Time off in Virginia Beach

A small bit of blog housekeeping:  one of the nice things about blogs is that they enable readers to leave comments and there can be quite a bit of interaction on blogs that are active.  Terry and I would love to read any comments, thoughts or feedback you might have, especially as we add features from time to time (like pictures) to improve things a bit.  I know several of you who read this blog are new to computers or to blogs and might not know how to do that.

From the main page, if you read an article you'd like to comment upon, click the highlighted word "comments" at the bottom and that will take you to a page where you can leave your comments.  

A couple of notes about comments:  I have set it up so that any comments have to be reviewed before they appear on the blog, so your comment might not show up for several days.  It just depends on how soon I'm online again.  Also, if you choose to leave any comments, please at least include your first name.  I'm going to disable posting anonymously just because we'd like to know who's posting comments.

Now, to the regular blog entry, from Virginia Beach, Virginia:

It is five weeks after first getting in our truck to begin our journeys:  we have driven 28,000 miles, through 39 states, and have enjoyed most of those miles.  

When we were talking about driving as a team, Terry and I both agreed that one advantage of our situation was that we didn't have the necessity to schedule regular time at home the way we would if we had family obligations or small children.  In that regard, one of our goals was to stay out for longer periods of time (I did this when I drove solo for a year with Schneider before).  This would (hopefully) let us get better loads more consistently.  And it would mean more money.  Not having the aggravation or expense of maintaining a traditional house or a apartment is also something that went into that equation.  

In a previous entry, I mentioned that we would eventually like to take some days off near the Grand Canyon to visit there.  I've also mentioned that we are going to a Norah Jones concert at Red Rocks in Colorado the first weekend in June also.  

However, our first official time off finds us in Virginia Beach, Virginia (I know:  after the last entry, you are surprised that we didn't request our time off in New Jersey somewhere, but that will have to wait until another time).  Terry's son, Elliott, is in the Navy and stationed in Norfolk.  Terry hadn't seen him since last year, and Elliott is about to go on another deployment, so Terry wanted to take a day to come through here to spend some time with him.  I also have a nephew, Justin, in the Navy who is stationed here.

So, a couple of weeks ago, we requested one day off in the Norfolk area.  But, the way it works out is that we finished our last load early yesterday afternoon and we don't have to leave before noon on Sunday, so in effect we've had two full days off here.  We weren't sure if we would have a trailer or just our truck, but it worked out the best way possible and we just had our truck when we finished yesterday.

Elliott has a friend whose girlfriend works at a very nice hotel right on the beach in Virginia Beach, on Atlantic Avenue.  Elliott was able to get us a room in this very nice hotel at a very good price -- so here we are.  We have had a very relaxing time so far, and enjoyed some nice visting and sight-seeing.  And what sights!

Last night, Terry, Elliott, Justin, and I ate a nice meal at a very over-priced restaurant near the hotel and then went down the street to shoot some pool.  We had fun.  It's a good thing that having fun isn't dependent upon winning.  That's all I will say about my pool playing.

We did laundry earlier today, and at this moment, Terry and Elliott are enjoying some good father-son time out on the beach, and I'm enjoying some good time to myself outside of the truck.  It's good to have time occasionally to be able to decompress, unwind, relax and sort of recharge.  

Until next time . . . go ahead and envy me . . . I'm going out on the balcony to enjoy listening to the ocean waves coming in . . . and remember to keep the wheels rollin' but to occasionally stop those wheels for a break . . .

Allan