The Great Road Trip

This afternoon Tiffin and I are hitting the road in the orange van.  For Virgina Beach.  I'm teaching at Art and Soul this Sunday, taking classes all day Friday, and participating in vendor night Saturday PM.   We are very excited about the potential this road trip has for junking along the way, catching up, deliberating life goals and all that other sorta gossip women folk discuss in length when given a rather lengthy period of uninterrupted time. 

This is the longest road trip I have ever taken.  Well, I guess I should count the time my parents drove me to Lynchburg, VA for my freshman year at Randolph-Macon Women's College in 1990.  Pretty sure they came to pick me up too.   But since that was like 23 years ago it kinda slipped my mind.  Anyhoo.....over 10 hours in the orange van.  It's ready by the way.  I took it last week for an oil change and they found a tiny injury.  Ironically enough I'd been complaining of this noise on the passenger side for like 2 years.  I'd taken it to literally 4 places asking about the noise and NO one could figure it out.  Basically said I was a crazy art lady hearing things.  Well, turns out I am not crazy (well maybe a little).  It is actually the lower ball joint. Yeah.  So when the Quick Lube guy was changing my oil he yells up from the pit, "Mrs. Horne!  You been hearing any sorta popping noise on the passenger side when you turn?"  Um YES FOR LIKE 2 YEARS!  He says back, "OH, well it's just a ball joint, needs to be replaced.  Boot is broken off completely."  Me, "Really????  I've taken this thing to literally 4 places and no one could figure it out.  And you, the quick lube guy figured it out in 5 minutes????"  "Yep, Mrs. Horne.  Want us to fix it for you?"  Umm..yeah.  So a mere $400 later we are rolling.  Yes, orange van should really be yellow.  Because since buying it I've about replaced everything in it including a windshield (which leaks).  But I love it so and all that it can hold.  And since we are hitting every thrift shop from Atlanta to Virgina Beach it's a good thing it has a large marge back end.

So send some safe travel love our way.  We are breaking the trip up to and from.  The retreat itself is so fun I can't wait to get there and see all the friends Mailey and I made last year again!  I'll be back next week with a re-cap of the adventures we have along the way.  Because with me, and driving...there's always an adventure.  Don't tell Tiffin that.  We wouldn't want to worry her.  Right?