Giggles

I can't stop giggling. The rain is pouring. I mean, really coming down hard. And I'm just laughing.

And now I'm in my new "home state." People ask where I'm from and I never really have a solid response. The new answer is: "I live in North Carolina."

Last night I couldn't stop giggling in NashVegas. We had a great dinner on the town. Then we visited the Vanderbilt campus, which I'd heard so much about. Then we honky tonked. Live music? Every bar? No cover? And this was only a Monday night. What a town! Oh yeah, and they have a Parthenon. Didn't know you could just install on of those in your town.

We hit the road this morning and drove through the remainder of Tennessee, a bit of Virginia, and a smidgen of North Carolina to arrive at my mom's cousin's home in Mt. Airy, home of Andy Griffith and the basis of Mayberry. We received the royal treatment, again. So much for roughing it! Shingled roof > nylon tent.

Tomorrow I'll really be home. We'll head out of here to my new residence in Durham, North Carolina. I will start my new life. My ski bum plus road trip is officially over.

I've really enjoyed this adventure. Thank you first to my grandmother for letting me crash in the family condo. Thank you secondly to LaundroMat for getting me safely to my destination. Thank you thirdly to everyone that helped along the way: friends and family in Sun Valley, friends, family, and friends' friends and family along the way (confusing but true). I am so lucky to have had this opportunity to have a break from work to complete my prerequisites, enjoy the outdoors, and make the most of this interim between first career and graduate school. This ski bum really left if all on the dance floor during her last chance. Hopefully I entertained some of you. If I didn't, just think of this as documentation of what I did before I grew up and became an adult.

Thanks for sharing this last dance with me!

Mileage today: 410
Mileage tomorrow: 125
Total mileage count: 5580

Days on the road: 17
Destinations: 13
States: 16
Showers: 6
Flat tires: 1
Weddings: 1
Bridesmaid dresses: 2
Campouts: 4 (1 unauthorized, 1 with fee)
Fast food stops: 0 (except for a Pita Express walk-in after leaving the bars in Austin)
French fries consumed: 1 fry
Family gatherings (crashed or created): 6
Speeding or parking tickets: 0
Runs: 2
Texting, emailing or web-surfing while driving: too many
Beverages lost off the top of the car roof: 1 known
Audiobooks started: 6
Audiobooks completed: 2 (on the legs Kirforce did pre-LaundroMat)
Best sign: "Go to church, or the devil will get you."
Best line: "Don't open that door."
Road kill hit: 2 already dead
Best local flavor: Virginia peach, last bite of the beignet
Missed exits: 2 both by Kirforce
Best dancing: the wedding
Best attempts at a vegan offerings: sushi and jello
Worst CDs: Kirforce's "Road-tripping Mixes" from 2003
Biggest disappointment: Muleshoe, TX
Best deal: Getting to Zion before it opened, so we didn't pay the entrance fee; being hosted
Caffeinated beverages consumed while on the road: 2 coffees


Over the course of my entire bumhood
Old friends seen: lots!
New friends made: lots!
Classes completed: 3
Self-taught refresher courses: 1
Ski days: 31
Hike days: 10
Favorite wildflower: Chocolate lily, Slender-leaved lovage, Sticky chickweed, Columbine, Lupine
Mountain bike attempts: 1
Road bike outings: around 10, not counting commutes to work
Car washes: 0
Speeding or parking tickets: 0
P&L: I don't take accounting until I'm at the business school, so I'll let you know then.