Well we made it....

I know it's been a few weeks coming, but I finally decided to start a travel blog in preparation of my upcoming trip. While where I'm at now isn't quite Europe, it was quite the journey to get here.

Sunday, May 20th:

5:45 p.m. EST: Boo and I finally left DC for Chicago. It might help to mention that I woke up at 6:30 this morning with the hopes of being out of my house by 10 am. But low and behold, I had more boxes/bags than I had room in my car, so Donnie graciously came and picked me and my crap up so we could head to my mother's in Alexandria to give her my excess. (Thanks Mom!)

6:35 p.m.: Stop off in Frederick, MD b/c Boo is going absolutely nuts being in the car. He won't stop shaking and keeps hitting my gear shift into Neutral. I stop at some gas station and buy some Benadryl. Give him half a caplet.

6:45 p.m.: Boo is now lethargic in the front seat. I guess it's better than him sitting up and freaking out.

7:00 p.m.: Boo is a little too lethargic for my liking. He's also panting uncontrollably. Maybe Benadryl wasn't the brightest idea I bogarted from Catherine. Stop off in Hancock, MD at a Ma and Pa stand to force Boo to drink some water and walk around. He tries to run away, but ahhh, the beauty of leashes.

Dusk: We're in the mountains of Pennsylvania. The clouds are so black that I'm positive that a thunderstorm is going to hit at any moment. I do what any smart person does who is driving through the mountains with a dog-- I call Mel. Talk to her for quite a bit, she checks what room number I'm supposed to go to in the Chicago HUD Office.

Oh wait, did I fail to mention that I had to be to "work" at 9 a.m. on Monday morning? As a catch up, it's supposed to take 10 hrs. 38 minutes to get from DC to Chicago. That doesn't factor in stopping for gas, freaked out dogs, food, bathrooms, sleeping. You can start working on the math now if you would like.

Well no thunderstorms as we manage to get on Interstate 80 out of Pennsylvania and into Ohio. I never thought I'd say this, but I was glad to be in Ohio. That was only because I knew it wasn't Indiana. I am definitely not looking forward to Indiana. It is by far the worst state to drive through in the Union. Yeah, you heard me correctly Indiana--I DO NOT LIKE YOU. (disclaimer: I'm only commenting on what I see from 80/90, which I'm sure is not a fair assessment in any which way or form)

Nothing interesting in Ohio. We stop at some service plazas along 80/90 so Boo can get outside, stretch, pee, eat, etc. I feel bad for the little guy. Everytime he gets out of the car, he immediately puts his nose to the ground and hurries along as if he's looking for home or at least something familiar. I keep telling him that he'll be happy once we get to Wisconsin, but he's a dog, not like he has any idea what I'm saying.

It should be noted though that somewhere in Ohio Boo was willing to get back into the car on his own accord. I figured a plaque should be mounted at the parking spot, but I'm sure whatever Park Commissions owns this service plaza wouldn't agree. Not sure why Boo is "complaining" so much--he had blankets, pillows, toys, food, water--everything his little heart would want, but he ignored all of it. God I wish I could travel as nicely as he did.

Monday, May 21st:

Sometime Monday morning in Indiana: I can't stress enough how not fun it is to drive through this state. To top it off, I have been up for way too many hours and I'm starting to realize that I'm going to have no time to take a nap once I get to Chicago. I'm lingering on the fence b/t being awake and falling asleep. I keep myself awake by counting the cars that DON'T have beanie babies in their rear window. What is with people and putting 20+ stuffed bears and the like in the back of a car? I'd hate to see what their houses look like. I also see numerous cars and trucks with multiple Jeff Gordan, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and "Intimidator" decals covering every square inch of window space. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think anyone noticed that the Colts won the Super Bowl this year. Poor Peyton Manning, finally throws the monkey off his back and no one cares. If it's any consolation, I'm sure Chicago and the state of Illinois noticed though.

Ok, now I'm really almost asleep. I stop off at a service plaza, pop some No Doz, splash water all over my face and discover a good way to awaken the senses is to rub a little carmex under the nose. I repeat the above every 34 miles b/t service stops. At the last plaza before Illinois I stop off for a 15 minute nap. When I set my alarm, my phone clock reads 4:28 a.m. My alarm goes off, I wake up and it is now 5:46 a.m. I start freaking out and look at my phone and it now reads 4:46 a.m. I start thinking I'm delirious, when my phone jumps back to 5:46 a.m. and then 4:47 a.m. as I'm staring at it. I realize that it must have something to do with Indiana only having parts of the state observing Daylight Savings Time and my phone had no idea what time zone it was in. I really wonder how people know what time it is on a daily basis. Can you imagine moving here and trying to figure out what time HIMYM started? This state needs a user's manual. Thank god though it was really 4:46 and I had only taken a 15 minute nap (which felt like hours to me). Another NoDoz and Water splash, and I'm almost to Chicago.

Ok, if I haven't lost you yet, here goes: Get into Chicago. My phone stops working the moment I cross the Skyline Bridge. Hit morning rush hour traffic on the Dan Ryan. Get to Mel's. I unload the dog and whatever neccessities I need. Get the car in a parking garage. Take a shower. Hop in a cab. Get to HUD at exactly 9 am. I have been up for 28 hours strait.

I'm exhausted, but at least we're in Chicago.

Wednesday, May 23rd:

We leave Chicago on Wednesday night. The closings went fairly well. It was an odd sense of closure of my time at K&A. All the Chicago deals I did, I guess it was fitting I ended there. At 7:12 p.m. CST we are welcomed into Wisconsin. Stop off in Madison. Take Boo for a walk by Carrie. We head up to Stevens Point by Amber. Thursday morning we head to Wabeno. I leave my cell at Amber's. Boo and I stay out at the cottage on Trump Lake. He's absolutely loving the outdoors. Running all over the place. Went into the water a couple of times, nothing major, but he got his paws wet. He loves sitting out on the deck overlooking the lake. I'm hoping he's forgotten about all the time he's spent in the car.

It's been a long week, but in the end it's worth it because we finally made it.

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