Today was hard. I made my goal of Amarillo to Memphis, but it was really long. I left Amarillo at 10am and pulled into the hotel in Memphis after 10pm. It must have been longer than I expected or the multiple construction zones slowed me down or something. Oh well. I'm here, safe and sound. I was going to take some pictures of the hotel and Amarillo but the truth is... the town is kind of not so much! I'm not judging TX on the whole (since it always irritates me when people judge North Carolina by the drive up I-95) but I would certainly not want to move to Amarillo. Flagstaff, Yes! But Amarillo, No. I thought about stopping a couple of times to take pictures, but I'm worse than any boy when it comes to not wanting to stop on a long road trip. I think I stopped a total of three times all day!!!! But once was for a good leisurely lunch at Cracker Barrel so that I could compose a few blogs that will be posted over the next few days. My server was so nice and kept refilling my sweet tea (which probably accounted for TWO of three pit stops! Hehe!) and let me sit there as long as I wanted. I'd have to say though that just like last time the highlight of this leg of the trip was the breath taking windmill farm somewhere in New Mexico. That was the one time I was really tempted to pull off and snap some pictures but with that sort of thing I knew I could never capture the magnificent beauty and would only be disappointed.
So, tomorrow is the last leg. It will bring me back to where I started almost 2 years ago to the day. There's a lot of things going through my mind and a lot of emotions. The drive has given me some much needed time to think. I've spent the last 7 months of my life doing everything I could to avoid thinking, so there's some interesting things rolling around. Like I said, there will be some more blogs to come. n
ight y'all!
bonnie
p.s. Sorry there are no pictures of Jeremy Jr. today. He spent most of the day sleeping (slacker!) and whining about having to pee due to all the sweet tea! Hehe! But he says HI!
Monday, May 7, 2007
Day Four
Morning all!
Sorry I didn't post this last night, but I totally crashed when I got to mom's. Then ended up going out with my mom, my brother and his girlfriend. It was awesome, but it was after 2pm when we got home! It's ok, though, since my body has no idea what time it is anyway!
The last leg of the trip was great! It was a little shorter and only took me a total of 10 hours including stops! But the best part was... most of is was in the mountains. Once you get to Nashville, you're in the Smokies and that was all I needed to feel at home! I'm really not sure why I left this place. It's truly the only place in the entire world that speaks directly to my soul. I'm hoping to get out and take some pictures over the next few days so keep a look out.
The second best part of this leg was once again, lunch. :-) Yes, I stopped at Cracker Barrel again, but I didn't eat the EXACT same thing! Hehe! I think it'll take me a while to get my fill of country cooking again. I got a few looks when I pulled out my camera at the table and started snapping pictures of my sweet tea glass (see below). But people were really nice. One guy even asked me what type of camera I had. I've learned that I actually enjoy eating alone. I've always hated eating at sit down restaurants alone because I get so bored with no one to talk with, but it was so nice to be able to sit down with my camera and my note book and work on a few things.
Well, I think I'm going to take a nap. I feel like I've only had a few days off here and there since I started working weekends in November, so this feels really good. I'll talk with you all soon.
bye,
bonnie
Sorry I didn't post this last night, but I totally crashed when I got to mom's. Then ended up going out with my mom, my brother and his girlfriend. It was awesome, but it was after 2pm when we got home! It's ok, though, since my body has no idea what time it is anyway!
The last leg of the trip was great! It was a little shorter and only took me a total of 10 hours including stops! But the best part was... most of is was in the mountains. Once you get to Nashville, you're in the Smokies and that was all I needed to feel at home! I'm really not sure why I left this place. It's truly the only place in the entire world that speaks directly to my soul. I'm hoping to get out and take some pictures over the next few days so keep a look out.
The second best part of this leg was once again, lunch. :-) Yes, I stopped at Cracker Barrel again, but I didn't eat the EXACT same thing! Hehe! I think it'll take me a while to get my fill of country cooking again. I got a few looks when I pulled out my camera at the table and started snapping pictures of my sweet tea glass (see below). But people were really nice. One guy even asked me what type of camera I had. I've learned that I actually enjoy eating alone. I've always hated eating at sit down restaurants alone because I get so bored with no one to talk with, but it was so nice to be able to sit down with my camera and my note book and work on a few things.
Well, I think I'm going to take a nap. I feel like I've only had a few days off here and there since I started working weekends in November, so this feels really good. I'll talk with you all soon.
bye,
bonnie
Thursday, May 3, 2007
Moving Back
Returning to the East Coast has brought up a lot of thoughts and fears for this already over analytical girl! It's all revolving around the concept of "moving back". For quite some time now, I've considered my decision to move to the West Coast as one of the best of my life. It afforded me a vacuum... a place free of expectations to hear the sound of my inner voice. Most of my life has been spent listening to the voices of my parents, friends, religious leaders, significant others and any and every one else. I had never learned to recognize the sound of my inner voice. Over the last 2 years, I have gained a deeper understanding of myself, my interest, my core beliefs, everything from my tastes in clothes and music to my fundamental spiritual thoughts. I've proven to myself that I can make it on my own. I left an unproductive marriage, found a job I was good at, forged what I think will be lasting friendships, and created a life for myself that I not only enjoyed but was extremely proud of.
Now as i sit in a Cracker Barrel in Oklahoma City, OK, I wonder if it's possible to move back without moving back-WARD. Can I learn to hear the sound of my inner voice amongst so many other voices? My fear is living somewhere that I'm known as "the (fill in the blank)" ... the dancer, the christian girl, the good child, the hippy... Can I be the person I've become in the face of those preconceived ideas? I guess we'll find out.
And now as I sit in a Cracker Barrel in Nashville, TN, I realize that there is a flip side to this dilemma as well. I fear that in an effort to not let go of myself, that I will refuse to change and stifle the natural evolution of life. I don't want to hold so tightly to the person I am right now that I miss out on the person I can become. At the risk of sounding cliche... Life is a journey, not a destination. And although I'm significantly happier with where I'm at right now then I've ever been, that doesn't mean I still want to be here in 5, 10 or 15 years.
Maybe the key is in the wording. Maybe I should look at it less as moving "back" and more as moving "forward". Even though in January I'll be back in Charlotte, where I spent most of the hardest years of my life, living spitting distance from many people who believe they "know" me, doesn't mean I have to move backward in my journey. I'm a completely different person now than I was then. There is truly no way for me to go back to being that person.
And just because people have expectations of me doesn't mean I have to live up to them, nor do I need to do things that fly in the face of them just to prove my independence. The next step in my journey will be learning to live ABOVE the expectations of others. For instance, not refraining from getting any more tattoos for fear of disappointing people but at the same time not getting any new ones simply to prove that I can.
It all goes back to that inner voice. Thankfully, I will be living with someone who understands these fears. He has reassured me that he loves me, for instance, for how passionate I am about things, not for the passions themselves as those change over the years. He loves me for the woman I was at 17 when he met me, for the woman I am now 10 years later, and the woman I will become over the lifetime we will spend together.
I hope that I can not only hold onto and encourage my own inner voice, but his as well... to not hold onto the man he is right now at the expense of the man he can become for once again...
Life is a journey, not a destination.
Thanks y'all!
bonnie
Now as i sit in a Cracker Barrel in Oklahoma City, OK, I wonder if it's possible to move back without moving back-WARD. Can I learn to hear the sound of my inner voice amongst so many other voices? My fear is living somewhere that I'm known as "the (fill in the blank)" ... the dancer, the christian girl, the good child, the hippy... Can I be the person I've become in the face of those preconceived ideas? I guess we'll find out.
And now as I sit in a Cracker Barrel in Nashville, TN, I realize that there is a flip side to this dilemma as well. I fear that in an effort to not let go of myself, that I will refuse to change and stifle the natural evolution of life. I don't want to hold so tightly to the person I am right now that I miss out on the person I can become. At the risk of sounding cliche... Life is a journey, not a destination. And although I'm significantly happier with where I'm at right now then I've ever been, that doesn't mean I still want to be here in 5, 10 or 15 years.
Maybe the key is in the wording. Maybe I should look at it less as moving "back" and more as moving "forward". Even though in January I'll be back in Charlotte, where I spent most of the hardest years of my life, living spitting distance from many people who believe they "know" me, doesn't mean I have to move backward in my journey. I'm a completely different person now than I was then. There is truly no way for me to go back to being that person.
And just because people have expectations of me doesn't mean I have to live up to them, nor do I need to do things that fly in the face of them just to prove my independence. The next step in my journey will be learning to live ABOVE the expectations of others. For instance, not refraining from getting any more tattoos for fear of disappointing people but at the same time not getting any new ones simply to prove that I can.
It all goes back to that inner voice. Thankfully, I will be living with someone who understands these fears. He has reassured me that he loves me, for instance, for how passionate I am about things, not for the passions themselves as those change over the years. He loves me for the woman I was at 17 when he met me, for the woman I am now 10 years later, and the woman I will become over the lifetime we will spend together.
I hope that I can not only hold onto and encourage my own inner voice, but his as well... to not hold onto the man he is right now at the expense of the man he can become for once again...
Life is a journey, not a destination.
Thanks y'all!
bonnie
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
My Latest Diatribe
Most of my friends and especially my mom are familiar with my infamous diatribes. They usually consist of topics like non-pedestrian oriented shopping center parking lots whose lack of side walks force you to DRIVE the 1/4 mile or less from one end to the other! ARGH! Or people's complete inability to push the button at a cross walk!
But today I have a new one... people on a long strip of open road who do not understand the concept of CRUISE CONTROL! I'm obsessive about my cruise control (especially after getting a ticket on Sunday!) I pay close attention to the signs and lock in my cruise at 4 miles an hour over or less. So then what happens is I steadily come up on a car going slower than I am. I smoothly pull into the passing lane and as soon as I get to them they wake up from their monotony induced coma and speed up to the EXACT speed I'm going. So, I figured I'll up my cruise a few miles an hour and get around them, but they continue to accelerate to keep up with me, as if they are some competitive 3 year old who can't let anyone pass them for fear of "losing". So, in order to keep from hanging beside them for the remainder of the trip I'm forced to slow down and let them pass ME in the right lane! Since they've officially annoyed me, I make sure I put plenty of distance between us before I resume my chosen speed.
Doesn't sound THAT annoying, right? I know what you're thinking... "There she goes again! She's such an OCD pain in the ass!!!" And I would be inclined to agree with you if the entire scene didn't repeat itself every 1/2 an hour to an hour with the EXACT SAME CAR!!!! ARGH!!!!
Have I ever mentioned that people drive me NUTS!!!!!
bye y'all!
bonnie
But today I have a new one... people on a long strip of open road who do not understand the concept of CRUISE CONTROL! I'm obsessive about my cruise control (especially after getting a ticket on Sunday!) I pay close attention to the signs and lock in my cruise at 4 miles an hour over or less. So then what happens is I steadily come up on a car going slower than I am. I smoothly pull into the passing lane and as soon as I get to them they wake up from their monotony induced coma and speed up to the EXACT speed I'm going. So, I figured I'll up my cruise a few miles an hour and get around them, but they continue to accelerate to keep up with me, as if they are some competitive 3 year old who can't let anyone pass them for fear of "losing". So, in order to keep from hanging beside them for the remainder of the trip I'm forced to slow down and let them pass ME in the right lane! Since they've officially annoyed me, I make sure I put plenty of distance between us before I resume my chosen speed.
Doesn't sound THAT annoying, right? I know what you're thinking... "There she goes again! She's such an OCD pain in the ass!!!" And I would be inclined to agree with you if the entire scene didn't repeat itself every 1/2 an hour to an hour with the EXACT SAME CAR!!!! ARGH!!!!
Have I ever mentioned that people drive me NUTS!!!!!
bye y'all!
bonnie
Monday, April 30, 2007
Day One
Well, I'm officially on the road! Yesterday totally bit (except for breakfast with my girls at the good old BBC which was awesome!) But then again, moving day always does I guess. It's always takes me like 5 hours longer than I think it's going to take me. I thought I could get everything done and be out of Long Beach by approximately 2pm. At 7:30... I finally pulled out!!! My car is packed to the brim, and I think my apartment was fairly clean. (We'll see when and if I get my deposit back) and I'm on the road to be with the love of my life! Hopefully today will be better. I ended up getting my first speeding ticket EVER! Oops! Oh well! And thought I was NEVER going to get to Flagstaff, but at 3:30am, I pulled into my hotel and finally crawled into bed. How come, you can be falling asleep at the wheel but then as soon as you hit the bed you're freaking WIDE AWAKE! Oh well!!! I'm getting ready to get on the road again. I don't want to do any more late nights like that. So I'll update you guys later today or tomorrow morning!
bye,
bonnie
bye,
bonnie
Day Two
So today was significantly better than yesterday! I'm a little sore from moving and my back hurts from sitting in the car all day but on the whole it was a great day! It started out by walking out of my hotel in flagstaff to the beautiful site of pine trees! I felt like I was home already! I know everyone raves about living at the beach and the palm trees and such but, I'll take a good ol' pine any day!!!
Then I surveyed my car and massaged the packing in order the elevate any thing that had caused cursing the night before! Hehe! (Note: I never curse!) My car has become a life size jig saw puzzle! I have to make sure and take as little out as possible at my mom's otherwise I'll never get in all back in there!
Then Jeremy Jr, started getting antzy and begging to get on the road! He stayed in the car the night before since it was so late. ;-)
So we headed out.
That's when I remembered how much I enjoy driving, and specifically how much I enjoy driving alone. It is one of the only times when I really have time to think! No one is asking anything of me, there are no expectations on me (other than staying in the lines and under the speed limit, which I was anal about the whole day! I used my cruise control probably 90% of the day!!) The weather was beautiful! Blue skies, puffy white clouds, and hardly any cars on the road the vast majority of the time.We stopped a few times for gas and drinks/food, but pretty much drove straight there. Here we're stopping for some much needed liquid. The red bull is mine. I promise there's no Jager slipped in there though! Jeremy Jr. had a good eye on me!
It sprinkled rain just a few times and just enough to remind me of how much I love the smell of rain! I've missed it so much. So... 10 hours later, we pulled into Amarillo, TX and are now safely tucked in for the night. I thought I would be afraid coming in and out of hotels alone, but I haven't had any problems. Maybe it's just that left over invensible teenager attitude I tend to have. :-)So, tomorrow is another long day! We'll leave here and drive approximately 10 hours again to Memphis, TN. But after that we're almost there. We'll hopefully pull into Asheville on Wednesday. Well, I'd better go and get some rest. We lost two whole hours today so tomorrow may be hard. But it doesn't matter because I'm on the way to be with the love of my life!
Thanks y'all
bonnie
Then I surveyed my car and massaged the packing in order the elevate any thing that had caused cursing the night before! Hehe! (Note: I never curse!) My car has become a life size jig saw puzzle! I have to make sure and take as little out as possible at my mom's otherwise I'll never get in all back in there!
Then Jeremy Jr, started getting antzy and begging to get on the road! He stayed in the car the night before since it was so late. ;-)
So we headed out.
That's when I remembered how much I enjoy driving, and specifically how much I enjoy driving alone. It is one of the only times when I really have time to think! No one is asking anything of me, there are no expectations on me (other than staying in the lines and under the speed limit, which I was anal about the whole day! I used my cruise control probably 90% of the day!!) The weather was beautiful! Blue skies, puffy white clouds, and hardly any cars on the road the vast majority of the time.We stopped a few times for gas and drinks/food, but pretty much drove straight there. Here we're stopping for some much needed liquid. The red bull is mine. I promise there's no Jager slipped in there though! Jeremy Jr. had a good eye on me!
It sprinkled rain just a few times and just enough to remind me of how much I love the smell of rain! I've missed it so much. So... 10 hours later, we pulled into Amarillo, TX and are now safely tucked in for the night. I thought I would be afraid coming in and out of hotels alone, but I haven't had any problems. Maybe it's just that left over invensible teenager attitude I tend to have. :-)So, tomorrow is another long day! We'll leave here and drive approximately 10 hours again to Memphis, TN. But after that we're almost there. We'll hopefully pull into Asheville on Wednesday. Well, I'd better go and get some rest. We lost two whole hours today so tomorrow may be hard. But it doesn't matter because I'm on the way to be with the love of my life!
Thanks y'all
bonnie
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
WOOOOHOOOOO!
Excerpt from Navy Times Article
Nimitz home last weekend before going to Gulf
By Gidget Fuentes - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Apr 2, 2007 6:37:12 EDT
SAN DIEGO – More than 6,000 sailors are spending their last weekend at home before the aircraft carrier Nimitz leaves its San Diego pier Monday on a course for the Persian Gulf.
Nimitz, a nuclear-powered carrier based at North Island Naval Air Station in Coronado, Calif., will replace the Norfolk, Va.-based Eisenhower and its carrier strike group and join the John C. Stennis carrier strike group in the Persian Gulf and Horn of Africa regions.
**********************************
This is increadible news!!! It means that the guys will be heading home soon!!! Wooo Hoooo!!!! OMG!!! I can't believe that this is actually going to happen!! I leave Cali 4 weeks from yesterday! So, I only I have 3 weeks and 6 days left!!! YAY!!!!
Nimitz home last weekend before going to Gulf
By Gidget Fuentes - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Apr 2, 2007 6:37:12 EDT
SAN DIEGO – More than 6,000 sailors are spending their last weekend at home before the aircraft carrier Nimitz leaves its San Diego pier Monday on a course for the Persian Gulf.
Nimitz, a nuclear-powered carrier based at North Island Naval Air Station in Coronado, Calif., will replace the Norfolk, Va.-based Eisenhower and its carrier strike group and join the John C. Stennis carrier strike group in the Persian Gulf and Horn of Africa regions.
**********************************
This is increadible news!!! It means that the guys will be heading home soon!!! Wooo Hoooo!!!! OMG!!! I can't believe that this is actually going to happen!! I leave Cali 4 weeks from yesterday! So, I only I have 3 weeks and 6 days left!!! YAY!!!!
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