Brandon and the kids.

Brandon and the kids., originally uploaded by Monkey loves Kitten.

Saturday, June 25, New Orleans to Jacksonville.

Well, this was another long day. It took us four days of driving to make it from the Pacific to the Atlantic. Not too shabby. Not that I would want to do it again anytime soon.

Running totals:
Total miles: 2630
Total hours driving: 39:05
MPG: 27 (in Brandon's car, mine wasn't quite as good)
Average MPH: 65

We left New Orleans around 11:15 and got to Jax a little after 8. This was a tough day for me. We hadn't gotten much sleep the night before and the driving was finally getting to me. Also, someone left the walkie talkies on all night and out of their charger, so communications were minimal. I had also tried to kill my camera and so couldn't take any pictures on the way. The highway photos are courtesy of Brandon. (We later fixed my camera, but got a new one, too!)

We got our first real dose of rain this day. Man, it is different here. Skies open, downpours ensue, thunder and lightning jazz it up, and then it stops. The heat dries the ground in no time flat. Of course, it does this by absorbing all the moisture into the air and upping the humidity 5,000,000 times. And we're detoxing again! Yay!

So, we got to Chris and Rob's, and Quentin got to meet his Aunt Scout. At first, things were fine, they laughed, they sang, the chased each other, all was good. Then, Quentin's cousin, Dudley, came over, and the balance was thrown. Dudley and Scout love to play rough, Quentin thinks this is inappropriate, and does lots of barking to tell them so. This doesn't have any effect on them, so he gets in fights with Scout. (Makes sense, no?) Dudley's not gonna have any of that, so he makes himself scarce. I don't blame him for a minute.

Oh! I almost forgot, we have some really good news. We know where you can get gas for $1.99 a gallon, and you only have to get on down to Mississippi. ;)

Church marquee

On a church marquee in Louisiana:

"Thou shalt not bare false witness."

I totally agree, keep him clothed, by all means.

Sorree!!!

We had no connectivity for a couple of days, folks. Sorry about that. We are still here, still adventuring. Please don't go away mad...

Carmel, LA - who knew?

Carmel, LA - who knew?, originally uploaded by Monkey loves Kitten.

These totals are running:
Total miles: 2052
Total hours on the road: 30:41
Average speed: 68 mph
High temp: 96

Okay, so Friday we made our way from Dallas to New Orleans. The interstate here passes through very few cities and no towns. Therefore, if you need to, say, pee or get gas or food, good luck. I don't think it does much for the tourist biz. Most of the route looked like this picture - green and lush, dotted with the occasional state trooper or blown-out tire.

We left Phil and Mary Anne's a little after 11 and got to our New Orleans La Quinta about 9. This was after a detour through some of the seedier sections of town due to faulty directions. The good news was the hotel was very nice and perfectly located. We checked in and they took our cars for us (thank you), headed up to drop our stuff in the room and wash some LA dirt off, walked the dog, and headed down to Bourbon St. It was certainly lively, full of people, and ripe with odors of vomit and urine. But, we had fun, went to a place called Cajun Cabin for dinner. We had fried crawfish tails, Louisiana crab cakes, and fried catfish. There was a Cajun band playing and they got Brandon up and into a washboard. I spent a little time with a tambourine. Sadly, we did not bring a camera to document. Brandon, being the consummate showman that he is, even helped a couple gals out later when they had the washboard on but did not know how to play it. A picture of that is going to end up in someone else's bachelorette party photos. After that, one of the bachelorette's friends came over to thank me for the loan of my man. Brandon came over and announced he was already married. Yes, Darling, we know. They don't want to marry you, just using you for the moment.

We headed to Pat O'Brien's and got a hurricane to go. We saw one gal flash for beads, and then headed back to our room, satisfied we'd gotten the full experience. Or, at least as full of an experience two road-weary folks needed.

In the morning, we walked with the dog to Cafe du Monde for chicory coffee and beignets. Good stuff. I have some serious acclimating to do, however, as my face was constantly covered in sweat beads while others remained dry. I probably looked like I was detoxing.

After breakfast, we got back on the road and made it to Jacksonville in time for a late dinner. More on that later!

Howdy, Pardner!

Howdy, Pardner!, originally uploaded by Monkey loves Kitten.

This is from our tour of old town Ft. Worth with Phil on Thursday. Don't this guy look ornery? Dangit.

We wandered around a bit, saw a longhorn or two, and sat a spell in the "world famous" White Elephant Saloon. Later that night, Phil and Mary Anne took us to dinner at Esparza's in Grapevine for some good ol' TexMex. Yummy.

Friday, we made our way to New Orleans. Will update on that trip later!

P.S. I fixed the comments feature. I had it inadvertently set to not take anonymous comments (you had to set up a blogger account), but now you can comment away!

Mmmm, Sonic! Yes, he's having tots.

Mmmm, Sonic! Yes, he's having tots., originally uploaded by Monkey loves Kitten.

These totals are running:
Total miles: 1578
Total hours on the road: 20:58
Average speed: 71 mph
High temp: 97

Okay, this is travel info for Wednesday, the 22nd. We left Las Cruces at 8:15 on the 10. We entered western Texas a short while later. We were in western TX forever. Apparently, it never ends. Well, it did eventually, but c'mon. We took 10 to 20 to 30 to 820 to arrive at Brandon's dad's house in Southlake, TX, a 'burb of the DFW area. We got there at 7:15. Phil and Mary Anne treated us to hors d'oeuvres poolside and a delicious dinner. Quentin romped around the backyard, only trying to kill himself by getting stuck in the fence trying to get to bunnies on the other side one time.

After dinner we had a soak in the jacuzzi and slept with happy hearts, knowing today meant NO driving!

Quentin continues to struggle with the confusion of all this move. His stress is manifesting itself in doggy nightmares, which we are aware of by his sleep-barking. Okay, we think it's cute, but he doesn't have to know that.

Click on pic for more shots of Wednesday!

New Mexico style sleeping for dogs

New Mexico style sleeping for dogs, originally uploaded by Monkey loves Kitten.

We'll post a detailed report of yesterday's travels later, but for now, here's a picture of the dog. He's the cute one anyway!

First day on the road, June 21

Quentin, look out!, originally uploaded by Monkey loves Kitten.

Total miles: 857
Total hours on the road: 11:22
Average speed: 70 mph
High temp: 117

Well, we are in Las Cruces. Anyone remember that episode of Wings?

We left Ventura at 9:15 this morning, took 101 to 134 to 215 to 57 to 10. And then we were on 10 forever, excepting a detour below Phoenix.

Quentin was a real trooper. And by that I mean he managed to live through the heat and excessive hours in the car. We'd stop for gas and take him out to pee, but I think his body decided it needed all the liquid it could get, so that didn't amount to much.

We, being much smarter, decided we should eat bean burritos for our mid-day meal. Since we were nearly destroyed yesterday by gastro-intestinal fun stuff, probably not the best bet. We remedied that, however, with convenience store sandwiches at 11:30 tonight. We're definitely getting better at this!

Okay, click on the picture to see more from day one.

Delay

Well, we are in fact leaving today, a day late. We were sidelined by some nasty gastro-intestinal deal yesterday.

The good news is, we decided for sure not to leave yesterday after we had checked out of Motel 6. We knew we couldn't go back, so we stayed at La Quinta in Ventura. Twice as nice, twice as big, and twice as expensive, but worth it. If you're traveling with a pet, the way to go. And, since we feel SO much better today, we're enjoying the fresh waffles offered in their breakfast spread. Motel 6 only has coffee, hah.

We hope to make it to Las Cruces today, and to Dallas tomorrow. Wish us luck! We'll keep you updated.

Wedding photos

Here is a link to a Shutterfly album of photos from the wedding. These are from the table cameras. Will link to the per-fessional photos as soon as I get the info!

http://share.shutterfly.com/osi.jsp?i=EeAMmTVsycOWbIag

Packing the load

A team of three packers came to our house yesterday and packed the crap out of our crap! How cool is that? Military life apparently has its privileges!

Downside - currently enjoying the hospitality of Motel 6.

Totally honored and more than just a little special

That's how we feel. You know that great feeling when you become a regular somewhere and you're greeted warmly upon entering the establishment? Well, we found that place, and only wish we'd done so a long time ago. It's a sushi restaurant near our house owned and operated by a very nice couple. The husband/sushi chef is Japanese and his wife is Korean. Probably due to her influence, he whips up little side dishes of kimchi that he slips us in between his sushi creations. We always buy the guys beers and hang out for a while. We'd told them we were getting married, and the last time we went in before the wedding, the gave us a gift of a cold sake set. We were so touched, we got them a gift of a glass octopus while we were off wedding. We gave that to them Friday, they loved it, put it in a place of honor. We were there for three hours Friday, the waitress joked we could say we honeymooned there. We ate, we drank, we ate, we drank, they gave us free tasty treats and cold sake, we bought them beers, then they gave us roses! And said how sad they were we were moving! And want us to send a wedding picture! And faxes from time to time to say hi! And they hugged us! And said we were best customers and their friends! And that when we come back to visit, we can stay at their house! I mean, c'mon, does life get any better?

I can't believe we're leaving.

Ten days until take-off

We'll be hitting the road on the 20th. Look out. We may be coming to your town. Of course, we'll call you first and set it up and bring you a present for the inconvenience. But other than that, totally look out! Grrrrr.