Travels with Judy

Uptown Girl

I just thought of something about Judy that I found out on the trip. She's a Billy Joel fan. Everytime one of his songs came on the radio, she perked up, looked at me, and started wagging her tail.

Honest.

Coming soon...

First I want to say that Judy is feeling much better this morning! hurray! Her leg is still a tad swollen from the infection, but it's gone down quite a bit. She woke up perky and her mobility is much, much better. She even ran this morning! Thank goodness she's better. I was worried there for a couple of days.

I will be adding some new items to this web page in the next few days. I will be adding a transcript of my interview with Faith Middleton of WNPR (once I get it typed up,) and I will be updating the blogs to show exactly where I went and when. Looking back, I've noticed the blogs aren't very clear about when I exactly went somewhere--especially at those times when I skipped a day or two. I hope to clear that up.

With any luck, I will perhaps even have an article on one of my many observations I made during the trip.

Here's hoping I am as motivated over the next few days as I am now. I'm also going to be adding more photos to the blogs, so please stay tuned!

Judy Update

I thought I had posted this earlier today, but it appears I must not have hit "save" or something because it isn't up. Pity, it was a witty and charming post...

Anyhoo, Judy is still not feeling well, but we visited the doctor yesterday, so she's on some strong medicine now to help combat the infection she has in her leg that has caused her mobility problems. I need to take her back to the doctor on Thursday so he can make sure she's on the mend. So far, she's still uncomfortable, but I hope by tomorrow she will start feeling better. I'll be sure to keep this updated on her condition.

As for me, it's great to be back at work again. I really missed everyone, and I'm relieved to be able to sit in one place for a while. One thing this trip taught me, though. I definitely need to travel more. I've already started planning my next vacation, however I think this one will have much less driving and much more sitting on a beach.

Have a great day!

Judy's under the weather!

Today has been a rather stressful one. Judy started biting at her leg a couple of days ago, but this morning she progressed into some painful territory. She had pulled out a LOT of fur on her back leg, and was not only bleeding a bit, but also was having trouble walking. As all parents do, I assumed her problem was lyme disease or something lethal, so I was surprised when the on-call vet didn't urge me to rush her immediately into the hospital. He said it sounded more like she just had a hot spot and that the limping was probably due to the irritation, and that I should give her an aspirin and put some cortizone lotion on her boo-boo. So, I gave her an aspirin, went to the drug store to get her medicine, and when I got back, she had thrown up all over my white rug. She looked like she felt better, though. After a couple of hours with the lotion on her (and only a half aspirin this time) she's sleeping calmly now. We'll see how she is in the morning, and if she isn't better, we'll be making a visit to the vet first thing.

Poor girl. As if being a movie star isn't stressful enough.

As for me, I've been busy organizing my life for the winter months and prepping to go back to work tomorrow. It's certainly going to feel strange to be back in the office after more than a month away. I hope I remember what I'm supposed to do there. (I'm sure my colleagues hope so, too.) Wow. Work tomorrow. It seems like a lifetime ago. In some ways, I guess it was. It will be nice to be back in a routine, though, especially with autumn setting in. The crisp autumn air is starting to make me want to hibernate in a snug environment for a while.

I did start the outline of the book/movie this weekend and it seems to be going well. I'm also finally getting caught up on my cleaning and laundry, which was a surprisingly large task. I've also managed to see a few movies over the past couple of days, and so my film fix seems to be satiated for the moment. However, tonight is the big news...tonight I get to tango again for the first time in over a month! Hurrah! Here's hoping I remember how to dance, and don't step on my partner's feet too hard.

Lovely autumn days.

I've added some photos to the blogs. It takes me a while to do each one, so I am slowly working my way backwards through the trip, so please take a look. I'll keep you posted as I update old blogs.

Did everyone catch Faith Middleton's show yesterday? I listened to it in the cab of Roxie II in the parking lot at the DMV. I was hoping to be home before it aired, but apparently, I was optimistic in thinking I could get out of there in less than 3 hours. I just want to say that I'd forgotten the majority of what I said in the interview since I was so tired at the time. Imagine my surprise to hear myself on NPR for the first time in my life, and then find out I called myself a weenie. sheesh.

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Now the work begins...

I've spent the past two days sleeping. It's been great! I didn't realize how exhausted I really was until I couldn't get out of bed on Wednesday morning. So, I didn't. Yesterday was a tad better, but I still slept until late morning. At least I managed to get a couple loads of laundry done yesterday, and this morning I woke up early and have the energy to start getting down to business.

Yes, the trip was only the beginning, it appears. Today I have to register Roxie II with the DMV and go through all my bills. Or go grocery shopping. Or get the house winterized. Or do more laundry. Or start writing the book outline. Or start logging the video footage. Or maybe, I'll just go to a movie and think about other stuff I should be doing.

I do plan on getting some photos from the trip linked to my blog entries sometime before Monday. That should be fun if I don't have any technical issues with my old computer and slow dial-up modem (yes, I still have a 56K modem.)

So, for now, I'm off to deal with the lovely people at the bank and at the DMV. At least I should be all legal by the end of the day, and that'll be one major task done, so I can then focus on more fun tasks.

Be sure to listen to Faith Middleton today! www.wnpr.org. Here's hoping I'm on it, and that I sound at least somewhat coherent. The interview was via cell phone while I was literally on the road (I think I pulled over at exit 213 somewhere in Virginia) and I was pretty pooped, so I might sound a bit loopy.

Home Sweet Home

I finally made it home at approx. 8:00 p.m. this evening. I didn't post earlier today because I didn't have any Internet access, and decided to wait until I got home. Also, for those of you in Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New York, please listen to Faith Middleton's show on WNPR on Friday. There's a definite possibility there may be an interview with me on it. How exciting is that?

Meanwhile, back to the trip summation... I left Montgomery, AL, yesterday morning and decided to detour through GA, SC, NC, and TN, before rejoining Steinbeck's assumed route (he didn't explain it exactly, but it appears he went straight from Montgomery to Virginia.) Now that I've picked up those states, I've officially been in every state in the lower 48, sans Kentucky. For some reason, Kentucky hasn't ever been on my way anywhere, so I guess I'll need to go to the Kentucky Derby next year to knock off that last one on my list. Once I get all 48 down, Alaska is next, followed by Hawaii. Then I'll start on finishing up Canadian provinces. For now, though, I'm only traveling to the next room to my warm and much-missed bed.

I ended last night in the dark in a rainstorm in Wytheville, VA. When I went into the motel lobby and asked, "Do you take pets?" the man on duty replied, stone-faced, "Yes, we do. However, what would you like us to do with them?" I was instantly smitten, and noted that his name was Travis. He gave us a room by the pool and requested that we mention Wytheville area in this project, so I am honored to oblige. Travis, you have my upmost respect and gratitude, and I hereby forever will refer to you as "My Virginia Guy." (Doesn't everyone have one?)

When I got into my room, I realized it was my last night on the road. Tomorrow night, the whole trip would be only a memory. How long it had taken to plan this journey, how much money and energy did I spend on it, and how arduous had it been at times...yet it seemed to be too early for it to be over. Surely, there was more that I had just overlooked in my anticpation to move into the next phase? Did I really have a story to tell? Is that all there is? In order to silence the questions that were keeping me from much needed sleep, I tuned into an episode of "Monster House" or some such show and watched a crew of people also go out on a limb and take a chance to improve their lives by accepting a challenge of remodeling an old jail into a breakroom for Compton, CA, police officers. They accomplished what they set out to do, even though at times it definitely looked like they might not make it. It was surprisingly inspiring, and I fell asleep with the realization that no matter what the future holds, if I give 100% toward my dreams, I know I will ultimately succeed--even if I fall short of my projected goal. The joy and passion in life is merely in the striving for your dreams, not in accomplishing them, and what an amazingly reassuring thought that was. Accomplishing dreams is merely a bonus to the rewards of trying. I slept soundly.

This morning dawned cloudy and drizzly, but with the idea of home being in the forefront of my mind, we set out early. It took me exactly 11 hours to get home from Wytheville with limited stops. I was just in the midset to get home. However, I did allow an extended stop for lunch at a Long John Silver's because I haven't eaten that much fried food in years. It was great! I miss Long John Silver's. At least I now know there is at least one in Pennsylvania! After lunch, though, I pretty much had the pedal to the metal and was zoned in for home. Once we arrived, Judy was also very excited and relieved to be home. After doing some doggie break-dancing on the living room rug, she settled in with a heavy sigh at my feet under my desk. It really is good to be home.

And yet, finding myself home after a month on the road, it also feels strangely strange. There truly is "no place like home," yet I have changed since I last sat at this desk and typed on this computer. I left here a month ago in an RV, and returned in a van. Judy has put on some weight due to non-exercise, and I've lost some due to non-eating. The house was cold upon my return and I had to turn on the furnace for the first time this autumn. Tomorrow I need to remove the air conditioners from the windows and put the storm windows on. It's all so strange. Did it all really happen, or was it all just a dream?

The day after tomorrow I will look at the video footage I took and start writing a day-to-day synopsis of my life over the past month. In some ways I feel I've aged a decade, and in others I feel I've reconnected with the Vicki of 10 years ago. Was it really only a month? A week ago, I was freezing in snow in Albuquerque, three nights ago I was sweating in Baton Rouge, and tonight I'm wearing a sweater in front of a space heater in my spare bedroom. 10,000 miles ago and a continent away, I was fretting over telling a figurative story and being honest and truthful to a literary legend, and tonight I just hope to have a story to tell that will be honest and truthful to myself.

I have a feeling the next few months will be very interesting. Ain't life great?

As for this blog--it ain't over 'til it's over. Starting tomorrow, I will be uploading photos from the trip to the corresponding blog entries, and updating the blogs that I was unable to elaborate on while I was on the road. I also have a couple of opinion pieces I will be writing in the next few weeks, and will post them on the "READ" page as they are completed. I will also keep the blog up-to-date over the next few months regarding the film and the book, so please keep checking back frequently. This thing has just started, and I, for one, can't wait to see what happens!

I want to also send out a BIG public thank you to everyone who helped me get through the whole journey safely. You are truly gods and goddesses of the highest caliber, and I owe each of you all at least a fancy lunch at some point in the future, and at most one of my kidneys.

You know who you are.

G'night for now, folks! I'm beat, and Judy wants a tummy-rub before bedtime.

Your Angel from Montgomery

Today's post will be literally quick and dirty since I oversept, and I: don't have time to massage ths webTV crap. I will fix it when I get home in couple of days. Please bear with me until then.

This morning I woke up to find myself in Alabama--Montgomery, in fact. Yesterday was pretty great, whawith adding four states to my lifetime record. I detoured away from Steinbek's path a bit n order to see Florida, and saw some of Ivans devistation that is still being cleaned up. I've never been in a hurricane, and after seeing what they can do, I don"t think I ever want to.

It has taken me about 1/2 hour just to get this much written, and I need to get on the road. I expect to be home sometime in the next couple of days and will elaborate more then.

Atlanta, here I come!

Read the next post from October 19 (Homeward Bound)

Blue Bayou

I just wrote a very funny and long post on the WebTV KInternet access I have today, and it CRASHED just as I was going to post it. Here's a not-so-funny summation since I need to hit he road:

1. I'm in Baton Rouge, LA. It's hot here. I'm off to New Orleans this morning.

2. Texas was pretty cool, and I finally found my long-horned steer silver belt buckle at The Horseman's Store outside Orange, TX, (and approx. 1 mile from the Louisiana border.) I had given up on finding a simple cowboy belt buckle and was going to consider theTexas I'd seen as a sort of new national park where I took only photographs, and left only footprints.

3. Starting today, and until I get back to New York, I am in states I've never been to before. I'm very excited!

The end.

Read the post from October 18 (Alabama)

SXSW

Austin is lovely, and MUCH bigger than I thought it was. It's really too bad that I can't stay any longer. There are too many great smelling restaurants here for me to sample this trip, so I'm expecting to visit again some other time.

Yesterday was rather uneventful, although we did discover a beautiful area of Texas that we otherwise would have missed. Outside Abilene, I missed the highway turnoff by mistake., Upon checking the map, I realized that the next town was Baird, TX. Since my maternal grandparents were Bairds, I thought I'd visit and catch up with my highway later. I was completely blown away by the llandscape just south of Baird. It was so beautiful, and completely unlike anything I'd ever seen before. It felt like the Big Sky Country of the Northern Plains, but there were cacti growing like crazy. Sort of a Montana meets Mexico-type of place. I bet I could live there happily.

Today I'm uing WebTV to post this log, and it's very frustrating. So far this trip, I've come in contact with WIFI, DSL, LAN, dial-up, and now Web TV, and I've had problems with all of them. I think it's time the industry decided on a standard--or better yet, each motel or campgrouind should have a computer already hooked up for guests to use. Those types of "business centers" are the only places I haven't had trouble accessing the Internet. Who do I call about this subject?

Today I head into new territory, and get to add a new state to my list of where I've been. The Big Easy awaits for me, and hopefully today I get to find out why New Orleans is called that.

Read the post from October 17 (Orange, Texas to Red Stick)