The Parking Lot Ride to New England

We have not been out of the state since the pandemic hit. A couple of weeks ago we got an invitation to visit New England for my oldest cousin’s memorial service. She passed away last year and now a get together was planned. So we decided it was time to take a ride. We are very familiar with the freeways to the Midwest and the south, but have never driven from DC to New England - the most congested corridor anywhere in the US. If we could get through this we could get through anything. I can honestly say that we would never do it again. It was essentially a parking lot from the time we left home to the time we arrived. From DC to Baltimore and the tunnel, to Philadelphia to New Jersey. Then the ultimate hell hole of New York. Everything looks so old, rusty and cruddy. On top of that it was raining most of the time. The toll roads were ridiculous. I don’t know if my easy pass transponder worked but it was replenished twice along the way - eighty dollars worth. The George Washington Bridge alone was seventeen dollars to cross. Google maps was constantly red and we crawled along. We never planned trips in the summer months because of all of the traffic and especially since the pandemic. Everyone is taking a vacation now. But this was for a different reason. The drive back was just as bad as the drive up. To make matters worse we had an hour delay because of a presidential motorcade on the freeway near our house. It was just too much. But we are still happy we went and glad we were able to survive the gridlock. And the company is always so good. 

A Lovely Afternoon

I worked at the Library of Congress for ten years. I met some very interesting people there. One of them is Kim. Since I retired seven years ago I saw and chatted with Kim one time in front of the Madison Building when we went to attend a program there. She was always so full of enthusiasm and always had something going on. She can do just about anything. I have kept up with her activities on Facebook. She sews garments, made a ton of masks at the beginning of the pandemic, got a food truck and recently opened up a brick and mortar restaurant in Maryland. One of her daughters just completed her round of chemo and radiation and rang the bell. Kim was having a celebration at the restaurant yesterday. I thought it would be a great occasion to visit. So we stopped at the flower shop and got three pink flowers - tulips and a peony - and drove the hour drive to the restaurant. We took the scenic tour through DC and around the beltway. It was a beautiful day for a ride and to visit an old friend and colleague. And it was with a great deal of enthusiasm when she greeted me and my husband at the door. Luckily she had a bit of time to chat. Another old colleague joined us and it was like old times. There is some truth to the notion that it’s a good thing to stay in touch. And it’s even nicer when it’s in person. I miss my old colleagues and friends from the Midwest and the library. But this was a simply lovely afternoon. And by the way, the name of the restaurant is Soul Sistas and a Brotha on Brandywine Road in Brandywne. It is worth the ride! 

We Are Going to Stay

We were thrilled to visit our family in central Virginia for Thanksgiving. I thought about bringing the Christmas presents - just in case - but decided against it. Now I regret it. We eagerly accepted our invitation for Christmas - like we have for the last many years. But over the last few days with all the news about the new variant, we decided it would be best to stay home rather than worry about it the whole time we were there. We have a college aged grandson and our family just got their boosters. We wouldn’t be able to do a lot of the traditional things we always did - no indoor dining, no church service…. We didn’t want to wear face masks in the house and we didn’t want to just stay one day instead of the usual two. Taking tests every day is not our cup of tea. We always looked forward to visiting because it is a very pleasant four hour drive and a great excuse to leave our prison. So as it was last year, we will be spending the holiday with each other. As my mom always said - things could be worse. It doesn’t make it any less disappointing. 

Should We Stay or Should We Go?

Both my husband and I got vaccinated last January, February and March. He got the Moderna vaccine and I got the Pfizer vaccine. He got his at our doctor’s office and I got mine at the community health center. We were thrilled. At least we were able to attend our grandson’s high school graduation in between the pandemonium. Then we got our booster shots at the grocery store pharmacy at the end of September. We were confident enough to visit our family in central Virginia for Thanksgiving. Our grandson was in his first year of college and his Covid test was negative so that was even more reassuring. While visiting our family we began hearing about another variant. Three weeks later everything is up in the air. While I was wrapping Christmas gifts last week I was doing it half heartedly. As the days progressed the news starting sounded bleaker. Everything once again seems out of control - at least for now. We were planning to visit central Virginia again for Christmas. Now we aren’t so sure. The family was just boostered this week. The cases are skyrocketing everywhere. We have been so careful the last two years the last thing we want to do is get sick. We literally are on the fence. By the hour we keep changing our minds. We went grocery shopping today just in case we end up staying home. I suppose the grandson’s Covid test results might influence the outcome. We just aren’t feeling really confident right now. Maybe we could plan for another time once things settle down? Thank goodness we don’t have reservations for anything. When is it going to end?

A Visit to Old Town Alexandria

Last week we finally got out of the house and decided a drive to Old Town Alexandria would be a nice diversion. We hadn’t been there since October. We used to go there all the time for lunch when we lived on Capitol Hill. Now we don’t go anywhere for lunch, breakfast or dinner and probably won’t for quite some time. The most we do is delivery every week or two just to change things up. Alexandria always a nice place to visit because there are so many interesting scenes - in the neighborhood itself and along the Potomac River. It was one of the first cities we vacationed to before we moved to DC. I also took quite a few photos for the 52Frames challenge and posted them on a previous blog entry. These images today are more “snap shots” than an attempt to get a really good image based on specific theme, which was “roll credits.” Someone was having all of their windows replaced and the cobblestone streets are always charming - but pretty hard to drive on. The architectural details are lovely considering a lot of them are from the 1750’s. It was a cool and cloudy day  but a fine morning for a walk. Everything is still pretty much shut down and King Street is blocked off so restaurants can put outdoor seating in the street. It will be nice if and when things get back to whatever “normal” is. In the meantime I sometimes prefer the quiet to the crowds.