sand chair, whipped off the tweeds and got comfy on the chair. Well, first off....no breeze back there. I'm hot as hell now and sweating while laying on my stomach on the chair. Flies keep landing on my legs, just out of reach and I'm getting aggravated but I stay like that for while. Of course everytime I think it's too hot and I'm going in, the breeze makes its way back there and I'm ok for a while.

Finally I flip over and typical of me....I lean back too far on the chair. Mind you, this is not the first time I've done this. I can feel it coming...the chair wobbling and tilting back...and sure enough..there I am...stuck on my back, folded in half, butt naked. I can't get up, I can't roll over. I'm stuck. I can't call for help because the hubby is keeping the kid busy elsewhere. So there I am...with my goats around me laughing ... I swear they were laughing. So I finally manage to wiggle out enough to push my upper body up and twist a bit to extricate myself ... once again.

All I could picture was someone coming to look at the goats, my husband talking loudly to give warning to put my clothes back on and me not able to do a damn thing about it, except maybe wave hi.

Oh well, needless to say I kind of gave up on the sunbathing for the day. But I did manage to get some neat pictures of my geese. My white geese decided to take over an abandoned nest at the pond near our house. They hatched a bunch of Canada Geese. They make a cute family although odd to see them together. Now I wonder if my new extended family will over winter or if they will migrate.