Ed and I have just returned home after a week in Greenville, North Carolina where he reconnected with a college friend from Kenyon. These were fine people, we got along well, and I liked them a lot. The feeling seemed to be mutual. He is a retired cardiologist and is teaching at East Carolina University. He gave us a tour of the medical compound. It is huge. This was also the week when students were returning for the fall semester. 28,000 kids were descending on the town from everywhere. There were long lines at the frat houses.

We had a hard time finding the hotel because road names change without warning. You are on Allen and suddenly it's Greenville. One intersection had the same sign for the cross street. So we dallied at the intersection of Stantonsburg Road and Stantonsburg Road. WTF? Once we got to the town, there were few numbers on the buildings. I annoyed Ed by updating him from the GPS on my smart phone, but it was so much fun. Where are we now, I would ask Siri and “she” never failed me. Ed would want to know how far we had come and would say subtract 238 from 407 and I’d ask Siri.

Ed’s cousin minded the house and took care of the cats, but was not able to give Ziggy his med cream for infected paws. Ziggy did not do well, has lost more fur, has sores, is chewing his denuded tail, and it is bleeding all over the house including on the carpet. He wouldn’t come out when I called to him. Finally he emerged, we reconnected and he purred, but he is not well. Max was also aloof to start and now loves me again and lingers around my foot. We will take Ziggy back to the vet, but that, in itself, is a traumatic experience for him. I am really worried we are losing him.

Our first stop was Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, where I had my yearly check-up. It went well. I am clear. But we didn’t get on the road north till 3:30 and could only drive 4 hours because we did not want to search for a motel after dark.

We zipped through Georgia, but getting out of South Carolina was a nightmare. It took all day. The roads were lined with dense growth of loblolly pines. Have never seen so many trees in my life. Our hotel in Greenville, NC was the Hampton Inn, owned by Hilton. Ed had asked for disabled conveniences because his balance is bad. This translated into a shower with a floor that was level with the rest of the room – no lip. There was an undetected leak under the sink, so we had a flood. After the hotel sent a plumber, that was cleared up, and I had a shower. There was a stationary shower head that was difficult to position and was pointed straight at the curtain. It was probably just as well that something was wrong with it and it only dripped, instead of shooting straight out toward the center of the room. Did I mention there was no lip? The other shower head was hand held and could not be positioned so one could stand under it. I found this awkward. Ed said he only uses one hand to wash his hair. Well, bully for you, said I. There was a pull-down seat. I’m not there yet.

The hotel had a fitness room and I used the treadmill. I used the “quick start” button, set the speed, but the incline wouldn’t respond so I worked without one. It had a TV and there was a picture but no sound. Later I learned I needed headphones, but there was no sign saying so or pointing me to where I could ask for them. So I did deep breathing and free associated. A woman next to me spent an hour running at 7 miles an hour. Awesome.

Friends had said we had to stop in Savannah because it is so beautiful. But Ed, as always suffering from lead dog syndrome, didn’t want to stop. So we didn’t. We managed our on-the-road lunches by eating at Cracker Barrels. These were always mobbed. But the food is good, the staff is super nice, and the store is interesting.

I have been getting e mails from our various stops to provide feedback on services. My main complaint about all hotels, past and present, is that they expect a woman to do make-up in the bathroom by standing and leaning toward the mirror. I am under 5 ft, have to stand on tiptoe and still can’t get close enough to see what I’m doing, and I like to sit anyway. So I dragged the desk chair into the bathroom at one place, and used my traveling magnifying mirror. At the Hampton Inn, I just used the desk in the room which had a good lamp. I want to ask my female MyBloggers friends to tell me if they stand up to do make-up. This lack of attention to women’s needs is ridiculous.

Our last hotel stop was Friday night at the Fairmont in Jacksonville, Florida. It was decent enough but the sign on our floor pointing to the “ice and vending machine" room was misleading since only ice was offered. Ed was drinking a lot of Coke/Pepsi so he had to make do. I used up all our singles getting $2 drinks out of machines here and there. The next morning at the free breakfast (all hotels these days are offering free breakfast), I looked for water to take my one med. Only hot water at the coffee station. A staff lady was kind enough to give me a bottle of water. The Fairmont offered Medium Coffee, Decaf and hot water for tea. I refrained from telling them that at the civilized Hampton Inn, the coffee selection included an urn labeled Robust!

Maybe there are still bellmen to help travelers with luggage at big hotels in major cities, but the places you stop in when you are on the road only offer you a large cart and you do your own loading and unloading and maneuvering that sucker with wheels that don’t track well into the elevator and up to your room. If your stuff is heavy, that’s a bummer.

Moving on. Please tell me why, no matter how expensive your car is, nor how many bells and whistles it has, THERE IS NO PLACE TO PUT TRASH. Ed drapes a grocery bag over the shift lever and it dangles on the passenger side. They have made room for drinks between the seats but no way to eat a sandwich except in your lap. Go over a bump and you get mustard on something. There are no built in pull-out trays. Zip, zilch.

I was going to get up at 5 and use use the fitness room before getting on the road again, but I was getting a sore throat, so I gargled with Listerine, and skipped the workout. This worked and I was okay. Listerine is magic.

We are supposed to have a weekend away at the end of the month. We are flying to New York City and renting a car to drive to Hudson, NY to attend the 70th birthday party of Ed's best friend and former business partner. We are surprising him. What fun. There is no direct flight to Albany, and layovers are hours long. I am better prepared for it, having done this trip, but since I am so worried about Ziggy, I’m wondering if I will go.

xx, Teal