Marietta, Ohio is the place to be if you wish to see the American flag on display.
On this 248th anniversary of the founding of this country, I am reminded that my loyalty lies with the United States of America and the flag that flies over this land. Not with a political party. Not with one man. Certainly not with the fast and loose playing with the facts that appeals to so many.
This flag. My flag. My country.
Long may she wave.
The open road calls my name. Sometimes I dream about it. Sometimes I just think about how lucky I have been to make the memories that are mine.
The truth is I haven’t gotten nearly as far as I would like. The Pacific Northwest and Alaska are bucket list items. I want to drive Route 66 before there’s nothing left to see. Maine summers and Autumn in Boston sound amazing. There’s so much to see internationally that the list is too long for today and so is the list of US states I still need to get to if I wish to see all fifty in this lifetime. I’m a little more than halfway there.
The open road has given me so many gifts. Conversations with shop owners along the National Road in small towns and quiet country roads through the Blue Ridge Mountains with no company at all make up some of my happiest memories.
Desert landscapes like something from an old John Ford movie and manmade trails through old growth forest couldn’t be more different but are breathtaking in their own way.
And, of course, those roads lead sometimes to trains, boats and biplane rides!
With one eye on my rearview mirror, I’m always ready to slam on the breaks or or go around the block for whatever unusual thing tugs at me.
This Jeep isn’t mine but it does look ready for adventure!
The journey isn’t always fun. Sometimes it’s a sleepless night with hopes for a better day.
My grandpa lived a full life in the middle of the night when he got older. He would leave bed, watch some tv, make a sandwich and read Louis L’Amour paperbacks. Of course, he would sleep half the day, taking naps on the couch.
He and his poor sleep schedule were on my mind the other night as I doom scrolled Instagram from bed between the hours of midnight and 3 a.m. It was midnight when I awoke and the room was stuffy so I got up for a sip of water and turned on the ceiling fan.
About four minutes after lying down and closing my eyes tightly, I was cold. So I got up and turned it off. Stuffy again. So back on it went and I wrestled a blanket and my pillow to my likeness.
No matter what I do, I want to sleep on my left side but have read that sleeping with all your weight on your heart is a bad idea. That reminded me that heart problems run in the family.
I still have a chance at about five hours of rest if I go to sleep now.
Does the cat always bathe in bed in the middle of the night? Oh, look! My favorite writer is doing an online book club chat tomorrow night. I will register and then I will put down my phone and go back to sleep.
So I put down the phone, closed my eyes again and realized that I was hungry. Dinner didn’t amount to much and lunch wasn’t great either.
Nope. Too bad. Midnight snacks are not good for you and I will not become my grandpa.
I was still wide awake at 2:43. I should get up and do something useful. Maybe cleaning the kitchen would wear me out enough to sleep. Or maybe I would end up on the couch watching Little House On The Prairie with some peanut butter toast.
I have got to get it together, I thought. Grandpa was retired. He could sleep all day if he wanted. I have a job where they expect me to show up and be smart.
Good grief. I’m going to have an anxiety attack right here in the comfort of my bed if I don’t get a grip.
This does not bode well for my old age!
Parking lots are a true gift when it comes to unusual sights. Old cars, fancy cars, beat up cars, classic cars – you never know what you’ll see when you just venture out to the grocery store.
This one takes the cake though.
Snoopy!
I would never do such a thing to my own vehicle but I’m glad other people are so creative. It certainly brightens the world!