Road Trip

Monday 9/8 we left for my Dad’s place in Virginia Beach. Sharon dropped the girls off at Carl’s on Saturday and we packed the car (her car) Sunday night for an early -6AM- start. The drive up was un-eventful and we drove with the top down until lunch; after lunch it was top up and A\C.

Tuesday we started the day at Greenie’s restaurant and then visited Aunt Jody and Uncle Jack and both are doing well, although Uncle Jack is on full time oxygen now, while we were there Leslie came over for a few minutes. And when we arrived back at my Dad’s Leslie was there working in the garden and Leslie and I had a nice chat.

Wednesday we drove to the old neighborhood and tried to find the yellow house (my sister and I always named the houses we lived in) and Granny’s house. We also went by Simonsdale Elementary, where I went to fifth and sixth grades, and the Beezley Community Center. The pool at Beezley is now a parking lot and the school was in the process of being torn down. Progress I suppose, although I can understand why a single story school was torn down, it was a shame to see an asphalt patch in lieu of the pool. After the nostalgia trip we went to visit Aunt Mardy and Uncle Tunie. Both of them are doing well also, we had coffee, cookies, and talked about old times. I lived with them for a while as a child and I remember just brief moments of that period. I do remember the house was in the country and on a dirt road. While we were there Roger popped over for a few minutes. I also found out one of my cousins –Sharon- owns, Porky’s, a BBQ restaurant in Capron just outside of Emporia, VA. I remembered seeing the sign on the way to my Dad’s and on the way home I left a note for my cousin, though I haven’t seen her in decades.

Thursday Sharon (Sharon the wife, not Sharon the cousin) and I went to Williamsburg with a side trip to Ft. Monroe. We drove around old fort and found the hospital where I was born. Williamsburg was nice and we walked around the town quite a bit. I went years ago when I was in elementary school, but of course it has changed quite a bit since then. Sharon enjoyed it though.

Friday was another early start and we left VA Beach about 5:50 or so and drove home, thankfully, another un-eventful trip although in NC we had to stop and put the top up and because of rain.

And as always it was nice to be to be home and though the trip was a long drive up and back it was well worth it to spend a few days with my dad and to see some of the aunts, uncles, and cousins. It’s an odd feeling to see them after so many years of separation and each time I visit I learn more and more about that side of the family. It’s also odd to have grown up in that area and to have lived so near to cousins my own age and not know any of them. Even though we moved to Atlanta quite some time ago, via a couple of years at Miracle Hill, it’s strange to have had so many cousins so close and growing up with out any contact.