The Never-Ending Drive

Day 1.
I left Tampa in the afternoon and arrived in Tallahassee around 3pm. I got to see my BESTIE ROOMIE Carley and spend the afternoon with her. We went on a date and it was lovely. We went to dinner @ Applebees. Her dad's a "po" and works security at the mall so then we got to see a FREE movie!! Dude, that's like an $8 savings - that's big news. We saw Angels and Demons (go see it...it was awesome). To complete the quintessential "date" we went out for Rita's Ice afterwards. They were actually about to close but we flirted and conned our way in and then got him to turn the custard machine back on. It was a necessity. And worth it. If you've never been to Rita's - a) where have you been? and b) nothing you're doing now is more important (i.e. this blog) so go!

Day 2.
The next morning began the most boring and one of the roughest days of my summer, no doubt. I woke up at 6am Florida time and Carley, the love of my life, baked me delicious blueberry muffins. By 7am - I was on the road embarking on an ALL DAY drive by myself. :'( According to Gertty (my Australian voiced Garmen GPS who was my only friend on this trip), I had a little over 13 hours to go to get to Lake St. Louis, MO. Here's the next few hours of my life - drive, music, drive, talk on the phone, drive, talk to myself, drive. Basically, boring. But for all you Gators out there - I do have a cool story! I stopped in Franklin, TN (happens to be Miley Cyrus' hometown in case anyone other than me cares hehe) at a random McDonald's for lunch. I saw a man with a Gators athletics polo on. Being in such need for human interaction (Gertty doesn't talk back in a timely manner), I approached him asking if he worked for UF. He said "no" but he used to work for the football team during Spurrior (moment of silence) and his wife used to play on the volleyball team in '92. I had a lovely lunch with a UF alum in a random city. All together now - "The Gator Nation is everywhere!" It was a bright moment in my day for sure.

After this...more driving. I cycled through all the music I own practically. I went through Hannah Montana, Backstreet, N'Sync, Amy Grant, Taylor Swift (through TN), Spice Girls, Wicked, Demi Lovato and more. My voice was hoarse by the end but it kept me awake. :) One hour before my arrival in Lake St. Louis...my phone died. Low battery combined with crappy reception finally did it in. But let me tell you - when I saw the St. Louis Arch - I almost cried with joy! Less than an hour later I was pulling into a nicely paved driveway in The Moorings in Lake St. Louis, MO. Seven states. 13 hours. 1,000+ miles. I made it.

THANK YOU to everyone who talked me through this wretched day. I still can't feel my butt, but I am alive and that's because I had you to help me pass the time. I am proud to report no accidents, no tickets and no picked-up hitch-hikers along this journey. Phase 1=Complete. Now I'm spending Memorial Day weekend at Amy's parents' lake house. (Special shout-out to my Uncle "UG" who's requested commendation.) I plan to relax, recover and enjoy it before my cousin and I embark on Phase 2 of this road trip...all the way to Los Angeles, CA!!! Can't wait!