Musings from the road

As some of you are aware I have been wandering around since the school year ended. This was by design, mainly due to the fact I didn’t want to sit in my Maine cottage rental until the end of the lease on June 30th. 

Instead of living that dream, along with the return of the snowbirds and the families that deem "LAKE LIFE" is the only life in June, July, and August - it was far easier to drive to my mother’s in Maryland and begin what has now been almost a month of traveling.

I’m a creature of habit so it’s been a bit jarring at times, simply because I’m doing my best to create the same routines I would usually have. Notwithstanding different beds from hotels, motels, apartments, and homes, I have for the most part maintained my sleeping habits. The biggest challenge has been my diet and getting enough fruits and veggies. Funny enough, my pilgrimages to McDonald’s are all but ended and I’m doing my best to remain flexible and gentle with myself.

Again, I prefer routines and structures so with another two and half weeks of traveling in Europe, with two plus weeks to follow in Maryland, I don’t get to settle down for another month. I’m sure the Morocco move will be totally smooth, or not. I’m half joking because Tangier will serve as the home base and this nomadic lifestyle will take a backseat. 

I wish I could say I’m not weary, but this morning waking up on a hotel bed that did nothing for my spine, and the fact the birds weren’t serenading me, but the drunk people yapping away on the adjacent apartment balcony - reminds me of the need to find that happy place. Instead of taking a train today, I’m living the bus dream, and then having to check in at an Airbnb where it’s hit or miss on how serviceable the home for the night will be. The owner has already shown some douchebag tendencies so I can't wait.

I'm sure it will be more interesting than the Airbnb owner who came over at eight in the morning to see if I had left already. As opposed to simply sending a message and checking in on things which would be so less passive aggressive, the owner left the outside key lock with the correct code wide open for me to discover. Only then did I discover a formal Airbnb message to let them know when I was leaving. Just think, I thought checkout was at eleven . . .

In honor of my continued travels, here are some random travel highlights prior to Poland that are worth sharing.

1. While staying in a cottage in central New Hampshire - the first night away from home, the doors wouldn’t lock. In fact the only door, the sliding door, would not latch. I wouldn’t have minded much but the fact it was bear country amplified my desire to at least have some sense of security. After two different attempts the caretaker of the property was able to lock the slider. Let's just say he unscrewed the entire mechanism and gave it the Band-Aid fix. My biggest question remains as to why they did they not notice this issue to begin with?
2. Pennsylvania is a state with many interesting names. The middle school teacher in me had to laugh and film the short when I saw I was spending the night across the street from Lickdale Elementary. While I snicker at the name, nine year old me, the most puzzling aspect of that night was watching this woman sing and yell to herself. She kept walking back and forth in front of the building. One moment she was on the curve and the next leaning on the fence. It went on for quite some time and I wondered if she was a proud graduate of Lickdale or just passing through like me.
3. While running at the local park in Maryland - I continue to be amazed by people who drive over to this out of the way facility and park in front of the dumpers next to the dog park. They simply dump their waste and then speed away. You would think after years of this happening, the county would put a lock on these things. Maybe they just think it’s dog waste. Last time I checked, doggy bags are the size of my hands not a chair. 
4. Somehow, Dinosaur Land remains open. I didn’t understand it in 2008 nor now how poorly constructed dinosaurs that look like they were created and painted in the 1960s are able to sustain a viable business. And yet the place remains open and I had to stop to take pictures, because why not? 
5. Flying at BWI still sucks. It doesn’t matter the time of the day, morning or night - I hate this airport. This time I was blessed to take Delta which meant shorter lines than that Southwest mess. Nevertheless, it continues to be my least favorite place to fly from on the eastern seaboard. With that noted - how and why in the last fifteen years did so many pet bathroom areas sprout out in the airport? What again deems a service dog and how come I have yet to sit next to one on a plane? 
6. Phoenix to Sedona by car is a nightmare unless you enjoy driving on hilly, highway like roads, fighting the good fight with tractor trailers who can’t seem to get out of first gear for miles. Throw in the endless road construction on these same hills and the possibility of an overheated vehicle and it makes for a wonderful driving experience. 
7. Sedona is overrated. What energy and spiritual enlightenment others brag about might have been true thirty or forty years ago, but now it's a menagerie of strip malls, overpriced items, and tourists who are simply there to get a good selfie. Seriously do you need to take a photo of yourself in front of a blue sign McDonald's? Save yourself some time and check out the Red Rock State Park on the outskirts of town and then head to Jerome for a less busy experience.
8. Running in Tucson is always an interesting one. I remember as a kid watching a house catch fire and seeing a dog look at me through the slider door. Thankfully, the dog was rescued and the fire put out, but that image and the one of a coyote walking over to the family pet - left a distinct imprint on my young mind. On this trip, while I didn’t see any coyotes or fires on my morning runs, the ever increasing presence of the evil Javelina stumbling out of the weeds and driveways kept my senses on full alert. I had to deal with two of them - both full ground. The palm sized spiders and the millipedes on steroids were added to the mix. I counted my blessings that I didn’t see the sign for mountain lion sightings until I done with my morning run.
9. Airplane food is always expensive but Phoenix brings this to an entirely other level. For a bloody sandwich - two pieces of white bread with lettuce and a thin layer of tuna fish will only set you back $16.00. Talk about a ridiculous markup. To think, I thought Logan was expensive. 
10. Note to self driving three hours, then taking flights from Phoenix to Atlanta to Amsterdam to Krakow was not only ambitious but exhausting. What a LONG day.  Props to the flight attendant who checked on me at 1:30am to see if I wanted anything to eat or drink. While I wasn't hungry, an ice pack for my leg would have worked wonders. The two dingbats next to me in the emergency exit row had elected to not sit in their original seats. This led to me rectifying the situation to claim my own and in a series of unfortunate events - twisting my knee and falling against the bulkhead to simply put my bag in the overhead. Thanks guys! ​

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