Seeking The Prize

Up early after a great sleep last night, I was showered and fed before 7:30.  The dense fog and 

morning rush hour traffic on Interstate 26-East kept me in the motel room until 9 a.m. By then, the fog hadn't cleared much but the traffic was definitely lighter.

First thing after getting back on the highway, there was a long, slow construction zone.  I had a few moments to peek on the side of the road for Palmetto Palm trees: no luck!  No palm trees!

Sign on I-26E, just before Exit 129: "Shine Town Moonshine, Exit Now for local liquor, wine and gifts."  "Moonshine" used to be home-made, quite illegal, years ago. When I lived in Hazard, Perry County, Kentucky, deep in the mountains, our friend the State Trooper spent many a day chasing and arresting moonshiners.  Maybe Shine Town Moonshine is a legal brand these days.

Passing by Orangeburg, South Carolina, the very flat landscape is evident. And it is greener than in the north, with some of "fall" visible in a few orange trees.

The morning started out at 54 degrees outside.  At 10 o'clock, it was 70 degrees, pleasantly warm.  Even the fog had cleared, the clouds have parted, and I put on my sunglasses due to the bright sunshine.

Exit 145: sign for the FATZ cafe.  Is this a South Carolina chain?  10:06: the first Spanish moss in the trees: I enjoy the graceful draping and swaying in the wind.

10:10: it was 73 degrees!  I thought I'd have to wait until May to feel this warmth again!

Next came the turn-off to Interstate 95-South.  It's 95 miles to Savannah, Georgia! Making good progress toward my goal today.

Exit 53: Sign for Hobo Joe's Discount Fireworks.  Just what we need: a discounted way to hurt ourselves!  I'm always a bit sarcastic about fireworks; our hospital emergency room was always full of kids hurt by fireworks on the Fourth of July.

There's a sign advertising Blufton, South Carolina, a beautiful town. You need to go there!  191 miles left to travel on I-95.

Here's something new: Sunshine Solutions: Car Crushing On Site.  Hope I don't ever need that service!

Another sign: www.55places.com.  I'll admit to being over 55 years old!  Maybe I'll check it out!

The sign advertising, "Your adventure awaits in Hardeeville" shows an alligator head emerging from a lake.  I haven't thought about alligators since my trip to Hilton Head Island last winter!  It was very exciting looking for alligators everywhere - I figured there must be some since there were plenty of signs, "Please don't feed the alligators."  And on my last day I spotted plenty of small ones then the Big Cahuna, the mother, at least 10 feet long! (See this blog, March 30, 2014, "A Wild, Wonderful Discovery.)  I would be surprised to find alligators on this trip.

A sign for Titusville advertises the Space Center.  This is another "must see" destination.  You won't be disappointed, I promise!  I went there last year and it felt like going to outer space!  Titusville is on the Atlantic coast of Florida, sort of halfway down the long state.  I suggest you look online for tickets and get them long before you plan to go.  It's a very popular tourist place, well worth a trip.

Exit 28: Jasper's Front Porch Lakeside Dining.  I wish I had time to check out all the interesting places!  "Visit Tybee Island" (Georgia).  I've heard this is a really nice place and there's a grand lighthouse I'd like to see.  Exit 18: Bus Creek Road.  No wonder I was getting hot: it was 79 degrees outside!  Yay for going south!

Exit 8: Hilton Head Island.  I have such wonderful memories of the beach, the ocean, the sand, the birds, from going there the last two winters.  You would love it!

There's the first sign to my destination: Jacksonville, Florida: 146 miles.  Distance from home in Lexington, Kentucky to Jacksonville: 735 miles.  Now I found palm trees in the median and side by an interchange, but they were not Palmetto Palms.

11:30: Welcome to Georgia, Georgia on My Mind.  The Georgia Welcome Center is big, grand, and spacious, including a truck stop.  They have everything except a McDonald's restaurant which I'm looking for. I'm glad I stopped: the next rest area is 71 miles down the road!  I've parked close to a grove of trees just filled with large black birds squawking very loudly.  Crows?  I actually took off my sweatshirt in the heat!

Well, somebody's gotta win, right?

FYI: Going to a long line of stalls in the rest area bathrooms?  Research shows that the cleanest stall is THE FIRST STALL.  Apparently, everyone thinks that everyone uses the first stall and most avoid it.  It's usually open - I use it!

There is no end to the fun things you can see and do on a trip!  At the McDonald's off I-95, I was just sitting, finishing off my cheeseburger and what pulls up in the next door gas station: a truck pulling a Funnel Cake van!  (Have YOU ever seen a funnel cake van?)

Where's this big van headed?  A local craft show?  A state fair?

Over on the other side of the road is the entrance to the Air Force Museum.  Just before I turned off I-95 was a big jet in a display.  I couldn't snap a photo while driving - besides, you know what these big Air Force jets look like!  I love all the giant military planes.  My dad used to take us to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in the spring for the annual show.  My brothers liked to climb in the cockpit of some of them at the museum near Dayton, Ohio.

I almost took time to visit this today!

Exit 87: Peach World and also El Cheapo Gas, $2.75/gallon.  I crossed the Jerico River in Liberty County, across a very long bridge over the marshes, nearly full with grass.

Exit 49: Blackbeard's Restaurant.  I wonder if Blackbeard himself is still there?  The next sign for this restaurant advertises Peach lemonade and Grouper Sandwiches.

I passed over Cathead Creek and Bull Creek.  There seemed to be plenty of creeks in this area!  Sign: Mr. Peaks Pecans and Gas.  What a combination!

Starting at the bridge over the Turtle River, there was a very heavy rainstorm.  But I managed to spot a sign, "Wet Your Beaks, Florida Welcome Center 7 miles."  A few miles down the road, "Stretch Your Legs, Florida Welcome Center."

Oh, terrific!  Two actual TORNADO WARNINGS! came over my iPhone.  Yet the local radio said they were tornado "watches."  Only twenty miles to go, I can make it!

1:41 p.m., "Welcome to the Sunshine State!" (Florida) It is dark and rainy but I'm here!

The bridge into Jacksonville, Florida, appeared even more taller in the rain and fog!  Traffic was stopped on the other side at the very top of the bridge's arc.  There was a car, several police cars and a rescue squad blocking traffic.  Farther down the bridge,  Oh, my gosh: there's a tractor-trailer turned on its side on top of the guard rail!  Traffic was backed up on the other side for as far as I could see!

The awesome bridge leading into Jacksonville, Florida, in the rain and fog, 11-17-14.

It was 2:30 p.m. when I arrived in Jacksonville. Since the car's gas tank light was flashing "empty!", I HAD to search for a gas station.  When I finally left the Interstate to find one, I witnessed another car accident, a 'fender-bender," turning into the station.  In addition to car wrecks, the emergency crews had to deal with several stoplights out at major intersections due to the storm.  The rain lowered the outside temp to 66 degrees. The price for gas in Jacksonville: $2.69!  Cheaper than El Cheapo!!

Soon thereafter I reached my daughter #6, Patty's house, and found The Prize:

What a beautiful, precious, angel: 4-day-old Aditya Radesh, the sweet new grandbaby boy!

Me, the proud grandma, joined little "Adi," his sister, Mallory and brother, Johnny, their Mom and Dad, Patty and Raj, and Raj's parents who traveled here from India.

Father and son: One of my favorite photos!

Mallory with her bunny drawing.

Family times are the best!  Of course, I had plenty of time to hold little Adi, draw with Mallory, and play with Johnny.  I'll take more photos of the family tomorrow. We had a fun night playing games and a fine dinner.  I have to remember it's a regular school week for the children. Mallory and I made plans to do crafts tomorrow, to make Christmas ornaments after she comes back from school.