Day 4

PCS Reunion
Day 4 brought the most challenges thus far on the trip. I thought that being rested and having my own bed would make for a better driving day but I was mistaken. After only 4 hours in the car, I wanted to be done. I had high hopes for Arizona offering a different landscape, or at least more to see than sprawling desert. I was wrong. I had a rough few hours where I contemplated driving my impala into an abandoned gas station and living out the rest of my days tending to cacti.
Weirdly, Christina Trifero called me the exact moment I was crossing the border into the promise land aka California. Extremely coincidental or fate...you be the judge my loyal followers : )
I arrived physically unscathed to Lonnie's brady bunch-esque pad in Fullerton, but felt a bit mentally weary. I just drove 2 full days in the desert and now I am going to go catch up with my very first boyfriend whom I haven't laid eyes on since the 8th grade! All worries were gone the moment I walked in. "Dude, Rudy f***** Donges!" hahaha We took a very hilarious trip down memory lane, I apparently had blocked off most of my middle school years, obviously due to my hatred for those awkward days. For the first time in years, I was remembering things from PCS and Worcester that I couldn't believe. Lots of fun was had, the biggest beer ever was consumed and the best vintage couch ever was slept upon (might even give my La Quinta stay a run for its money). There are already plans in motion for Lonnie to make a northern trek to visit Trifero and I, it must happen : )

Pics to follow once I can get my laptop online.

Now off for my last full day of driving, luckily it will be along the Pacific Coast Highway and I plan to take my sweet time. I'm off!

Day 3

Texas is the windiest place on Earth. I just needed to put that out there first due to my utter shock every time I stepped out of my car to get gas. Not only was there actual tumbleweeds floating over the interstate, the wind was so strong that at times I had to white knuckle the steering wheel just to keep the impala on the road. With that said, it made the whole day feel somewhat "extreme" and kept things interesting.
Texas is soooo big and there is nothing other than abandoned gas stations, state troopers and remnants of old oil rigs. Enough said.

Now, going to enjoy my first night in my own bed, thanks La Quinta Inn at La Croces!

Oh, I had to take Ella potty in an absolute minefield without any grass as far as the eye can see...I stepped on the sharpest burr, drew blood from my big toe. I was just thankful it wasn't a hypodermic needle given the location.

Day 2

It was no surprise that Day 2 was a breeze, little less than a 5 hour ride, minimal traffic coming into Houston, no biggie. The city is enormous and definitely makes Atlanta's Spaghetti Junction look like kid stuff. The highways are no joke and apparently a few of them are pretty fresh because my TomTom lady was very confused. She kept demanding that I turn left in the middle of an 8 lane highway, luckily I didn't pull a Michael Scott from the Office and run into a river.
Liz is still as hilarious and fun as I always remembered. It is cool to see the people you loved in college all grown up and in love. We shared some belly laughs and "almost" political debates over some margaritas and mexican fare. Ella and I shared the couch which she hogged most of, and we were off this morning at 8 am.

Day 1

First driving day went great. Drove through Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and stopped in Louisiana. Laura greeted me with a cold Yuengling (of course, she is from Pottsville, PA) and we caught up on our lives since college. She is doing a PHD in Media Studies at LSU and is also teaching undergrads! I wish I could be a fly on the wall in one of her classes. We went out to Bulldog Bar and brought our dogs with us, they begged everyone on the patio for food while we drank beer.

Lesson 1 from Day 1: The best playlists never take themselves too seriously.
Lesson 2 from Day 1: Never order Bud Light from a bar that has over 100 beers in stock (tisk tisk Laura).

View Directions to San Francisco, CA in a larger map

The Route

"Americans should know the universe itself as a road, as many roads, as roads for traveling souls."
-Walt Whitman

So here goes nothing...for all 3 of you that may follow this blog I hope you don't have grand expectations of originality or creativity. I am writing it to document my spontaneous travels to the West Coast and hopefully you can feel like part of the journey. Although this trip will be relatively fast (4 nights, 5 days), I hope I will be able to get something meaningful out of it, something worth the coffee stained shirts, greasy hair, sand bag eyes and bloated belly that will undoubtedly be there at the end....

the route:

St. Augustine, FL-->Baton Rouge, LA-->Houston, TX-->Las Cruces, NM -->Irvine, CA-->SF, CA

3 Days and counting