Trees in Connecticut ~ Day One of The Grand Adventure

So I packed up Bloggingham Palace, stuffed fifty pencil skirts in the trunk of my Toyota, crossed the moat one last time and closed the drawbridge.

And didn't look back.
Well, maybe once. Bloggingham Palace azaleas


I drove all night (and then some) through South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, DC, Delaware, New Jersey and New York to land in the heart of a brutal nation.....no, that's not right (that's an excerpt from the Great-American-Novel-I'm-not-writing) er...to land in the parking lot of McDonald's twelve times to buy leaded java.

It was brutal, I tell ya.

If you'll recall, the last time I ventured out like this alone it was a disaster. My royal behind got stuck on the George Washington Bridge and caused a ruckus. New York will never be the same. But my pencil skirt has learned a few social skills since then: how to cut in front of people without honking politely, how to ignore people who flip me off, how to honk and ignore at the same time (I highly suggest Paris Hilton's new book Socialite Manners in the Fast Lane for pointers). My favorite chapter was How To Apply Eyeliner While Driving on the Turnpike but I digress. Back to the journey.

Why am I here?
Why did I leave?
What am I doing?
What am I THINKING??!

Therein lies the point. I wasn't thinking.

I fell in love.

Today is the first full day of what we are calling our "Grand Adventure."
Two people newly in love, taking a risk, breaking tradition and allowing ourselves to simply be happy. All we know is that happy means together.
So here I am.
A long way from home.
And to find a new home with this man in New England and begin our summer adventure....exploring what it means to be in a relationship of many unknowns based on the one thing we do know.
The most important thing.

Today I watched the sunrise
on The Delaware Bridge.
I crossed the George Washington like a pro, lost my sunglasses in Greenwich Village (don't ask)and fell asleep in a traffic jam (that was chapter 12 of Hilton's book: How To Catch a Nap in the Accident Lane)
I saw concrete, grooved rocky pavement, developed lasting relationships with a few toll booth workers (I just wanted an interview for my blog! They were not amused), and learned why it is important not to change lanes in a tunnel while doing the pageant Queen parade wave.
Don't ask.

But I didn't really feel at home until I was driving the last two hours on I-91 and lo and behold, what a sight.

I saw trees.

....and mountains...

Big, beautiful, lush, green trees!

Just like home.

And lots of kudzu.
Everywhere! Who would have thought I'd be excited to see kudzu along the highway. But I was.

The sky was stunning in New England yesterday.

And then there's Boyfriend.  And our grand adventure. Fine-tuning a relationship and taking a leap of faith. Our first grocery shopping trip, our first twenty-four-seven-feeling, our first toothpaste lid conversation, our first summer together.

Our first fight.

After a thirteen-hour drive remembering a tearful goodbye with my son, my parents, my best friend and my colleagues, I was greeted by a man who handed me an envelope with a key and said  "Welcome home."
"You have trees!" I said.
"And there's something about this sky I really like.
And besides, you have trees ya know. " He looked at me with that "that's-not-what-I-expected- to-hear -look, understandably confused and a little puzzled. What was HE thinking?!
"And then there's you...... " I said, "there's always you."
Whew! That was a close one.

And if I ever get homesick I have this slide of Bloggingham, my home back in Banister. I'll just go for a walk. Want to join me?