Following Thanksgiving we packed the truck and headed for New York. This is only the second time we have driven there. The first was preretirement when we delivered Greg's car to him. He wanted to have a good used rust-free car from Arizona. He flew out here and bought it, but didn't have enough time off for the drive. Since we love a good road trip, we agreed to the delivery.
This time, we had rented a nice cottage in Chappaqua for thirty days on AirBnB. We wanted to spend Christmas with the family without being underfoot for the whole time. We loaded the truck with everything we needed, plus several large tubs of stuff Greg had left behind when he moved out. He now lives in a house bigger than ours, so we decided he should store these things himself. Plus, we thought his kids might enjoy some of his childhood treasures.
So we set out. We watched the weather forecasts closely and chose a northerly route for the eastbound leg of the journey. As an added benefit, we could stop to see Vada and the kids in Iowa, friends from Air Force days in Ohio, and friends from Skagway in Pennsylvania. Good visits with all three made for an enjoyable cross-country trip.
Scenery-wise we were not disappointed. We didn't expect much visual stimulation on the Nebraska-Iowa portion, but were pleased at seeing thousands of migrating geese, both in the air and on ponds.
We were also treated to glowing branches in the tops of leaf-bare trees covered in frost and lighted by the rising sun.
Our timing was perfect as we reached Vada's just as the kids were coming home from school, but unfortunately had to leave before Matt got home. Still, it was dark when we crossed the Mississippi at Davenport.
Our time in Chappaqua was perfect. We were minutes from the kids by back roads, and minutes from the city-bound train by foot. We transported grandkids to and from school and activities on numerous occasions. We volunteered (I think Greg volunteered us) to help with a holiday event at A's school.
We were guests at a number of great musical performances including Tomoko's faculty recital and one of her student's senior recital. We got into the city several times and attended many Broadway shows and had an unforgettable dinner in Brooklyn with Manhattan's skyline across the East River.
After Peggie's birthday, we went to Philadelphia for a few days to visit Casey's BFF. We left Casey there. We toured Independence Hall and saw the Liberty Bell.
On our way back home, we stopped in Asheville, NC for a look at Biltmore Estate in full Christmas regalia, and a tour of the arts district. Then we headed west for a visit with Peggie's brother, Jerry, just east of Nashville. After that it was just a long drive home. Texas is way too big. We skirted Dallas/Fort Worth on a loop freeway, but were in urban traffic for over an hour. There was a bad accident on I-10 just west of El Paso that took an hour to get around. Since that was the only such event on the entire 6,000 mile trip, that is not bad. (No one was badly injured, but a truckload of lumber was scattered across all lanes)
The best part was coming home to a completed remodel of our kitchen and downstairs bathroom. All new everything. And it was all done while we were gone. It did take us a week to unbox all the stuff and find the right places to put things. We found all kinds of stuff we just didn't need anymore. I think six boxes to Goodwill, and two trash and two recycle barrels. Not bad for 28 years in the same house.
And just as we were almost done with that, we stumbled on a (nearly) new fifth wheel we wanted. Ours was 17 years old, and while still in good condition (we lived in it last summer) we worried that expensive repairs were about to be needed. So we had to take everything out of the old trailer, and put it in the new one. You've all done that when trading in a car, but this is like moving from house to house. So we have done a lot of packing and unpacking in the last few months.
Oh, that can be my excuse for not posting! That IS my excuse. Good one.
