L.A.'s Adventures

We arrived in Albuquerque and were greeted by familiar faces. Great Aunt Mary Lou and Uncle Jay made us right at home.  Uncle Jay started our evening with delicious Margaritas, New Mexican style.  Aunt Mary Lou put out a great spread with cheese and crackers and guacamole and chips.  It was very hard not to fill up on these snacks, but we had to save room for dinner! Homemade spaghetti and meatballs! Shortly after dinner we went to bed. Had to get to bed early for our early start.  

At 5:00am on Monday October 1, we ate breakfast. By 5:30am we were in our cars pulling out of the driveway.  By 5:45am we each had our last Dunks purchase in our hands. And by 6:00am we were on the highway heading west.  It was a long drive but early afternoon we managed to cross the California border!  Excitement was followed by slight disapointment as we pulled into an inspection station.  I carted 1 1/2 pecks of apples across the country to have California take them from me. I was overly upset about this.  For whatever reason, Londonderry apples hold a special place in my heart. I grew up eating them, in college I would go home one weekend in October so I could get some apples, and well I really wanted to start my california adventure with something that was familiar (and tasty) to me. It was hard to overlook the disappearance of my apples.

We made it to Los Angeles! Around 7:00pm we were in our apartment.  It was (almost) perfect.  The layout is fantastic and I could not ask for better. Thank you Kyle for helping us. We owe you, well basically our apartment :P.  The only downside is that the renovations that were being done, are not fully completed.  Our building supervisor has had people in and out trying to get everything completed. I’m hoping everything will be finished by the end of the weekend.

To celebrate the occasion, Sean and Kyle came over on our first night, complete with 5 glasses and a chilled bottle of champagne. I gotta say, these people sure know how to make you feel welcome. 

Our apartment is starting to look like home. Most things are unpacked. Our kitchen has almost all the necessary appliances and dish ware. We just got a lovely craigslist couch for our living room. My bathroom is starting to look feminine. And well my room has almost all the necessary pieces. A shelf in one corner, a bureau in another, a teal carpet in the center, a place for my bed coming in next week, and a desk i need to hunt for.  As soon as it’s complete, there will be pictures!

Rain, rain, and more rain. But hey, I look at it as a gift. It doesn’t rain like this in California.  We drove about 600 miles and made camp in Little Rock.  However, this road trip is taking on a much different style then my previous.  It’s about the destination, not the journey, so no fun stops along the way and no car camping.  Kevin’s parents have generously put us up in hotels.  Thank you Mrs. and Mr. Fisher! 

From Little Rock, we drove a little over 500 miles through Oklahoma to land us in Amarillo Texas.  Now, my LNKUSA2012 adventure purposely avoided driving through Oklahoma.  We didn’t think it would benefit our trip in the way that the gulf coast would.  I’m glad to have experienced Oklahoma now, but I don’t want to go back.  Surprisingly, people were not that friendly and it really was a downer when making pit stops.

The hotel in Amarillo was very nice, and very texas.  We were greeted with two free drink tickets to the attached bar and were surrounded by cigarette smoke Not the most appetizing environment, but we enjoyed sharing two free drinks.  In the morning we were giving the option of biscuits and gravy in their continental breakfast.  I really do enjoy experiencing the different cultures and foods around the country.

With about 300 miles until Albuquerque we are in for our most relaxed drive.

*Oh, and I heard an Oklahoma native say “I gotta get out of this one horse town.” Apparently that’s not just something you hear in country songs, but an actual saying!

Grandma and Granddad Jones are always a pleasure to visit. However, when I arrived, I couldn’t find them.  I was let into their room, and ate my dinner while contemplating what I should do.  Almost instantly I heard the door open behind me. Aunt Linda! She was out to dinner with them. Such a great surprise.

I made it to Ed’s in Wyomissing PA early evening.  After a filling dinner and desert we all tried to pass out early so we could wake up at 5am. We successfully got up and were on the road by 6:30am.  We were graciously given a hearty breakfast and each bags full of road snacks. Thanks Mrs. Carlson!

Granddad and Grandmother greeted us at 6:00pm when we pulled into their driveway.  It was so great to see them for the third time this summer! The next morning, Granddad made breakfast. I finally got to try grits.  Not so bad.  We left Cincinnati and headed straight for Dunks. We splurged. Two Iced Coffees and 6 Donuts. I will miss you Dunkin Donuts.

In less then an hour I will be hopping in my car, and driving out of the good old state of NH.  These last few weeks have been crazy.  I’ve been trying to squeeze in everything New England.  Rock Climbing, Hiking, Loon Mtn, Apples, Apple Picking, Apple Crisp, Pumpkins, Shooting a 22 Rifle, and of course Dunks.  The hardest part about leaving NH at the end of September is that all the leaves have just started to change, the air is crisp, and the mornings are cold. This is my favorite time of year. LA you better be worth it.

I’m going to miss you Mom, Dad, Brian, and Kevin. But this just means we have more vacationing opportunities :D

Krissy, wish you were driving with me back across the country. No road trip will be quite the same without you.

Goodbye New Hampshire! Let the next phase of my life commence :D

So this past week, I started going through all my belongings. I boxed items I want to bring to LA in my car, boxed items to be mailed to LA, boxed items to donate, and boxed items I want to keep in my parent’s attic.  Except for the few things I need for the rest of the week (clothes, computer, etc.) everything was ready to be packed and stored. 

Today I decided to start my attempt at fitting everything into my car. This turned out to be easier than I imagined.  I was able to puzzle everything, plus items I was planning on mailing, into my car. The best part, is I can still easily see out of my rear windshield. I have an organizational problem.

Well, I just need to finalize a lease and I am all set to trek West.