It's been a series of 'lasts' for the past few weeks. My family is all about food. We plan our vacations and days around where we want to eat our meals. So the most important lasts have been making it to our favorite restaurants. So in Orlando I made sure to fit in Bubbalou's Bodacious BBQ, the Mellow Mushroom, Pei Wei, and the Orlando Ale House. Here in Largo, I've been doing the same. A couple of weeks ago we went to Frenchy's Rockaways. (If you ever make it Clearwater, you must go to my favorite beach restaurant and try the she-crab soup and grouper.) My uncle even got me a Rockaway's t-shirt so I can wear it with pride in Washington. Today we went to Tampa Bay Cuban for lunch. Of course most people get the Cuban sandwich, I get the turkey. This evening my parents took me to the Bonefish Grill; while there is a Bonefish Grill in Seattle, we made sure to choose the local fish to eat tonight. The pictures with my Dad and Mom above are after dinner tonight.And a couple of days ago we also went to lay on the beach one last time. There are beaches in Washington, but I just have this funny feeling that the water won't be 80+ degrees and the weather won't be warm enough to lay out and sun. We spotted a dolphin, which was nice.
And family. I saw my Dad's side of the family on Saturday. We gathered to celebrate my Granny's 79th birthday. And I saw my Mom's side of the family on Sunday and played a rousing game of pool volleyball. Living in Florida the past two years it has become easy to take for granted being able to see the grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and my parents fairly often. Saying good-bye to family, and friends was a little tougher than I expected. I hope that serious consideration is given to planning a visit to the Seattle area, as most of my family and friends have never been out that way.
One day left until departure! A lot of chores need to be taken care of tomorrow. I need to check my tire pressure and oil, stop by the bank, visit AAA for some maps, etc. It's going to be a long day of preparations. But I'm almost there! I'm counting the days until I see Robb again.
2 comments:
. . . and Robb is counting the SECONDS until he sees you again! (I'm making reference to his experience of "crushing loneliness" on his blog recently.) I guess absence really does make the heart grow fonder . . .
Sounds like you've really had a good time saying your goodbyes to everyone in Largo; the photos of you & your folks are great, by the way. I know there was sadness in telling everyone in Florida goodbye, but you write about so many other positive, good memories to take to Washington with you that it actually outshines the bittersweet moments -- you & Robb both have a natural "voice" in your prose, and it makes for enjoyable reading.
Are you going to post your route on your blog, as Robb did, or is this more of a covert operation? It would be interesting to compare your routes, if they're different.
Keep blogging, and drive safely for the next 3,000 miles!
Are you there yet?
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