South

A Confederacy of Dunces?

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Call me a lefty, a yankee, an donkey or an ass… but what is with the hicks in the south with their Confederate flags? How can a person proclaim the “God Bless America”s while they wave the other red, white, and blue from the back of their Ford pickup? Isn’t that flag the symbol of division and conflict in this nation? I do not understand… these self-proclaimed “red-necks” flaunt the image everywhere, and actually call the Civil War the “War of Northern Agression.” Seriously. It is fabulously sickening. Needless to say, we are still in the red states – Virginia to be precise. We powered on through Tennessee and made it 17 miles past the border of Virginia – putting us only about 600 miles away from my new home! Of course, the thing that got us through the long drive today was another HUGE dose of Sex and the City – we only have one episode left of the series! Well, I am quite excited to just be there already, especially as Brian called me this afternoon to update the newly installed countertops and polished floors in our place! For all you all in NYC, get ready for a fantastic house-warming party in a month or so! Also for all you all in NYC, if you are available on Sunday afternoon, please check in on East 93rd and 2nd Avenue to help unload my car up six flights of stairs… 🙂

Bushland to Clintonville

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First of all, I want to start this off by saying thanks so much to those of you that read my blog. I installed this little counter at the bottom of the page to see how many hits I get, and I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the growing number. Well, we started our morning a little late today, completely thrown off by the time change. Hit up the complimentary breakfast at our hotel, and lo and behold – Texas-shaped waffles! (As shown here – but I can’t take credit for the picture.) We hopped in the car slash monster vehicle, and headed East. Oklahoma is boring. I wouldn’t recommend ever going there. Arkansas was a little prettier, but we passed through some “interesting” smells. For a while, it reeked of garbage, then it was manure, and finally – mothballs. I would never expect a city to smell like Mothballs, but the area of North Little Rock near the Cracker Barrel at which we dined this evening proudly reeked like a new plastic shoe from San Francisco Chinatown. The drive today, though boring, allowed us to watch another eight episodes of Sex and the City. Now we’re all tucked in comfortably at the Hampton Inn, and tomorrow it’s on through Arkansas and Tennessee. We haven’t yet decided how far we’re gonna go, but I think we might press on to Virginia to make Saturday’s drive a little easier. Sorry if this blog is a litte boring – I admit that I’m not very inspired to be witty when I’m more concerned with leaping cicadas. More tomorrow! Countdown to NYC: 3 days!

Aliens in New Mexico?

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How frustrating is it to lose two hours? Quite. It’s only 8:53 pm in my mind, but almost 11 pm in actuality. Today we drove through Arizona, New Mexico, and good ol’ Texas. I almost threw up when we saw the sign that read “Texas: Home of President George W. Bush.” Not too long after this signage, we passed through the community (Texas-speak for cattle ranch) of “Bushland.”

Houston, we have a problem.

Well, if you would like to turn your attention away from the right and towards the left, you can see a picture of yours truly in front of the Petrified Forest of Arizona. Nothing too exciting from the outskirts of Highway 40, but they did have a workable rest stop and a friendly gas station attendant. Aside from our adventures into petrified wood (and my attempts at petrified body positions), my mom and I also watched the complete fifth season of Sex and the City. I must add however, that this season was comprised of only eight episodes – because of Sarah Jessica Parker’s pregnancy. It really seems like Amazon.com cheats you when eight episodes of your favorite TV show costs the same as fourteen episodes.

Speaking of three letter names, I’ve been considering to go by Ashley Anne Harrell instead of boring old Ashley Harrell. Your thoughts? I will ponder this as we drive through Oklahoma and Arkansas – watching Season Six, Parts One and Two.

3:50 AM??

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Thanks to Linda for the blog title here… I am completely spent and having some trouble with creativity. Just sitting here in our Flagstaff hotel room after an extremely long day, I can’t even begin to think how I might start writing tonight. Ten to 4:00 AM seemed like a good time to get up for our longest travel day of the week. I couldn’t allow myself to call it 3:50 AM. Oh, and “seemed” is the key word in that previous sentence. I have had the problem, since I was very young, of getting stomachaches and becoming an insomniac when something in my life is about to change. I did not actually get to sleep until about 2:30 last night… not the best evening’s rest I have had. Well, my mother and I both started our morning in a state of utter exhaustion, got on the freeway, and headed Southeast. After nearly 13 hours of sitting, three different books on tape begun, six episodes of Sex and the City, a few liters of water, and countless [disgusting] bathroom stops, we made it to Flagstaff, Arizona. It was actually really funny when we crossed the state line because neither one of us was aware of our proximity to the border. All of a sudden, this sign came out of nowhere with “ARIZONA STATE LIMIT.” I didn’t even have a chance to say goodbye to my beloved California. After we crossed over, we crept up to the higher elevation, cooler temperatures, and more luscious greenery. It’s simply beautiful out here, and I’m so glad this is our rest stop for the evening. After we arrived at our hotel (thanks to the incredibly helpful GPS system in our rental), we checked into a comfy and clean room, and walked across the street to get some dinner. Both of us were so drained that we were barely able to mutter more than the necessary conversations. Finished dinner with a piece of pie, and now I’m back in the hotel room – praying I get an eight hour night of sleep. Tomorrow morning we’re hoping to get an early start, then head through New Mexico to our next stop in Amarillo, Texas. I wonder how the “panhandle” stands on facial piercings…