Heavy rains poured down around the car as I drove along the New Jersey Turnpike. Kathy was asleep beside me snoozing lightly as she nestled into the pillow crooked between her neck and the window.
How did we get here? Why were we driving through the cold rain of New Jersey?
It started back on the island of Oahu. Kathy and I felt a bit of the "Island Fever." That's a condition main-landers get when they feel cramped. Cramped by the tightness of being confined to a space that you can drive in 1/2 a day. It's not dramatic. It's hard to describe as it closes in around you like an invisible python slowly, and quietly sucking the breath out of you. It is a sense of needing ... well, needing more space; needing old friends; and needing family. The locals here know of it and have had it described to them but they don't really understand it.
We could feel it and when David Horton announced his wedding plans and suddenly we found some synergies that could not be avoided. The strategy was set! We would fly to Massachusetts, drive to Virginia, and drive to North Carolina! This would allow us to visit friends and family and still attend a wedding. Excellent!
A few months later, we heard that David was NOT getting married. Naturally, the questions crashed down upon us from friends and family. Are you still coming? Does this mean you're changing your travel plans? Can you stay with us longer? Is Krista coming? What about Tucker, where is he in all this? Will Matt come to Virginia or North Carolina?
The island fever had us in its grips and we were going to the east coast just for ourselves.
Our first stop was Bellingham, Massachusetts where we stayed with Al and Barbara Horton (parents of David) and visited with friends from that area. The foliage colors had not yet left though they were definitely waning.
There were plenty of attractive young women to sooth David's lack of a wedding.
The parties at the Horton's house were fantastic. We got to spend time with old friends and watch the now grown kids play Beatles Guitar Hero among "other activities." I'm hoping Ryan is feeling better soon!
Seeing Matt was wonderful as always. He is so fun and recently also found a serious side ... but don't tell anyone. He took me to Patriot's Place and got me a discount. I got my first-ever, New England Patriots mesh shirt. When I'm around Matt, I just can't help but smile and laugh.
Bellingham was fun and frolic and then tears as we pulled out of the driveway and headed to Wilmington to see my family.
We ate very little for breakfast in preparation for an incredible meal in Essex at Woodman's Restaurant. It is the classic or quintessential fried clam palace. Mom, Dad, Kathy, Krista and I indulged in the fried clams, fried scallops, and onion rings. Gorged and stuffed, we wound our way to one of the local beaches on the Atlantic coast near Rockport. The sand there is so different from Hawaii. It is finer and compact. Of course, given that it was October, it was also colder!! We walked a bit and I took some pictures. The air was crisp, dry (despite the clouds) and fresh, it cleared out my lungs and felt very good.
We relaxed with Mom and Dad and slept soundly on the pull out couch. Nana and Grampa were thrilled to see Krista and it was too soon and she was on a flight back to Oahu. It's amazing how much she has grown in just a few short years.
We had food and more food as the Clearys (and Mannings!) gathered for authentic home made lasagna. It is always great to see my nephews. We played some ping pong and I lost ... someone must have gotten lucky! Jeanne was a whirlwind cooking this and cleaning that. Mom held court and revelled in having most of the family around her. Dad was Dad, offering me a beer or scotch and always seeing to my needs.
You can see my lovely bride charming the locals at dinner.
The ride through Connecticut, New York and New Jersey rained and rained. Plans for stopping in New York City just to see the big town (as compared to Honolulu) disappeared before we entered Connecticut. The drive was made even longer through our anticipation of seeing Tucker, the Berrians and the rest of our friends living in NoVA.
We got to the Berrians and reunited with Krista!
Gary and Ricia are tremendous hosts and have been hosting Tucker for a few months, now. We love them dearly even though they are from New York! I suppose the converse is true for them!
We had a party and invited a few people over the Berrian's house. Old neighbors and friends from work, Church or basketball who have wound their way into our hearts over the years were nice enough to show for laughter and fun. Steve, Waquar, and I shared scotch and attempted to smoke cigars. The cigars were not of high quality (my fault!) so they just smoldered and died. For the best, I guess.
After the party, Ricia and Gary took us over to the Zephania Vineyard where we toured the grounds and tasted some lovely wine.
Tucker seems very happy back in NoVA. He was kind enough to spend time with us and I drank in every moment.
In the end, the Brunswick stew was tasty and filling. I ate it for dinner for 3 days straight!
It was wonderful to see Cindy, Donna, Rich, Keith, Susan, Mom and Dad and the list goes on and on but before we seemed to blink an eye ... we were back on an airplane bound for Oahu.
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