So long Mary Land

Our final journey from the Free State to the Great NC was about 180 degrees from every other trip we'd taken since moving to Maryland. Rather than pack the car the night before and wake up at 3 in the morning to avoid the DC/Richmond clusterfucks, we stayed up late Friday night to visit friends as part of out farewell tour of the Mid-Atlantic and finished packing in the morning.

There was more laundry than I'd realized, and we still had to clean the Undisclosed Location for our hostess. It didn't help that I still don't know how to properly set the alarm on my cellphone, leading us to wake up late.

We had brunch at 10 with Dr. Huxtable, Lawyergirl was visiting her family in PA, and said our goodbyes. He made a good point, that we shouldn't be sad about leaving since our friendship has reached the point where it can endure even great distances. A good note to leave Charm City on.

Of course, the city was more reluctant to let us go. We hit every single red light between the end of I-83 and the beginning of I-395 at Camden Yards. And away we went to the District to visit El Raton and D one last time.

We snacked on cheese, bread and coffee, enjoying lively conversation and preparing for Mexico. It was a fun time for all, complete with photos, and not a hint of sadness. After all, we lived on opposite sides of the country for three years. This is nothing new.

And so we hit the road in earnest this time, thinking that breaking up the drive would make it easier. But I-95 is the busiest highway in the US, and made sure to let us know that. It was stop and go from the Mixing Bowl almost all the way to Richmond, and we didn't get to Corncob until well after dark.

We arrived home to find that our dog does indeed remember us, but she's made herself a little friend in our absence. She plays with K's parents' new cat, who follows her around when they're not playing. They even got into the bed with us last night, the cat climbing all over us for quite a long time before settling in for the night.

We are disturbed by this new development.