Driving in America

Earlier this week I was able to hit the open road and head to Dalhgren (AKA Middle of Nowhere), VA to see the Fox family. Okay, well maybe departing the Norfolk area and heading the same direction as a bazillion work commuters after braving some tourist traffic doesn't exactly equate to "open road" but seriously- even with the 4 lanes of traffic I had to laugh when the thought of "in Naples there would be 6 lanes" crossed my mind.

Since it was quite the drive (and worth every mile) I had lots of time to stare out at the road in front of me and study the license plate parked ahead. In between rocking out with 4 different country stations I quickly realized that apart from the sounds of air moving through my window, my backup singers and my awesome lead vocals the road was rather quiet. Quiet during the work commute? Crazy right? Several more miles up the road I finally realized what was missing- any guesses?

Got anything?

No? It took me a few minutes too.

Motorcycles and scooters were not flying out of nowhere violating my personal space! Come to think of it, there were no cars flying past me. No mom, I was not the one doing the flying...I was always driving the speed limit which just happened to be my favorite 70 MPH. I did however want to flash my lights at a few cars to encourage them to move over. (I'm so ready for this driving in Naples thing but I have a feeling I'll be the one being passed once out there.)

Once I figured out what was missing the rest of the drive was rather uneventful. I kept thinking I was almost there as I made it through forests and passed a ton of historical markers but that GPS disagreed with my opinion. When I passed Polecat Creek (I wonder if they say creek or crick in these parts) and then Hog Heaven I knew it would be only a few more miles before reaching my destination. After going through some Army country, I was outside the oh-so familiar looking gates waiting to be invited on...don't worry- they let me on.

At last I was united with one of my favorite NPS grads and one of my many assistants from the years I spent at NPS. As I sat on the floor arranging train tracks with the girls and chatting with the adults about the joys of TLQ, moving, and chatting about new our new jobs I realized that I really miss all the interactions with people. I was transported back to Bullard 102A where Jason and I used to chat half asleep in the quiet building while holding big ole mugs of coffee in our hands. Granted, it was warmer at 11pm than Monterey ever was and it was beer rather than coffee but you get the idea- once again I was reminded that it's the people of the 831 I miss...not so much the location.

Finally after hours of chatting it was time to head back down (I think it was south...I'm telling you when there is water in every direction my internal compass is kaput) and the full moon helped light the road. Another successful reuniting with an awesome family! I can't wait to visit again so I can see the "big guns" and turkeys. Thanks again for being flexible with schedules and making it work :-)