It's been a long time since I've driven this far - last year we drove to the Outer Banks of North Carolina, but this trip is longer than that; and my days of driving my daughter to college in the Berkshires of Massachusetts or in Ithaca, New York are well past. And as much fun as she is, the dog isn't exactly the most brilliant of conversationalists, so it was just me and my wandering thoughts (and my iPhone) on the roughly 10 hours of straight, flat road between Baltimore and Seabrook.
But the roadside attractions were enough to make me despair of possibly living in this part of the world. Fayetteville, North Carolina, where the dog and I spent New Year's Eve, seems to equal Fort Bragg plus a zillion strip joints. (Plus one really super awesomely nice Marriott Residence Inn, where the dog promptly flaked out on the floor while I uploaded pix and worked on the blog.) Getting to Fayetteville took us past the obligatory 10,000 billboards for South of the Border (they make it seem so seductive there!), a tantalizing sign advertising the Ava Gardner Museum (loved her), and countless establishments that my husband refers to as (if you have children in the room, shield their eyes now) "titty bars." I guess the military installations sort of dictate that the t*tty bars follow, but jeez. What would Ava Gardner think?
Anyway, here's how I spent New Year's Eve 2011:
So I was on the road by 6 AM headed for Seabrook and as soon as I got here, I could feel the tension start to slip away. Everyone here is wearing shorts! In January! And the realtor reassured me that I need not fear alligators eating my dog - but I should keep my eyes open for the bobcats, who've been known to take out the unsuspecting deer.... BOBCATS!!! I guess these deer, whom the dog and I encountered on our mid-afternoon walk around the neighborhood, don't know about the bobcat threat:
(City girl, me, thought they were statues - until they moved.....)
Well, here we are, then. Let the grand experiment begin!
Anyway, here's how I spent New Year's Eve 2011:
So I was on the road by 6 AM headed for Seabrook and as soon as I got here, I could feel the tension start to slip away. Everyone here is wearing shorts! In January! And the realtor reassured me that I need not fear alligators eating my dog - but I should keep my eyes open for the bobcats, who've been known to take out the unsuspecting deer.... BOBCATS!!! I guess these deer, whom the dog and I encountered on our mid-afternoon walk around the neighborhood, don't know about the bobcat threat:
(City girl, me, thought they were statues - until they moved.....)
Well, here we are, then. Let the grand experiment begin!
