Drive across the US and catching up

Been a while since I have got an update out, so this one will probably be a bit long.

To get started I managed to get my car in the shop and repaired before the main part of my summer trip. The guys at the dealership even managed to get my car across the street and get the oil changed so that I could get started back on my trip on time. Friday, May 14th, came and I got back on the road around 9. The weather was just a little rainy but it didn’t stop me from getting into Indiana in the early afternoon.

The next week was a little rough, with it being the one year anniversary of my Dad passing away. I got around and saw all my family up there and pretty much all of my friends. It was great to see everyone again, and without all their support I wouldn’t have made it through the week. Dad was a great man and he molded me into the man that I am today. Without his guidance in my life I would not be who I am and for that I will always be grateful.

Before I knew it the 21st of May came and I started my drive across the US. My plan for the first day was to get to Tulsa Oklahoma. I managed to get a little over a hour farther on day on and got into Oklahoma City before stopping for the night. After getting my hotel room for the night and some dinner I was off to sleep so that I could get back at it in the morning.

Day twos plans were to get to Alberquque, New Mexico, but since I had drove a little father the night before I changed the plans to at least make it to Arizona. After crossing the Arizona border with plenty of sunlight left in the day I decided that Flagstaff would be the new goal for the night. I would have made it had the weather not been so bad that the state had to close a portion of interstate 40 due to high winds and low visibility from the dust. After a minor detour I got a hotel room, and dinner for the night then headed to bed.

Day three came and saw me crossing over the Hoover Dam and arriving into Las Vegas. Since it was still before noon when I got to the dam I decided to stop and to a little sight seeing. Pictures do no justice to the Hoover Dam. I was amazed by the sheer size and beauty of the dam and surrounding area. Definitely happy about stopping for about a hour to do the tourist thing.

After the short stop I finished my drive into Vegas and have been getting settled into my suite here at the Rio. This will be my home for the next four nights, and then we move into the house. I think the rest of the day will be spent relaxing a bit, maybe some poker in the evening, some dinner, and then get some sleep. Gotta start getting my sleep cycle changed to it being 3 hours behind where I was just 3 days ago.

The next few days, weeks, and months will have many first and new things for me to experience. I can’t wait to not only experience them, but also document them here for me to look back on later down the road. Enjoy the pictures that I have taken over the past few days.

Until next time.

Beach Trip with family

This past weekend was a good relaxing first weekend of my trip. My brother and his family took me down to Panama City Beach Florida for the weekend, well it was more of a trip for the kids that I was privileged enough to get to join. We left Friday afternoon after my sister-in-law and brother got off work. It was rather stormy all the way into town but we finally made it in around 8 local time (central standard time). We all got to bed early so that we could get to the beach in the morning.

The weather come morning was not wet but it was rather windy and overcast. We made the best of it and headed down to the beach. It was great to just sit in the sand and watch the waves come in, plus getting to play in the sand with my wonderful niece and nephew. After some fun on the beach we headed back to the condo to each lunch and play in the pool for a while (the ocean was just a bit too rough for the kids to play in the water). After some afternoon naps we decided to head down to Pier Park to do some shopping, play on the carnival rides, and get something to eat. All in all we had a great day just relaxing and having some fun.

Sunday we packed up and headed back home. Once home me and my niece and nephew played outside with the bubble guns before getting cleaned up and heading to bed. We were all worn out after an action packed weekend.

Today was just another relaxing day for me. I slept in a bit then headed out to the store to pick up some things to make for dinner. I had dinner ready for my brother and sister-in-law when they got home from work. Tomorrow will be my last full day, plans are to get things packed up so I can leave and head up to my brothers for his graduation weekend, and then hopefully head out to see my nephew play in his t-ball game (as long as the weather cooperates).

Until tomorrow,

Merch