When The Fun Begins...

I've lost count of how many times I've driven from Florida to New York. It's almost as if it's become mundane. Sure, there are the places I always stop, such as the Kenly 95 truck stop in Kenly, North Carolina and South of The Border, but for the most part it's a white knuckle, windows-down drive straight up I-95 for pretty much the whole way.

 

Kenly 95 Truckstop. 'Tis huge...

South of The Border...

Truth be told, there's just not a lot along the east coast that interests me that I haven't already seen. On the way back maybe I'll stop in Annapolis, but the jury's still out on that.

No, my focus is on getting to Boston. I'll be visiting an old friend and shipmate who I haven't seen in 38 years, Kenny, and his wife Karen. They've graciously offered their guest room to me.

That's when the fun starts.

The last time I was in Boston was 2011. It was only a brief stop, though, and I didn't get to see a lot. I had a friend showing me around, but we pretty much had time only to get some chowdah (yeah, I know), visit Fenway Paahk (yes, I know, it's intentional) and visit the home of Paul Revere. That last one was pretty much a mind blower. When I was a little kid; maybe 2nd or 3rd grade, I'd heard about the ride of Paul Revere. Now I was standing in front of his home.

What?

The level of history there is something you don't find too many other places, so this time through (and especially the return trip), I'm going to exploit the fact that I'll be on no etched-in-stone schedule. On the return leg of the trip I'll leave Boston when I'm good and goddamn ready!

But before the fun comes the work. 

Planning this trip has morphed into almost a full time job. Obviously, the route pretty much planned itself. But what to do and where to go along that route is taking some time to figure out. Even though I'll be visiting friends for the majority of the trip west, I'll need to find a handful of hotels in each city where I'll need to find lodging, for both the west and east legs of the trip.

There are lists to make (don't want to forget anything), the car to take care of (rotate tires, replace coolant, etc) and maybe even a little clothes shopping. And then there are the things you may not think of. I'll be gone for five to six weeks. I'm going to need to do laundry on occasion. I'm going to need laundry detergent. I'm going to need a bag in which to put dirty clothes. Geez, some things are just so mundane that it would be easy to overlook them, but wind up being so important that it would be a nightmare if they were forgotten.

With only 13 days before I leave, it's time to start ramping up the preps. This trip ain't gonna' plan itself...