Jan 11-12 - no snow on the dish !

Yes, there's no snow on the dish. I can actually access the internet in the early a.m. ... we must be in Florida ! Yes !

We arrived at 11:40 a.m. yesterday with the thermometer at 72F. It didn't take me very long to shed my jeans and change into shorts. Open-up was easier than when we arrived in the Fall, since we'd only been gone a month. There were no hurricane shutters to remove, the plants hadn't gone crazy in the meantime -- nor had they frozen, which they had last Christmas before we moved in !

Move-in is still a work in progress. At least this time our furniture is here, albeit a couple of rugs rolled up etc. I went over to Publix and picked up a couple of essentials, fired up the computer, put away all the junk unloaded from the car, that kind of stuff. Sandy had a short snooze -- these early mornings don't agree with her normal sleep patterns. We had pizza for dinner, easy.

The three day's drive went well. The first day was full of errands, of course, and a somewhat late arrival in Erie, as planned. The second day was just over 10 hours, getting us to Orangeburg in daylight. That was a treat for this time of year. I suppose that we could have gone further but it's half-way along I26 and a 5 hour shot to home so it works well.

The second day started out at 36F, actually warmer than when we'd pulled into Erie, by a few degrees. Once we headed south though, and climbed the hills taking us away from the Great Lakes, the temperature dropped into the mid 20's but the roads were ok the entire way. We saw some lingering snow in the woods along the road but no accumulation anywhere. By the time the rain started -- it did rain a lot of the day -- the temperature was over freezing, thank goodness. The sky cleared as we were getting close to our destination.

Boston's on Tuesday, right beside the hotel; Ruby Tuesday on Wednesday, right beside the hotel; pizza ... well, a couple of blocks away on Thursday. We had both grabbed lunch at the St. Lawrence Market on Tuesday, saving our pre-made sandwiches for the next day. Sandy ate her egg salad (she only eats those when traveling), and I had my ham in seedy home-made bread. I made two of those and opted to save one for the next day. I was feeling a little peckish later so I had a hunk of banana bread. Yes, it was a hunk, because I had not sliced it ! Yesterday, just prior to arriving at home, I had the second sandwich. Sandy had a cheese sandwich after we arrived.

Aren't these food details interesting ? It just goes to show you how boring our life is. Abby, on the other hand, gets a small piece of whatever I'm eating as we're driving, so she gets more treats on the road than at home. When I open a sandwich she gets a small piece, another piece as I start the second half and then a piece at the end. These are 3/4" square pieces, nothing big. I simply tear off a small piece, reach backwards and she gently, without even touching my fingers, removes the offering. It's so funny.

So we're here. What's next, well the start of my cycling season of course ! Sandy is going to wash the living room floor so that we can lay the carpet.

I left the Christmas lights on for one more night but will turn them off later today. I may or may not actually remove them today but will in the next couple.

Onward.