Last week of August...

Since I had found an apartment and wouldn't be able to move in until September 1st, I figured I would take the opportunity to visit my friends in Tennessee. From Durham, where I was staying temporarily, Springhill (45 miles north of Nashville) was about 8 hours away. So, Thursday morning (August 28th) I loaded up my overnight bag and got into my car to head west (once again). When I got into the driver's side of my car, I noticed the floor was moving (a typical cliche, I know, but a good one none-the-less).....there were little ants all over the floor board of my car in the driver's side, the passenger's side, the "runner" where the door closes...."UHHHGGGGGG". I ran back into the apartment and got some water to at least get them off the door runner and then shook out my floor mats and stomped 'em out as best as possible until I could get to a car wash with a vacuum.
Driving proved to be a difficult task as I constantly felt like something was crawling up my leg...it didn't help that I was wearing a skirt. Thankfully the first car wash I came to was only about a 1 mile down the street....woohoo. I pulled in and..."what?" the hoses were removed from the vacuums. Okay, onward I go.
I got on the freeway (I-40W) and hoped for a promising exit. About 20 minutes later, I found relief from the "creep-crawly syndrome". I pulled into the car wash, unloaded everything from the front seats, took the floor mats out and took off the transition pieces from the runners. (hope that makes sense...I don't know the lingo). The ants were everywhere, they were feasting on granola crumbs and had quite the winter storage. None-the-less Iput the hose on them. I was at that car wash for about an hour if not longer, because they just kept coming back. When it appeared I had sucked up the last one, I started putting everything back and got situated. I sat there, in my car, next to the token machine putting my cd's in their appropriate cases when a lady came up to the token machine, I kind of yelled out to her, "ma'am, I have extra tokens if you want them?". She took me up on it. I had 3 tokens left and she only had $2 ($1=1 token). I told her to just take the last one because I wasn't from around there and wouldn't be able to use it. Regardless, she insisted on paying me for the last token, so went back to her car and scrounged up some nickles and dimes. When she came back to make the exchange she asked me where I was from. This started our conversation and in it I explained I would be living in Wilmington. She went on to assure me that North Carolina is a great place to live. And she would know, she has lived everywhere, "N. Carolina, S. Carolina, Virginia, Texas, Washington" and she just moved back to NC about 2 weeks ago from Memphis, TN. I told her I was on my way to visit some friends north of Nasheville. She said, just don't visit Memphis. She was very passionate about not liking Tennessee, especially Memphis. Apparantly, in the year (or two, can't remember) she lived there she had been robbed eight times and just two weeks prior she was almost abducted. She went on to explain that she was coming out of the grocery store in broad daylight and these two guys grabbed her and dragged her over to their car and started shoving her into the backseat. She was kicking and screaming, but couldn't get away. She said she saw a police car parked across the way and that he saw what was happening but didn't do a thing about it. That was her biggest complaint about Tennessee, there is no protection for you in that state. (her opinion, not mine, I have no opinion on the matter). Anyway, she said a friend of hers happen to drive by and saw what was happening and stopped his truck, got out and yelled at the guys. They stopped and ran off, her and her husband moved 2 weeks later.

And that was the conversation I had at the car wash while vacuuming ants out of my car.

pre-update.....

I know I am totally behind on a post...I did go visit my friends in Springhill, TN so need to get that post up with a few pictures. I settled in an apartment in Wilmington on September 1st, so need to take pics of my digs...I think it's pretty fun. I am 5 blocks from the Cape Fear waterfront, so am in Historic downtown. I got sick on Monday night and was pretty much out of commission all last week, some kind of flu bug....maybe it was traveling for a month, sleeping in germ infested motels, eating bad pizza, and losing 3 hours in the matter of a week....none-the-less, it was all worth it!!
I managed to meet a wonderful person, Jennifer, who is on a sand v-ball team(one of my passions), does photography on the side (one of my up and coming passions), plays cribbage (sweet), and is just totally welcoming. Spent yesterday with her and her family, so am feeling like I am settling in pretty good.
Oh, and yes, I was here for Hurrican (uh-hum) tropical storm Hannah. I'll post about that experience later. However, I will say that I went to church yesterday and a gentlemen that was making announcements asked if "this was anyone's first tropical storm?" and if it was, "that didn't count"....more on that later.
Just keeping busy looking for a job and resisting the tempation to totally furnish my apartment :-)

Tired but can't sleep....

It's about 10:56pm on Wednesday night, yes I am actually blogging in "real time". I'm tired and can barely hold a verbal conversation but one is relentlessly playing out in my head. So even though I turn the lights out and my lids can so easily blanket my eyes....I am unable to sleep.

'The thunder rolls and the lighting strikes" outside and I can hear the rings made in the puddles with each drop of rain. I am lying here thinking of where I am and how easy it was to get here. Before venturing off it was such a grandiose idea to just get in the car and drive across the country. The wild wonderment engaged my imagination providing plenty of fuel for conversation and thought, driving an oblivious enthusiasm for the sights unseen. And now, now that I am ready to settle in to a desire that was, for so long, hampered by fear, I realize...it's not that big of deal. I don't know if it is because I have faith in a God that is mightier than I and therefore am able to rest in His peace despite outwardly circumstances or that, really, it's not that scary...it's not that big of a deal. The minute I got on the road, I was just driving. I'm not going to deny that I didn't experience some amazing moments that deepened my awareness and simplified the reality of reality....but it never once felt daunting or scary...I never once felt afraid or alone. I was just doing something that I had always wanted to do and I just wonder how many of us miss out on the simplicity of reality because we don't just follow our heart and our dreams. I can honestly say that I don't really have a lot of dreams...I have a lot of fantasies...you know the ones that involve giving a thank you speech for winning the Golden Globe as best actress.....but, I remember always having one dream and that was to just pack up my car and drive east. But that was never practical and a lot of fear surrounded that dream, so I never considered it to be a true possibility, unless I got married and did it with my husband, in my mind, only then would it be considered "acceptable". So ever since I was 18 I have been waiting to meet a man that would be willing to just jump in the car and drive east...with no destination, just drive and fulfill my dream. I guess I didn't realize the Husband that would provide this opportunity would be the same Lord that freed me from all the fear that for so long paralyzed me from being true to myself. I know the One True God not only as God and Father, but as my Lord, my Husband, my Savior, my Hope, my Peace, my Comfort, my Joy, my Truth, my Strength, my Rest, my Desire...my Friend, and He makes the simple beautiful....He turned the simple act of driving into a flight of endless possibilities and I stand in awe because I don't deserve this kind of freedom. But, oh, by His mercy, by His grace I receive and pray to not let fear distract me from the simple beauties of life. There is so much to see and so little that needs to be said.

I guess I share this now because it was just today that I understood the meaning behind the scripture, "you are sealed by the Holy Spirit"...I trust the Lord with my heart, I relinquished it to Him and I'm not afraid to share it or this journey He has me on.
Much Love and Blessings,
Leslie

Asheville, NC

Thursday, August 21st

Strange thing about Asheville....flash back to the weekend before 4th of July, I was talking to a friend/relative (can't remember who) about my road trip and heart's desire...in this conversation I mentioned how I would like to find a community like Corvallis, OR. I liked the simplicity of Corvallis and the community when I lived there, but it was lacking something for me, which contributed to why I left. Well, that following Monday I was covering the main reception desk at work and a lady came in with her 2 kids to meet her husband for lunch. While checking them in I found out the daughter's name was Savannah (at the time I had been looking at possibly relocating to Savannah, GA), which prompted me to say, "I'm going to be in Savannah in about a month and a half". The mom responded, "are you moving there?" I said, "not sure, I am just going to visit the east coast, not sure where I will end up." To which she replied, "if I could live anywhere on the east coast I would live in Asheville, North Carolina, it reminds me of Corvallis..." Huh...my curiosity was peaked, Asheville was now on my radar. I checked it out on the net and sure it looked cute and possibly a cool place to live, but it was in the mountains, and there was one thing I felt sure of, that I wanted to be on the coast...in a nice little, quaint coastal community. Anyway, the next day I was working at my uncle's shop and he called me into his office and said, "so what' this? you are moving to Georgia?" I replied, "I don't know if I will end up in Georgia, per se, I just want to check it out....I'm not sure where I will be." To which he responded, "you know I would probably check out Asheville, North Carolina". Seriously? Did he just say that? I felt like maybe the Lord was trying to get my attention, so I figured I was visiting Asheville, regardless of its non-proximity to the ocean.
The next weekend (4th of July) I went to San Francisco and absolutely fell in love with it and in all honesty my enthusiasm from visiting San Fran palled my excitment for the upcoming open road adventure. It took about 5 days for me to get into the preparation mode and in hindsight I had forgotten all about Asheville. Don't recall thinking about it at all those last days I was in Oregon. It wasn't until my stop at the rest area in Bozeman that Asheville reappeared on my radar. It was during my conversation with Kevin, the gentleman I met there, when he told me (after I told him of my trip) that his dad ended up moving to a nice little town, "Asheville, NC". The minute he said that my heart about dropped.....seriously? It was so obvious to me that I was meant to be in Asheville and I pretty much built it up in mind as being my final destination.
So, here it is Thursday, August 21st and after spending a few days with my friend Jenn in Durham, I decided it was time to go to Asheville. I started heading west (Asheville is a couple hundred miles from the Tennessee border). The further west I went the more I was hating the idea of heading back into the Mountains...but I forged on. I arrived in Asheville around 2pm, drove around and found a hotel in the heart of one of the "50 Most Alive Places to Live", according to Modern Maturity. I walked around the Grove Arcade where all the boutiques, pubs, bistros, art galleries and bookstores converge. Asheville is cute, trendy and definitely alluring, however, it wasn't where I wanted to be, because I felt like it was where I had already been. If you take the Pearl District, east Burnside, Hawthorne and Belmont in Portland, and put it in the middle of Corvallis and take all that and put it in the mountains....you have Asheville. And I didn't want to be there. So, the next day I resolved to not have an answer for the question, "why was this put on my radar?" and started driving east once again. I decided to go to one of the coastal cities I had targeted before I embarked on my journey; Wilmington, North Carolina.

On the road again....

Sunday, August 17th

Said 'goodbye' to sweet Kathy and her family today to head south. I had a desire (and still do) to see the sun rise over the ocean, so figured I would cross over the North Carolina border and find a quaint little coastal town to rest my head and rise for the sun. I should have known this was going to be a bit more complicated than a simple poetic line.

I crossed the border about 7pm and hadn't eaten yet, so figured I would swing into the next convenient drive thru. Eight miles later I spotted a 'Hardees' (equivalent to Carl's Jr.). I pulled in, rolled down my window and when prompted by the voice I responded, "could I get a small hamburger and diet coke?"...to which this voice replied, "I'm sorry ma'am, we are out of small meat." What? I made him repeat... "I'm sorry, what?" "ma'am, we are out of small meat"....I was perplexed, but resolved to have a regular hamburger, so said, "ok, can I just get a regular hamburger?" "Ma'am we are out of all meat except the 1/3 lb burger." Seriously? I was so thrown off by this, that I just decided to move on. "Ok, nevermind."

I drove off, keeping a watchful eye for the next potential candidate to satisfy my hunger. Another 5 miles or so I hit the mother-load....burger king, sonic burger, wendy's....I figured on Sonic Burger on behalf of dear Mary. She asked me to eat a Sonic Burger for her because the commercials are always running in Seattle, but there are no Sonic Burgers....so for my dear friend Mary I pulled into Sonic Burger. Only to be met by frustration. A car had pulled in before me and drove straight to the window, as I pulled forward to place my order at the 'voice box' I saw a sign, "out of service, please pull forward to window". Ahhhh, so I pulled forward behind the car and waited. I sat there for about 7 minutes without seeing any action happening between the car in front and the staff inside, so I figured I would just park and walk in. I park, I get out, I walk up....oh, you can't walk in. I've never been to a Sonic, so not sure if they are all like this, but it's not a restaurant, it's a drive-in. I figured if it was taking that long at the drive thru, I ain't about to sit at drive-in slot and wait to eat...I will just go to Wendy's. I left one parking lot for another and when I pulled up to the 'voice box' I decided to get a strawberry milkshake instead of a soda. It was warm, I was on the coast (or at least near it), why not? "I would like a hamburger and a small strawberry shake", the 'voice' replied, "I'm sorry ma'am, we are out of shake mix." Seriously? Oh the frustration....."ok, I'll just get a diet coke". I got my food and beverage and continued down the road.

To make a long story short, I finally got a room at a hotel in Kill Devil Hills on the outer banks of North Carolina. I asked the hotel clerk what time sunrise was and he said, "6:15am". I checked into my costly ocean-front room, got ready for bed, set my alarm for 5am (didn't want to miss a spot of light) and drifted off to sleep about 10:30. Not sure if I was excited about the sunrise or if the bed was uncomfortable or what, but I woke up at 3am and tossed and turned for about an hour. I finally decided, "what the heck I'm on vacation, I don't have to do anything in the morning, I'll just go on the beach now". I grabbed my camera, my chair and marched onto the beach. I was all alone in the darkness listening to the waves crashing against the shore. After sitting there and staring at the moon for what seemed like 1/2 hour or so, I saw headlights further down the beach. A truck had just drove onto the beach and it started heading straight toward me. I watched the truck as it got closer and I wondered if the driver saw me? who the driver was? if I should move? if i should go back to my room? The truck got closer and I was in the spotlight, the truck wasn't slowing down so I got up, grabbed my chair and walked toward the hotel. I stopped about the time the truck passed by me.....right where I was sitting. Huh.....that was the extent of my beach adventure. By 6am I could tell the sun was beginning to rise, however, complete cloud cover hindered the view I had hoped to see. But, none-the-less, I took pics for your enjoyment....welcome to the Atlantic Ocean.

Getting to the inland from the outer banks means crossing a few bridges. By bridges I mean floating structures spanning at least 2-3 miles across a large body of water between two sliver sized land masses. Can you really call it a mass?

I travelled along Hwy 64 down the southern tip of the Outer Banks which means I had the opportunity to cross the Abemarle Sound twice....see pics below so you can cross it with me.

Once I got on the 'mainland' I drove for miles through swamp-like wilderness....

and passed signs that read, "Watch out for Bear" and "Red Fox crossing next 7 miles". I didn't see any....but don't think I wasn't looking. I finally made it to civilization and can only say, you know you are in the south when.....

you can shop at a piggly wiggly. That might not be totally true, but I just remember watching a movie where the girl said, "I'm not going to work at the piggly wiggly for the rest of my life".

A couple hours later I arrive at my friend's place in Durham.

Maryland

Saturday, August 16th

CONGRATULATIONS JESSE & ALEXIS!

Jesse & Alexis were married this day.

I decided to visit Baltimore, MD today. Just 63 miles north, I could spend a good part of the day touring around the city before getting back for Simeon's 6th Birthday celebration. Once I arrived in Baltimore, I headed straight for the Waterfront Promenade. I figured this would be a good central location to park and then explore. Once I left my car and walked along the pier (at Pier VI), I realized, "this isn't where I want to be". I wasn't in the mood for people, for a city, for tourist activities...I just wanted to be back in my car, driving through the quiet streets of the countryside. So, I walked back to the parking garage, got in my car and made my way out of the city onto a highway heading north. I looked at the map and figured I would make my way over to Delaware and then back around to Virginia. However, as I was driving I saw an exit for the Havre de Grace Maritime Museum and I desired to check it out. I followed the signs and found myself at a park over looking the Chesepeake Bay. The park was quiet and refreshing so I walked over to the shore and found a sweet little spot that just warmed my heart. I went back to my car to get a blanket and spent about 2 hours just sitting under a tree on the shore of the Chesepeake, enjoying the peace, quiet and tranquility this little moment in time had to offer.

My place of tranquility.....

I could have spent the whole day here, I didn't even check out the museum. This was all I wanted, just a quiet place to watch the sale boats, hear the birds, feel the breeze and be at peace.

Washington DC

Thursday, August 14th
Today I decided to visit what I could of DC. I didn't have much time, and to be perfectly honest, I didn't have much desire to see DC...but figured I better since I was so close. I wasn't sure what to expect...how or if it would impact me. I took the universal tourist pictures but also tried to capture my perspective of the experience. I only had time to visit the National Mall (excluding the Capital) and Arlington Cemetery, will have to return for the Smithsonians at another time and hopefully with someone. I have no problem driving across country and sitting in the midst of nature by myself, but for some reason, I can't stand being in a city alone.

First stop: Washington Monument

As we know it.....

My perspective....the nature of man.

Next: World II Memorial

I will have to develop my photography skills and get a different camera to fully capture this Memorial.

As true today as yesterday and will continue to be a banner over those serving in the armed forces.

Next we make our way along the pathway of the Reflecting Pool to Lincoln's Memorial.

Washington Monument and Reflecting Pool from Steps of Lincoln Memorial

Mark this picture as a victory. The memorial was crowded with people, all taking pictures, all standing right in front and around....I wanted a picture with no one in it so stood in front with camera in position waiting for a window of opportunity...think I got it.

Continuing on....

After visiting the Vietnam Memorial I made my way to 1600 Pennsylvania...

The White House as I saw it.

I wasn't able to get any closer, the street was blocked off because construction was in progress on the entry gate from this avenue. So, I stood with all the other tourists and lunching patrons in the park across the street. I was surprised the White House was in the middle of a regular street block, I imagined it would be set off somewhere...but it's not and it's not as big as it seems in the pictures....however, is anything?

It was about this time I had to start making my way back to the train. Arlington Cemetery and the Pentagon would be my final stops for the day. However, Arlington presented an almost haunting surprise.

Arlington as we are most familiar with it....

After I took this picture I began walking toward the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier...

and about the same time I heard thunder in the distance. The thunder got closer as I continued my way to the tomb, by the time I got to the steps rain accompanied the thunder. This added a new element to an already eerie experience. The air was thick and warm and the rain continued to fall harder and harder, apart from the thunder all was quiet in this place of honor. I felt out of place taking a picture of the guard, but it didn't stop me from attempting to record this act of honor and diligence.

I found partial refuge under a tree and was able to capture the picture below, which I believe sums up my Arlington experience beautifully!

Needless to say I wasn't able to get to the Pentagon this day....had to dry out before getting back on the train.

Old Town Alexandria

Wednesday, August 13th
My friend, Kathy, who I visited in Virginia works in Old Town Alexandria, so on this morning I went into work with her and wandered down King Street in Old Town. I found a Starbucks where I could catch up on my blogs and actually rest from driving and having some place to get to. I spent all morning in Starbucks then met Kathy for lunch. Afterward I spent the remainder of the afternoon capturing the essence of King Street from my perspective.

Old Town Alexandria

Old Town Movie Theater

Rooftop windows

Row houses turned multi-colored businesses

Me trying to be artsy...next assignment...doors.

I fell in love with the colorful, unique store-fronts.

Street Corner Building

The square off King Street holds a Farmer's Market every Wednesday at 3pm, this is set up.

Day 7 - West Virginia to Virginia

Tuesday, August 12th

Good Morning

I woke up today ready to be in Virginia, so got on the Interstate and headed east. However the interstate I was on (I-64) was taking me South and then North up to the DC area, and why take that route when I can just cut straight across West Virginia? So, I got on Hwy 60 east and made my way through the hills of West Virginia. Now, I was warned about doing this..."they" say stay away from those folk in the hills of West Virginia. But if I would have avoided this part of the trip (which I originally planned on doing) I would have missed out on the beautiful Appalachian Mountains and some incredible views....

Heading into the Mountains

The unicorporated towns of West Virginia (I'm thinking of joining)

A little lumber mill....

Next, crossing the Kanawha River...

I obviously had to go to the other end of the bridge to turn around and this became one of two times that I experienced the "fear" of the hills of West Virginia. At the end of this bridge, the road becomes gravel and silence thickens the air. I was dreading the possibility of getting a flat tire...but I turned around and made it back...all is well. I'm sure there was nothing to be afraid of, just the words of warning ringing in my ears catapulting my imagination.

The River from the bridge

Traveling onward I came upon a little town tucked back off the road. A railroad bridge crossed over the river and for some reason the thought of walking on that bridge to capture a picture of the town became the best idea of the day and I had to do it. I pulled off the road at the old train depot and surveyed the area, it was now a little vistor's center and I was 99.9% sure the tracks were no longer in use. So made my way and started walking down the tracks...

Now for some reason I assumed the tracks/bridge was solid as it crossed over the river, however once the bank ended, I was able to see water through the cracks between the railroad ties. My heart began thumping a bit, and once again the thoughts of tripping, falling, or crossing paths with the Headless Horseman flooded my mind, but I felt possessed in that I had to get this picture...not sure why, maybe I was fulfilling a fantasy of being a journalist willing to risk her life for that perfect picture. The fantasy didn't last long, I scared myself enough to stop after about 5 ties over the river and took what picture I could. It was a fun little adventure.

I spent the rest of the trip ascending and descending the winding mountain highway and had to stop to photo-op...

I think I'll submit this as a postcard.

Coming out of the W. Virginia mountains.....

And into Virginia....