It’s a late breakfast for everyone, but soon enough more Farley family joins us at Mike & Lynn’s house – Judy as well as Shirley & Rich are coming over, and we’re all having a great time catching up! By early afternoon, Mike is taking on a “tour” to show us the sights of Princeton, IL. Not only the 4 huge flags at the freeway exit to guide visitors to President Ronald Reagan’s birthplace (about 30 miles from here), or … Read More

After packing up our camp site we head down further south on I-75 to Lexington, KY. We’re literally “making the rounds” around my old stomping grounds, starting with a visit to the Griffin Gate Marriott Resort at the north end of town, where I used to work for 18 months, starting 1997. Good memories! Instead of my dog Ben I now have J.T. in my arms, and Kirk snaps a photo of us in front of “The Mansion”, previously a … Read More

It’s time to get dressed in our A’s gear this morning, and by noon we’re dropping J.T. off at a dog sitter in Florence, KY where she will spend the day with several other dogs (big and small) at Celia’s home. We are heading on to downtown Cincinnati, where at the Great American Ballpark the Cincinnati Reds are playing the Oakland A’s for game 2 of the series today! We pick up our tickets, and explore the Riverpark and walk … Read More

  Today we drive. Despite our head start last night, we have almost 600 miles to cover, crossing Pennsylvania and Ohio, before crossing into Kentucky, just as the Reds play the A’s in Cincinnati, OH. Oh – and the truck got an oil change in Ohio. After all, we’re about 5,000 miles into the trip! After a 14 hours day (including the stops), we get to our home for the next 2 nights; the Cincinnati South Campground in Crittenden, KY, … Read More

Although we don’t see a “Pennsylvania Welcome sign” as we cross the bridge from New Jersey, we are excited about checking out two sights here in Philly – the Liberty Bell and the Rocky Steps. But for the 2nd time on our trip, the traffic gods are not with us, and morning rush hour is taking its toll on our travel time. In addition, downtown Philly is not truck & trailer-friendly, and the parking “lots” (per Google) turn out to … Read More

  It’s is just after 8:00 AM when we leave Newport News after having said goodbye to Gary & his family. We head north-west along I-64 and then onto I-95 North towards Washington. The first destination is Bethesda, MD: Marriott International Global Headquarters. We are meeting my former colleague James for lunch, and after a quick tour of the completely re-styled “lobby” we go to “the hub” – the cafeteria. It’s fun to catch up and also get a little … Read More

Time to sleep in and really get some rest, as our Hosts have some more hours at work, and we get a slow start into the day. But by mid-day, Gary is home again and he & Kirk disappear into the barn to talk about whatever guys talk about when they have not seen each other in about 15 years! By 5 o’clock (or 17:00 hours military time), yet another Air Force friend joins the group, Theresa and her husband … Read More

It’s raining as we get back onto I-95 North, and work our way through Georgia. We cross into South Carolina, and continue on through. Next up is North Carolina, still on I-95. And by late afternoon we cross into Virginia (time to take down the radar detector!), with just about 2 hours left on today’s route. Destination: Newport News, VA – time to see the next group of friends on Kirk’s list! After a very warm welcome by Gary, his … Read More

  We are on the road by 10:30am, but our first stop is only a quick 11 miles away: we’re visiting our (former) neighbors from Livermore – Theresa & Raheem! They just moved here this past spring, and with their home along our route, we are sure to stop by! Their new home is in a quiet, beautiful neighborhood of Port St. Lucie, and they are making brunch for us! Their 2 daughters, Nikolina and Sophia seem to have settled … Read More

It is time to do what we came to do – see Kirk’s Aunt Pat and Dave, and check out the Sylvester family heirlooms (including furniture, fiddles, and photos) left by his late Grandma Nettie. Pat and Dave treat us to breakfast at a local place (Alice’s Restaurant) in town, and we get a chance to catch up. Back at the condo, we go through all the items that Pat would want us to take, and flip through stacks and … Read More