I'm not going to lie, it was hard to walk into my older sister's house and know that she wasn't going to be there. I was dragging my feet but Charlie couldn't wait to get inside. She may not love the dogs but she adores and worships the cat. Stubby doesn't quite return the feeling although I do think Stubby enjoys the attention from Charlie.
Once I got inside and started talking to my brother in law, it all felt normal and I was able to enjoy my visit very much. I enjoyed being surrounded by my sister's things, there are glimpses of her everywhere.
We spent a lot of the visit eating - grilling at my little sister's house, lunch on Saturday at an Asian buffet, steak at a local roadhouse. Since I don't go out to eat very often anymore, I enjoyed that almost as much as the company. We laugh a lot, share memories, cry a little.
In between eating and talking, I spent time trying to sleep. I'm a restless sleeper whenever I'm in a new bed anyway but all I could do was toss and turn on Friday night. You'd have thought I'd be exhausted after the drive. Finally around 2am I gave up and ripped off the pajamas I was wearing because I couldn't stand them a moment longer. After that I promptly fell sound asleep and didn't wake up until after 6:30 which is pretty good for me. Saturday night I didn't even bother with them, I had learned my lesson.
One thing the South does better than anywhere else is biscuits! On my way out of town Sunday morning I stopped at the gas station we always filled up at and picked up this homemade egg and bacon biscuit and OMG, it was so good. I have never been good at making biscuits so I am in awe of anyone that doesn't end up with hockey pucks.
I've spent most of my adult life researching the author of Little House on the Prairie, Laura Ingalls Wilder. I was a founding board member of an academic association dedicated to her and put together a couple of conventions a few years ago. As it turns out, Laura and her husband Almanzo lived in the panhandle of Florida in the 1890s for a little less than a year. They were trying to find a place that wasn't as bitterly cold as South Dakota after Almanzo got sick. Unfortunately, Florida was much too hot and humid for Laura (oh how I relate) so they left 10 months after they arrived, never returned and Laura didn't have much nice to say about the area. However, it's a thrill for me to have a Laura site so close since all the other ones are in the midwest. So, as usual, I veered off the road a couple of miles on the way home to pay homage. It's a peaceful corner of Florida. Taz and I have picnicked there in the past.
It was an easy drive back home and I made really good time. I have discovered that I enjoy long drives as long as I am in control of the driving and there is nobody around to disturb my calm. I enjoy blasting the radio and singing along all the way down the highway. Now that I know I can do it, I will try to make my way to Alabama more often; I think my family needs me as much as I need them.
Next up - I have to figure out a time to get to the aviation museum in Georgia! I would have tried for this coming weekend since it's a holiday weekend but there's a tropical storm/hurricane headed our way so even if it turns out to be mostly nothing, it probably won't be good driving weather. After having lived through Irma 2 years ago, I don't take those things lightly and I'm really not looking forward to going through it alone.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Pull up a chair on the porch, have some lemonade and leave your comment in my mailbox. Thanks for visiting my little cottage!